Kāhu ki Rotorua: Te Rua Wallace's tie to awa breeds a warrior

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Na Mina Ponga no Whanganui te muri aroha

Ko nga korero tuku iho mo tonu tupuna kuia e kauawhiahi ana i te wai ora o Whanganui te take i timatangia ai ta Te Rua Wallace haerenga hai manu taiko mo te taiao e takoto nei. E rua tekau ma rima tona rahi , a, i whanau mai i pakeke mai i Te Rotorua nei. He Ngai Te Arawa, he Ngati Tuwharetoa, he Te Atihaunui-a-Paparangi ona kawai rangatira. " No Tuwharetoa te ingoa Wallace engari ko Ponga raua ko Taurerewa to matou aka whakapapa ki Whanganui, kaore au i mohio ki tera whanau no Rotorua oku paiaka".

Engari ko tona herenga wairua ki te awa o Whanganui e kaha akingia ai a Te Rua kia tu ia hai waha korero mo te iwi i te taha ki te whakahaere rauemi rawa me te ata whakatupato i te iwi ki nga ture kua whakaritea e te kawanatanga e twhakatu nei hai atawhai i te iwi - kaore ranei.

He kotahi noa te pepa e toe ana e oti rangatira i a ia tana tohu e wha tau te roa e ki a nei ko te tohu paetahi whakatakoto rautaki ma te taiao i te whare wananga o Waikato. Matua ka oti noa tana ako i te kakenga o Matariki ki te komata o te rangi a te Pipiri nei. " Kua wha tau nei ahau e ak ana engari no mai ke taku wairua mahaki ki te taiao – i timatangia tenei haerenga aku i te tau e rua mano kotahi tekau ma waru".

Ko te nuinga o nga mahi he pepa whakaae e hangai ana ki te ture whakahaere rawa. " Ko Pip Wallace toku pouako matua me Sylvia no Parihi tenei tangata kauwhau. Te rangatira hoki o nga waha kauwhau he ahakoa kaore kau ana tetehi o ratou he Maori engari ko to ratou wairua he rite tahi nei ki a tatou , he aroha tohukihuki ki a tatou nga tauira Maori me to tatou matauranga hoki – kia oti i a au taku pepa whakamutunga kua ea katoa nga taumahatanga – ko te nama o te tohu nei e toru tekau ma rua mano tara".

Na te awa o Whanganui ia i whakaakiaki ki a maranga tu me tona ao Maori, tona kuia, tana kura te whananu me ana hoa huhua hoki. " He tini ke noa atu nga take i whai kaha ai taku wairua ki tenei huarahi, ko taku whakapakeketanga i te ao Maori nei, ko te kura, he whakarongo kau naku ki nga korero tuku iho a toku kuia( te maia hoki o tenei wahine me tona ngakau tuwhera ki te mana o Whanganui). Na Mina Ponga no Whanganui te muri aroha me te matauranga i whakato ki nga whatu koko o te iwi o Whanganui, korero hangai tika hoki ki te awa o Whanganui. He wahine kauawhiwhi wai me nga korerotanga ake no Whanganui he pena rawa ia ki nga pakeke katoa tenei momo wairua he manaaki. Ka maranga wairua tu ahau i te atatu me taku aroha nui ki te taiao, anei he mohio noku nona tenei aroha. Ara ano, nana e manawa kiore ana i te hohipera nana ano ia i whakawatea kia tae ke ia ki te tira hoe (he kaupapa nui ka whakahaerengia ia huringa kaupeka ka hoea e nga whanau katoa te taha maui o te awa whaihoki ka tu ki ia pa taunaha ki te whakahonohono ano ki nga ahika) ka pau pea te rua wiki te roanga o tenei kaupapa.
Timata ai i Taumarunui ka mutu ki te tumu i Whanganui. Kaore tetehi o tatou i kaha ki te whakanoho i a ia, na reira ka tukuna noatia kia haere i tana haerenga, he wahine rangatira mo tana awa te take. Kati ka oti i a ia tenei kaupapa ka ora itiiti nei engari i whakarauorangia tenei kuia e tona awa tapu i kite ahau i tena mana".

" Na reira e tika ana ko toku kuia te ikeiketanga o oku whakaaro nui, na reira aku aronga atu ki te taiao me te awa". He tauira tawhito ia na Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Ruamata ka nui hoki tana noho i te hapu o Ngati Uenukukopako, " He pou tawhito ahau ko te nuinga o taku oranga no reira, mai te kura o Ruamata ki Toi Ohomai me taku aronga ki nga mahi toi me te auaha, na wai ra ka rupeke atu hai poumahi ma Inez White, he mahi whare te kaupapa". Me te mea hoki nga wananga rangatahi e whia ke hoki. " He kaha noku ki te hakoke whenua i taua wa hoki ka tirohia e ahau tenei whenua o tatou mai te hiku ki te pane o te ika whakawhiti atu ki te waka o Maui, a, katahi ka haere ki Kanata me Te Papa Takaro o Te Arawa. " Noku hoki te maringi nui i haere ahau me te Moko Foundation he kaupapa na Dr Lance O'Sullivan i taki ki Niu Ioka haere kau matou ki te Whakapuakitanga o te Runanga Whakakotahi i nga Iwi o te Ao mo nga Tika o nga Iwi Taketake, he kaupapa nui ki ahau.

"E hangai pu ana ki oku matapono otia ki toku wairua hoki. No te wa i hoki mai oku tapeha tata ki Rotorua nei, katahi ahau ka nanao atu ki oku iwi ki a Ngati Pikiao me Ngati Hinekura – na to ratou hokitanga mai kua mauri tau taku noho ki nga tahataha o Te Rotoiti. Kai Rotorua a Te Rua me tona hoa rangatira a Te Maiora Rurehe, no Ngai Tuhoe me Tuhourangi ia, e noho ana. Me tana hononga pakari nei ki nga maunga otia nga wai o te takiwa e takoto nei he mea e kore e taea te wewete. Ka kore ia e whakaputa ingoa o te hunga nana ia i whakatangata e kore e taea i te wa itiiti nei, me penei ke tana ki, ko te katoa o taku pa harakeke nana ahau i poipoi". Ko te pae tawhiti hai tana, ko te aro ki nga iwi taketake, kia tupu matomato kia rearea hoki. Me tona hiahia ki a korero Maori hoki ana tamariki kia eke taumata momona te hauoratanga o Whanganui.

— Na Raimona Inia i whakamaoritia tenei purongo.

Te Rua Wallace connecting with her environment. Photo / Supplied

Stories of her great grandmother cradling wai from the Whanganui River, sharing korero with it helped set Te Rua Wallace on her journey as a champion and warrior for the Taiao.
Te Rua, 25, was born and raised in Rotorua and affiliates to Te Arawa, Tuwharetoa, Te Atihaunui-a-Paparangi.

"Our Wallace name is from Tuwharetoa, but our Whanganui connections are the Ponga and Taurerewa. I never grew up there, born and raised in Rotorua."

But it is her relationship and connection to the Whanganui River which inspired Te Rua and pushes her to seek more say for iwi in the management of resources, and whether legislation really supports the Māori view.

Te Rua has just one paper to complete her four-year Bachelor of Environmental Planning from Waikato University. That paper will be finished in time for the Māori new year in June.
"I have been studying it for the past four years but have always been passionate about the taiao. I started in the Māori new year 2018."

Many of the assignments were consents to do with the Resource Management Act.

"My main lecturer was Pip Wallace, and a Brazilian lecturer Sylvia.

"[I had] great lecturers none of whom are Māori but are pro Māori, very encouraging of Māori students, and matauranga Māori.

Te Rua was inspired by the Whanganui River, te ao Māori, kuia, kura, whānau, and hoa.

"There were multiple things: My upbringing in te Ao Māori, at kura, hearing stories about my great grandmother (who was a very passionate lady about Whanganui). Mina Ponga from the Whanganui instilled a lot of aroha and matauranga into the people of Whanganui, specific to the river.

"She used to cradle the wai and korero to the river (a connection and relationship) with our river as many of the old Maori did.

"I woke up one day loving taiao and now I think about it, it has stemmed from her.

"I do know that when nanny was in hospital, and during her last days here on this earth, she discharged herself to get onto the Tira Hoe, (an annual kaupapa where all the uri come together and paddle the left-hand side of the awa, stopping at the different pa sites along the way) which usually takes around two weeks.

"We start in Taumarunui and finish in Whanganui. Nobody wanted to tell her she couldn't, so they just let her do it.

"Haha he wahine rangatira mo tana awa. When she made the trip, she lived abit longer than what was expected after going back on her awa.

"So, kuia was my pin drop into my choices in what I wanted to. The environment itself and the river."

Te Rua attended Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Ruamata and spent a lot of time at Uenukukopako. "Been there my whole life ... from Ruamata I studied at the polytechnic [Toi Ohomai] studying art and fashion, and then went to work for Inez White, doing housing alongside her."

And a lot of rangatahi wananga.

"I travelled a lot during that year, around the motu, to the top of the North Island, went down south, went over to Canada with Te Papa Takaro o Te Arawa. Also got the opportunity to go over to New York with the Moko Foundation that was led by Dr Lance O'Sullivan. We went to the United Nations for the Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous People, which is something I am into.

"It's all a part of me and my upbringing.

"When my cousins moved to Rotorua that's when I started connecting with Ngati Pikiao, Hinekura.

"Since they moved back here, I've always spent my time around Rotoiti.

Te Rua and partner Te Maiora Rurehe (Tuhoe, Tuhourangi) live in Rotorua. She also feels a connection with the mountains and lakes of Te Arawa.

She couldn't name just one person who has helped in her journey.

"Te katoa o taku pa harakeke."

For Te Rua the future looks indigenous, abundant and green.

She wants her tamariki to be fluent te reo Māori speakers, the Whanganui River to be at its highest level of health and well-being.

"Hopefully throughout my time, wanting to get a better understanding how iwi, sit within the resource management acts, are we really supported?

"What does that look like, what are the challenges that iwi face within the environmental space, and where can improvements be made. My degree was more prepping us as if we were going to work for government.

"The work I'm doing now wasn't taught in my degree ... so that's a big learning curve.

"Looking forward maybe finding a solution to changing the way the degrees are structured in a sense to better prepare our tauira, so that we are taught how to work for Maori entities specifically, because at the moment it's all for councils or private consultancies."

And her advice for future generation?

Mau ki to reo ki to ahurea Māori.