Kia ora e te whānau

A warm festive greeting from all of us here at Hokonui Rūnanga.

As we come to the end of another busy and rewarding year, we extend our warmest Christmas and New Year blessings to you all. 

Thank you for your support, your mahi, and your commitment to our people and our whenua throughout 2025. We hope this festive season brings rest, joy, and connection for you and your whānau.

We look forward to stepping into 2026 together, continuing the kaupapa that strengthens our rohe and our future.

Hokonui Rūnanga Christmas and New Year office closure dates

Our office will be closed from the 19th of December 2025 and will reopen on the 5th of January 2025. If you need to get in contact with us, please do this via email or Facebook Messenger.

Taurite Tū Creates Safe, Strengthening Spaces for Kaumātua Across Murihiku

From left to right: Elaine Weti,  Brenda Waitaiki, Vera Neho, Sylvie Boyes, Sandra Pewhairangi, Janice Wright, June Ratana, Rosie Hokianga, Josie Tuhakaraina, Sue Mulqueen

Photo credit: Jackie Tav Photographs.

Hokonui Rūnanga partnered with Taurite Tū Ltd to host the regional hui for the rohe on 5 November 2025. Around one hundred and twenty kaumātua attended the event, along with thirty-five kaimahi and three rangatahi supporting the wānanga. Kaumātua attended from Alexandra, Awarua, Hāwea, Hokonui, Invercargill, Ōtākou, Ōtepoti, Puketeraki, Tāhuna, Tokomairaro and Waitaki.

The wānanga opened at the Gore Multisports Complex with a mihi whakatau, whanaungatanga and kai. Kaumātua learnt six new strength and balance exercises (seated or standing), waiata and kēmu that Taurite Tū physiotherapists recently developed using feedback from kaumātua throughout the motu. Kaumātua also had time to try new equipment, learn waiata, connect with services, and enjoy additional whanaungatanga.

Kaimahi highlights were seeing kaumātua actively engage with health services — lining up to have their blood pressure taken and blood sugar tested, and asking lots of questions. When receiving the goodie bags, there was great excitement about the Colgate toothbrushes and Oral-B toothpaste provided by Te Hau o Te Ora. One person said, “It’s the really good toothpaste — go get a bag!”

Kaumātua feedback:

• “I enjoyed it — I really enjoyed it.”
• “Was great to meet new people and talk to old friends.”
• “It was good to connect with health services and learn.”
• “It’s great to learn new exercises and add them to class.

Reimagining Mataura – Strategy Wānanga Update

Hokonui Rūnanga attended the Reimagining Mataura Strategy Wānanga on Wednesday, 3 December 2025 at the Ascot Hotel. The day began with karakia, mihi whakatau, and welcomes from Terry Nicholas, with facilitation by Katerina Kupenga through a Te Ao Māori lens. The kaupapa focused on co-designing a 100-year strategic direction for the future of the Mataura River, supported by a strategic framework that includes a clear vision,  pou, Ngā Hua, and values.

Presentations were delivered by Dr Gail Tipa and Maria Pera on whānau livelihoods in a reimagined Mataura River, followed by Sarah Crooks, Sean Wilkins, and the PSG Reimagining Mataura team sharing insights from the Wilkins Family Farms shared projects. The group then moved into whakawhanaungatanga activities, exploring whakapapa, significant taonga, and stories that shape Mataura. Later sessions focused on surfacing shared aspirations for the next 100 years and beginning the design of the long-term strategy, including the vision, pou, tohu, and metaphors. The day closed with reflections and next steps.

 Kia Tū Programme - Celebrating our 2025 Graduates

On Friday 28 November, we celebrated the achievements of our most recent Kia Tū cohort, who began their journey on Tuesday 7 October. Thirteen students successfully completed their microcredential, marking an important step in finding life direction building their pathway to future employment.

Throughout the programme, students explored a range of industries and workplaces, including Naylor Love Construction, Invercargill Licensing Trust, Niagara, Mannaki Whitebait, Fonterra. They also visited the trades workshops at SIT, gaining hands-on insight into practical skills and possible career paths.

We are incredibly proud of this group. Many arrived unsure of their next steps, and it has been amazing to see their confidence grow, their willingness to try new things, and their commitment to the process. A special mention goes to those who challenged themselves to speak at the graduation. Your courage and confidence inspired everyone.

Some students plan to continue their studies at SIT in 2026 in programmes such as Digital Media, Cookery, and Construction, while others are pursuing opportunities in hospitality, teaching, automotive work, and more. Watching them gain clarity about their futures has been incredibly rewarding.

Looking back on 2025, it has been a fantastic year for Kia Tū. This programme was a new initiative built out of education workstream within Murihiku Regeneration. It is innovative in both its design and the rūnanga/tertiary education collaboration created to deliver it. Having our Ākonga access SIT campus experience alongside, regional workplaces has provided rich opportunities and experiences.

Our students visited workplaces across Southland, and we are grateful to all the organisations that hosted us, including Naylor Love Construction, Invercargill Licensing Trust, Niagara, Mannaki Whitebait, Foveaux Paua, Fonterra, Tiwai NZAS, Southport, Meridian, and Mercury, as well as the employers who have welcomed our graduates into their businesses. Thanks also to everyone involved. This has been a collaborative effort, and we truly appreciate the support that has helped make the programme a success for our students.

We are excited for 2026, with four cohorts scheduled across the year:

• 10 February to 2 April
• 21 April to 12 June
• 21 July to 11 September
• 13 October to 4 December

If you or someone you know would like to host a site visit, have employment opportunities available, or are interested in attending one of the 2026 courses, please get in touch. We would be happy to connect.

Paving pathways for future trades professionals — to get involved or learn more.

Contact Abby at adminkiatu@hokonuirunanga.org.nz and help inspire the next generation!

NZFSS Conference Update: Sharing Our Kaupapa Māori-led Kanakana Research

Luka Finn presenting Taonga Research’s mahi on kanakana at the National Conference in Christchurch, showcasing Indigenous-led innovation in freshwater restoration.

Kanakana (Geotria australis), also known as piharau or pouched lamprey, is a taonga species and traditional mahinga kai for Māori, now in serious decline across Aotearoa due to cumulative pressures including habitat degradation, climate stressors, and limited regulatory protection. In response, Hokonui Rūnanga has initiated a world-first kaupapa Māori-led programme combining mātauranga Māori, science disciplines, and international Indigenous partnerships to explore captive breeding and translocation as tools to revitalise wild kanakana populations.

At this year’s NZFSS conference, the Hokonui Rūnanga team presented an overview of this research, sharing preliminary findings and reflections from the early stages of the project undertaken with Plant & Food Research and the New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science. The team introduced the establishment of foundational tikanga and novel captive broodstock husbandry protocols developed specifically for kanakana.

Kanakana were hand-collected by whānau from the base of the Mataura Falls (Te Au-Nui-Pihapiha Kanakana) and transferred to a custom-designed aquaculture system developed at Hokonui Rūnanga. Where possible, techniques adapted from Pacific lamprey (Entosphenus tridentatus) conservation initiatives by Yakama Nation Fisheries and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation were applied.

The presentation highlighted early results, including monitoring of morphological indicators of sexual maturity, tank parameters, propagation techniques, and the early challenges faced in water quality control and disease prevention. These lessons reinforce the importance of Indigenous-led design, intergenerational capability building, and the emerging aquaculture bottlenecks for this taonga species.

This kaupapa Māori research approach is not only addressing urgent conservation needs for kanakana but also generating transferable insights for other culturally significant freshwater taonga species. It demonstrates how freshwater restoration initiatives can be reshaped through Indigenous values and innovation, while strengthening relationships across the community.

RMA Training Strengthens Staff Capabilities

From left to right: Louise Dennison, Hannah Thorburn, Hamish Barrell, Alana Bensemann, Mollie Lyders & Sam Srimanthula

The Hokonui Rūnanga Kaupapa Taiao Team recently completed an RMA training series delivered by Hamish Barrell, whose extensive planning experience and clear, practical teaching style made the sessions highly valuable. The programme covered the origins, purpose and principles of the RMA; certificates, designations and consent pathways; preparing applications and Assessments of Environmental Effects; council auditing and s42A reporting; Mana Whakahono ā Rohe, transfers of powers, submissions and hearings; and key topics related to upcoming RMA reform. This upskilling enhances our ability to engage effectively with councils and agencies, advocate for whānau and our taiao, and contribute proactively to regional planning and environmental decision-making.

Hokonui Locality Community-Led Health Updates

Kaumātua Christmas Celebration 2025