Reflections this Waitangi Day (2024)
6 February 2024Waitangi Day, as our National Day, is an important part of recognising the diversity of where we have come from and where we want to go as a nation.
For EHF, and like a lot of New Zealand organisations, Te Tiriti o Waitangi (the Treaty of Waitangi) is part of our constitution. It forms the basis of our core values: it is also important for a Fellowship of more than 50 different nationalities, whose diversity of mindset, culture and perspective is profound, and who are seeking to partner with Aotearoa NZ for global impact.
Since Waitangi Day last year we have welcomed over 150 Fellows to Aotearoa NZ. As a part of their immersive Welcome Experience, Fellows were introduced to Te Tiriti (the Treaty) and Te Ao Māori (Māori worldview), alongside our history and wider cultural context. The invitation is always to learn more, and understand what it means to walk in partnership as Tangata Tiriti (People of Treaty).
What is striking is how many Fellows view this as a powerful opportunity to learn new ways to address inequality and to think about their own histories and cultural contexts. The engagement on Te Tiriti - both its intent and its expression (including our process of redress) has been an important, positive and sometimes confronting opportunity for self-reflection. Many of our Fellows view Aotearoa NZ as progressive in this space and it has prompted them to examine their own country’s history and relationship with indigenous peoples. Fellows have also said the process of learning has deepened their engagement with this country, and helped them unlock a completely different perspective about a range of concepts including leadership, guardianship (kaitiakitanga) and multi-generational action. Last year the degree to which Te Tiriti and understanding biculturalism in Aotearoa NZ highly influenced Fellows’ work, increased to 50% (up from 29% the previous year)*.
This journey of learning and seeking to understand is future-focused: a way of navigating the present day and taking steps towards unlocking inequity.
Conversely, for some, the concept of New Zealand as a modern multicultural society founded on a bi-cultural nation fundamentally challenges their own perspectives on equality, which they find hard to reconcile.
The important point is that these conversations are had with grace, openness and empathy to others perspectives.
EHF has a big vision - co-created with Fellows - that Aotearoa NZ inspires global leadership and solutions for future generations, built on principles of Tangata Tiriti and the values of Sir Edmund Hillary. We see this as a weaving together of powerful strands of whakapapa (genealogy) and worldviews. To help us with this weaving, we are fortunate to have the wisdom of our iwi partners Te Āti Awa, Dinnie Moeahu (Trustee/Director - Kaupapa Māori), and Māori Fellows developing our Kawa and Tikanga.
I embarked upon 2024 with a sense of stubborn optimism. The kōrero (conversations) we have this Waitangi Day may not be comfortable: no matter where we sit in our perspectives, the debate will continue to challenge our worldview and embedded belief systems. I am hopeful that we will listen with curiosity and empathy, ask questions, share experiences and perspectives - and together create a powerful future.
-Rosalie Nelson, Chief Executive of Edmund Hillary Fellowship and Hillary Institute.
*Research note: 522 Edmund Hillary Fellows were invited to complete an Impact Survey administered by independent researchers, Curran Research Associates. 23% of Fellows partially or fully completed the survey (July/August 2023). All numbers relate to the 2022/23 Financial Year, are self-reported and represent only those numbers for up to N=118.
