Waatea News Update

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Location: Auckland, New Zealand

Monday, August 03, 2009

New Zealand rates high in green fisheries

The chief executive of Te Ohu Kaimoana says Maori should take heart from a new study showing New Zealand's fisheries are among the healthiest in the world.

The Rebuilding Global Fisheries report published in the international journal, Science gave only New Zealand and Alaska the top "green" rating.

Peter Douglas says Maori have a major stake in the industry because of Sealord fishing rights settlement two decades ago, which embedded New Zealand's quota management system.

“It's encouraging for people to know we’re involved in the sort of foresight that this sort of work indicates. Most people make changes to their fishing regimes when there’s a disaster or a collapse of a fishery. I think we’re lucky to live n a country where that made decision about this 25 years ago, about better ways to manage things before there was a crisis,” Mr Douglas says.

He says the fishing industry is as much about marketing as harvesting, so the endorsement of New Zealand's green credentials should give Maori companies an edge in global markets.

MICROSFT OFFERS MAORI SKIN ON OPERATING SYSTEM

Software giant Microsoft has released a pack allowing users of its Windows Vista operating system to display menus, dialogs and messages in Te Reo Maori.

Spokesperson Anne Taylor says the free download includes grammar and language updates from the Maori language commission Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Maori.

She says it's a way for learners and speakers of Maori to stay ahead.

“It's hugely valuable for the continued preservation of the language, to grow it, to get more people using it, to get more people familiar with it, and it provides those people who want to use it and want to learn the ability to do that within their technological environment, so within their computers,” Ms Taylor says.

Microsoft Te Reo language packs are also available for Windows XP and Office 2003 and a pack is being developed for Office 2007.

FANTASY BOOK FOR TEENS IN TE REO MAORI

A Massey University Maori lecturer hopes his new fantasy novel written in te reo Maori will be the first of many in the genre.

Hewa by Darryn Joseph is set for distribution among the 116 Maori immersion schools.

Mr Joseph says he has aimed it at 11 to 14 year olds, but it could find a wider readership.

“I'm basically filling a gap where Maori writing is at a really young phase so there will be a next wave or generation of writers writing in Maori,” Mr Joseph says.

Successful learning is helped by children having course material that resonates with Maori values.

DIGGERESS TE KANAWA DIES AGED 89

The funeral of weaver Diggeress Rangituatahi Te Kanawa will be held this morning at Te Tokanganui a Noho Marae in te Kuiti.

The Ngati Maniapoto mother of 12, and her mother Rangimarie Hetet, are credited with the revival of traditional raranga, particularly the weaving of kakahu or cloaks.

Mrs Te Kanawa died on Thursday at the age of 89.

Bentham Ohia, the chief executive of Te Wananga o Aotearoa, says she played a major role in setting up weaving classes in the early days of the wananga, and was still teaching a year ago.

“She in essence was the backbone and her daughters and family have been the reason the wananga has been able to support the arts and produce a programme that allowed it to come out with a bachelor of raranga so words cannot express the depth of our aroha and gratitude to whaea Diggeress Te Kanawa and her contribution,” Mr Ohia says.

EDUCATOR WANTS LANGUAGE RETREAT IN TUHOE COUNTRY

A Ngai Tuhoe educator wants to create a language retreat near Whakatane.

Taiarahia Black, who holds the chair of te reo at Massey University, says Ohinemataroa, the ancient name for the Whakatane Rriver, is an ideal place to focus on the protection of the language.

The proposed retreat would target both competent speakers and learners.

He says it should be popular with city dwellers returning to an area where Maori is still widely spoken.

“This language retreat will serve that purpose, and when the language experts are in residence, then we can share in the delights of our language for day to day communication,” Professor Black says.

He got the idea after visiting Gaelic language retreats in Ireland.

WHIRIMAKO BLACK LAUNCHES WEB SITE TO DISTRIBUTE WAIATA

Meanwhile, a Tuhoe singer-songwriter has taken her reo and waiata to cyberspace.

Whirimako Black has launched an official website, whirimako dot org.

She says it's a way to make her music more accessible to fans, particularly the new audience she has picked up with her recent jazz influenced efforts.

It's also a way to control the information that goes aroung the world about her.

Whirimako Black will be experimenting with releasing her music by download from the site.

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