Community Voices is our new webinar series where we invite people to kōrero with us on belonging and inclusion related topics. It’s about amplifying the voices and views/whakaaro of different communities from across the motu. 

Tūrangawaewae is one of the most well-known and powerful Māori concepts. Literally tūranga (standing place), waewae (feet), it is often translated as ‘a place to stand’. Tūrangawaewae are places where we feel especially rooted, empowered and connected. They are our foundation, our place in the world, our home.

Our first five webinars for 2022 are on the topic of  What’s Your Tūrangawaewae? where we gather a group of people from the community to share the stories of their tūrangawaewae.

Before the webinar each guest was given the following questions to reflect on:

1. What is your Tūrangawaewae?
2. Does this concept exist in your own culture? Yes/No and why
3. What words or icons do you use to describe this concept?

A big mihi to our voices from the community:

• Helen Yeung: Hi I’m Helen Yeung. I am a Hong Kong-Chinese feminist researcher, community organiser, activist and zine maker based in Tāmaki Makaurau, and currently in Guåhan (Guam, Micronesia). I am completing my doctoral research at Auckland University of Technology under the School of Communications Studies, with a focus on Asian migrant women, and digital forms of storytelling. I am also the founder of Migrant Zine Collective, a zine collective which aims to amplify the voices of migrant communities through activism, self-publishing and arts-based practices
• Leo Magri: Hi I’m Leo Magri. I was born and raised in Sao Paulo, Brazil and have been lucky to be living in Whitianga, New Zealand, since 2014. I am the Arts Administrator and Drum Tutor at the Mercury Bay Area School, and my passion for working with communities motivated me to start the online platform ALTBAYS.NZ. I host the ALTBAYS Show three times per week, chatting with interesting people from our area among the many cool things we do.
• Yasmene Shah: Hi, I’m Yasmene Shah. I’m originally from the UK, but currently living in Dunedin. I’m half Pakistani, half Irish and a freelance medical writer (basically I write about diseases and medicines). I work from home.
• Malu Malo-Fuiava: Talofa lava, my name is Malu Malo-Fuiava. I’m a New Zealand born Samoan currently living in West Auckland, but have moved all over Auckland growing up. I work at Belong Aotearoa as the Marcomms and Fundraising Manager.