Kīngitanga Day details announced

April 6, 2011

On Thursday April 14 the University of Waikato will celebrate Kīngitanga Day – an annual celebration of the university’s distinctive heritage, history and relationships.

Celebrations will begin at 9am with a range of activities held throughout the day at the university’s Hamilton and Tauranga campuses. All activities are free and open to the public.

To kick off activities a range of presentations and seminars will be held across the university’s Hamilton campus. Presentations and seminars are presented by leading academics and guest speakers, including University Chancellor and former Prime Minister Jim Bolger, MP Dr Pita Sharples, Kīngitanga historian Rahui Papa and Ngāti Porou iwi-leader and Chairman of Te Matatini – New Zealand’s national kapa haka competition, Selwyn Parata.

Presentation and seminar topics range from an historical overview of Tainui and the connections between the Kīngitanga and East Coast tribe Ngāti Porou, to Māori political leadership and a business update from Tainui Group Holdings – the commercial arm of Tainui.

Haka and poi demonstrations will also be held along with weaving and craft workshops. Māori merchandise and food stalls, competitions and prize giveaways and a variety of entertainment are also planned.

Also on the day, the university is hosting a University Commercialisation Offices of New Zealand (UCONZ) event which will feature seminars and presentations from a range of speakers including MP Dr Wayne Mapp. The seminars and presentations will focus on Māori business with an emphasis on research and development opportunities.

In Tauranga, guest speaker Tame Pokaia, from the office of Kīngi Tuheitia, will give an insight into the Kīngitanga, one of the biggest Māori movements in New Zealand. His talk will focus on today's changing society and the impacts on the Kīngitanga as it moves forward. He is followed by Moera Anderson, a tā mako artist, who will talk about the theory of tā moko with a live demonstration.

Waikato University will also be holding a banquet hosted by the Vice-Chancellor Professor Roy Crawford and Pro Vice-Chancellor (Māori) Professor Linda Smith at the Academy of Performing Arts for Kīngi Tuheitia, who is due to spend the day on campus in Hamilton, and other invited guests.

Kīngitanga Day recognises the university’s distinctive connection with the Kīngitanga and Tainui. The university’s relationship with the Kīngitanga and Tainui has been a fundamental aspect of this university since its founding in 1964 and it is this distinctive connection that the university celebrates each year through Kīngitanga Day.

Download the full programme or visit the Kīngitanga Day website for more information.

ENDS

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