Pōkai Tuhi

Demand for Māori and Pasifika writers to visit and inspire kura and school students across Aotearoa through our Writers in Schools programme is stronger than ever, and we're growing more kaituhi to help serve this need. Pōkai Tuhi aims to mentor and equip Māori and Pasifika writers in both professional skills and engagement with kura/schools: and, in turn, to help strengthen the book ecosystem to produce more Māori and Pasifika writing and inspire more tamariki, rangatahi, and kaiako with Aotearoa’s stories.

The Māori kupu for the programme, Pōkai Tuhi, speaks to a flock of writers gathering together, which is the nature of the wānanga, and also relates to the Samoan proverb ‘E lele le toloa ae ma'au i le vai’, which reminds us that like the toloa bird, as storytellers and learners we should always remain home with our cultural roots intact, no matter where our journeys take us.

Supported by the Mātātuhi Foundation.

Participating writers: Te Kahu Rolleston, Brianne Te Paa, J. Wiremu Kane, Kiri-Michelle Mohi, Maria Samuela, Emele Ugavule, Danielle Thomson, Inangaro Vakaafi

The pōkai (flock) of writers and facilitators at Te Wānanga o Raukawa's Ngā Purapura