In this unique Wānanga you will experience the incredible potential of Atua Matua as a framework to enhance the recreation and outdoor education opportunities for your communities.

Discover how the health of our people and places can begin with connections to the environment. Join us for a life-changing journey into Te Ao Māori and te reo - the world will never look the same to you again.

The 2020 Atua Matua experience is taking place at 3 locations over a 5-month period in different realms of the natural world, each location encompasses a two-day programme with overnight accommodation including all meals and activity costs.

• Wanaka, 27-29 July 2020, skiing activity
• Rotorua, 13-15 October 2020, mountain biking in Whakarewarewa/Redwoods Forest
• Tāhuna/Queenstown, 16-19 November 2020, voyaging on waka through Piopiotahi/Milford Sound and running the Routeburn Track

What does Atua Matua mean?

• Atua Matua - a health system focussed on traditional Māori environmental knowledge
• Atua - representations of environmental knowledge gained from centuries of observation
• Matua- human actions and behaviours flowing from environmental knowledge
• Whakapapatanga- connections between knowledge and actions
• Hononga- Activating the mind, body, and spirit through Physical activity to connect knowledge and actions

"Atua Matua provided me with a supportive environment to further gain Māori knowledge and participate in protocols such as whaikōrero, giving me confidence to do so in the work place. I feel very privileged to have had some of this knowledge pasted onto me, it's mind blowing that traditional thinking is so relent in solving some of today's modern issues. Gaining more of an insight into how Māori view the environment around them has allowed me to interact in a more positive and productive manner with our iwi partners."
Simon Alefosio-Tuck, Rotorua Lakes Council, Atua Matua 2019 participant

Meet Dr Ihirangi Heke

Dr. Ihirangi Heke is a health & physical education consultant and recently completed a research project with Johns Hopkins University to conduct a study using traditional indigenous health approaches alongside Systems Dynamics. From his work he wrote the Atua Matua Māori Environmental Framework which has been used by a range of international, national and local organisations. Dr Heke has since developed a number of 'Virtual Tours' that use Google Earth as the platform for delivering indigenous knowledge at a regional level with incidental gains in health, physical activity and exercise.