I have been really conscious this year of the concept of ‘navigation’. We talk about navigation a lot with our lived experience communities – when we say we are all on a journey or we are journeying towards something. We talk about navigation with our whānau Māori communities and our Pasifika communities, whose ancestors journeyed to Aotearoa and in the Pacific on waka, utilising ngā whetu (the stars). In my work, I enjoy the process of using mātauranga and frameworks to guide my projects. This year I have been working with Te Pae Māhutonga, which the Public Health Association credits to Dr Maui Pomare but has since been updated for use in this century by Tā Mason Durie.
I work on a programme called the Nōku te Ao: Like Minds Social Movement, which is about uplifting the mana and human rights of people with lived experience of mental distress. A year ago, I was tasked with the formation and creation of this newly contracted programme. Hāpai Te Hauora and Ngā Hau e Whā (lived experience advisory roopu) are partnered with Mental Health Foundation on this kaupapa. I am using a number of tīkanga frameworks to help me on the journey of creating this movement. Below, I will outline how Te Pae Māhutonga guides my work. Te Pae Māhutonga (translating to the Southern Cross Constellation) is a health promotion model made up of 6 guiding stars. Here are ngā whetu (the stars) and my interpretation of them in my work:
