The Good Energy Podcast

• Loo's journey to find home

  Kia ora!It’s been a while since I’ve shared a podcast - partly because this one has taken ages to make! I’ve been reflecting on my interviews and learnings over the last year as I’ve been exploring the economics of homes and kāinga. I’ve pulled together snippets of interviews, passages from books and my own reflections of the subtle and profound ways this journey has shaped my life. I’m hoping that through this show I can share with you the blessings I’ve received from the beautiful people and ideas I’ve met. I’d love to give permission and hospitality to all the complex feelings we have while searching for home and belonging. I’d particularly like to open up a dialogue for Pākehā, searching for ways to belong in this whenua and to offer some of the pathways I’ve discovered in this exploration.My hope is to create more connections and contribute to a sense of possibility and togetherness as we all navigate these fractured times where it’s so easy to shut down and let our differences separate us.Lots of love,Loo Get full access to The Good Energy Project at thegoodenergyproject.substack.com/subscribe

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  1:01:43
• A pan-political movement to transform our economy

  “The economy is too important to leave to the economists!” That’s what Gareth Hughes says. After working for a decade as an MP in parliament he got thoroughly tired of the seesaw of short term policies and the arguments over the type of ambulance at the bottom of the cliff. He’s now grateful to be working on the cause of the problems rather than the symptoms. He leads the small team at WEAll (Wellbeing Economies Alliance Aotearoa). Their mission is to build a non-partisan, Te Tiriti led, people-powered movement to transform the economy around the wellbeing of our people and te taiao.“We often think about the economy like it’s a force of nature, like the weather,” Gareth says. “But actually it’s a human-designed machine and it can be re-designed to get the outputs we want to see.”Economics is a hard thing to talk about - it’s complicated, boring and mostly we forget it exists, like the air we breathe. But Gareth is seeing a groundswell of people across the political spectrum who are realising that something is broken and needs to change. “Cracks are showing everywhere,” he says. “People are realising it’s not working and are open to talking about system change. I’ve talked to conservatives who are voting National who are really concerned about social cohesion… They just know that you can’t continue to have a society where people are falling through the cracks.”The time is right for change and Gareth’s mission is to help people see the alternatives and to help uplift and connect the efforts of diverse groups around the country into one big movement for change. His small team are working with businesses, local councils, Iwi groups and community groups to uplift, connect and support their work to shift and change our systems. There is so much going on at the grass-roots level with businesses, iwi corporations, community groups and local government. The international community is excited about Aotearoa. The experience of working with all these people has cured Gareth of his cynicism and he’s feeling positive and hopeful about the future. This is a very positive and hopeful conversation about pathways open to us and the changes already brewing.Some helpful links* WEAll Aotearoa: https://www.weall.org.nz/* WEAll - the global organisation: https://weall.org/And here are some links to the organisations and initiatives Gareth mentions in the interview for your further exploration:* Tokona Te Raki - Ngai Tahu hub for social innovation and Māori futures. * The Workshop - Narrative research and communication advisors - who suggested Gareth do a listening tour instead of a speaking tour.* Sophie Handford, WEAll Aotearoa’s new Future Generations Lead.* Neoliberalism - leave it in the 80s video.* He Ara Waiora - a framework to help Treasury understand Māori perspectives on wellbeing and living standards* Te Takarangi - a Tūhoe Māori reimagining of the doughnut economic model.* Wakatū Incorporation - An Iwi owned entity with a 500 year vision* Amotai - National registry for Māori and Pasifika owned businesses* Article on Taranaki Maunga attaining legal personhood Get full access to The Good Energy Project at thegoodenergyproject.substack.com/subscribe

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  1:00:46
• Decolonisation as a joyful creative act

  This conversation was just what I needed to lift my spirits after a year of overwhelmingly depressing news. Talking to Rebecca felt like meeting a slightly older and more illustrious version of myself. It gave me hope that it’s possible to live in a more intuitive and connected way without disengaging from the institutions and systems of society.Like me, Rebecca found it hard to choose between subjects at school and university because it was the connections between them that intrigued her most. Her instinct for finding unexpected connections has led her on a fascinating career path, starting with a degree in Chemistry and Maths and moving into architecture where she was captivated by discourses around feminism, art and Te Ao Māori. For several years she has played leadership roles in Massey University’s College of Creative Arts. She recently stepped down as Deputy Pro Vice Chancellor to dedicate more time to The Pākehā Project and other creative acts of decolonisation. Rebecca talks about how we’ve based our society and our entire approach to the world on the completely wrong assumption that we are separate and that our problems can be solved by pulling things apart and analysing the pieces. She calls this a “traumatised logic” - a way of thinking that has broken the world up into pieces and left us disconnected and at odds with each other.The Pākehā Project, is about becoming aware of these underlying assumptions and opening to other ways of seeing the world. It’s about learning how to listen and step back as well as using our privileges and positions of power to shift the systems we operate within. I love the way she describes this work as a joyful creative act. It reconnects us to our own vitality and opens us up to other beings and the living world.Links and referencesIn the interview Rebecca names some of her heroes and influences. Here are some links to follow up:* Sarah Treadwell - artist, architect and academic* Báyò Akómoláfé - author, speaker, teacher* Nora Bateson - filmmaker, writer, educator and creator of Warm Data* Veronica Tawhai - scholar and educator operating from an ethic of love* Louise Marra - Rebecca’s tuakana and co-founder of The Pākehā ProjectThe guitar music you’ll hear at the end of the conversation is by Rebecca’s brother Ben. It was the accompaniment to a song they sang together at their father’s funeral. Get full access to The Good Energy Project at thegoodenergyproject.substack.com/subscribe

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  56:06
• Bridging a cultural divide we pretend isn't there

  I’m excited to share this conversation with Paul Tapsell (Te Arawa, Tainui) whose book Kāinga: People, Land, Belonging inspired my focus on homes and kāinga this year. It was very special to be invited to Paul’s ancestral home in Tapsell Road, Rotorua, where we met in the beautiful architecturally designed space shown in the photo above. Paul and his whānau envisioned and built this new home to replace the crumbling old house, built by their father. Back before the days of potatoes and colonisation, this site was a kumara garden and a foundation for the local economy. Now it sits amongst suburban houses, holding precious threads of culture and acting as a hub for the community as well as a home.Historic amnesia and the illusion of our harmonious bicultural societyIn our conversation, Paul painted a picture of a cultural divide ‘as wide as the grand canyon’, which we pretend doesn’t exist. “On one hand colonisation has dispossessed 780 kāinga communities of their economic base and on the other hand an incoming settler community from Great Britain has come to control that economic base but are living in what my academic mentor used to call historic amnesia.”Paul spoke about his great great grandmother who was bayoneted to death by British soldiers who were later given their ancestral land to farm for free. He described a Māori community, still living in poverty on the land they were forcibly removed to in 1869, while Pākeha farmers make millions on the land they were dispossessed from.Somehow, we have manifested a story of a harmonious bicultural society - the nation we call New Zealand. But this illusion is preventing us from facing the scale of trauma and disconnection and finding ways to heal.Paul’s hope, in writing the book, was to bring to light the forgotten stories and help bridge the cultural divide.Chasing pinpricks of light in the darkI was struck by Paul’s approach to facing these hard truths. “I problematise everything, almost to the point of depression, until I’m surrounded by this darkness. Then I step back and see where the little pricks of light are coming through - just these little pinpricks. Like going down a tunnel, I chase that light and see where it takes me.”Paul has found pinpricks of light in the fact that young Māori, whose whānau have lived in cities for generations, are wanting to reconnect with their ancestral kāinga. When that relationship between tangata and whenua is restored, there is hope for healing and true leadership. Young Māori give Paul hope.He also has hope in Pākeha and tauiwi. He shared a story of two Pākeha farmers who fell in love with the whenua and have dedicated their lives to restoring the health of the waterways. They are now working with Paul to connect with an impoverished Māori community living downstream, in the hope of sharing the ecological wealth they’ve helped to restore.“I think most reasonable non-Māori citizens of this country, if they understand the history, are more likely to respond proactively and create that bridge across the canyon and meet halfway.”We’re all complex. Let’s stop judging and listen to each other.Paul and I shared stories of ancestors who crossed the cultural divide and how their decisions have shaped our lives now.My great grandmother was Māori, born in Te Kaha in Te Moana-a-Toitehuatahi (Bay of Plenty). She moved to Auckland, married a Lebanese businessman, had a family then died. From that point our family has been disconnected from our Māori whakapapa. I have inherited material wealth through the family business but none of the wisdom of my Māori ancestors.Paul’s grandmother came from Ireland where generations of her family had been dispossessed of their land by the English. Her brothers and sisters settled in Auckland where their families now own large chunks of the waterfront! Paul’s grandmother married a Māori man, found belonging with her new whānau and embraced their culture as her own. Apparently she was known as “the black sheep” of the family. From his Māori elders Paul inherited precious ancient taonga which he is striving to preserve.It struck me that the hau kāinga who stayed with their whenua and preserved the taonga have carried a huge burden for us all. They have taken a massive hit to protect these lifelines, which are now hanging by a thread.I found our conversation incredibly helpful for making sense of my own complex feelings and my role now. It’s not about pointing fingers or laying blame, it’s about being prepared to learn and listen, to feel the darkness and follow the pinpricks of light.Find out more about Paul’s projects and research https://www.takarangi.co.nz/https://www.maorimaps.com/Music creditWaiata koauau ki Te Papa-i-ōuru Get full access to The Good Energy Project at thegoodenergyproject.substack.com/subscribe

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  58:55
• Rematriating our homes and food systems

  Jessica is a kaupapa Māori researcher, author and advocate as well as being a farmer. She is the director and founding trustee of the Papawhakaritorito Charitable Trust which is all about decolonising our food systems and restoring indigenous food sovereignty. She lives with her wife Jo Smith (Waitaha, Kāti Māmoe, Kāi Tahu) on twelve acres of beautiful whenua in the foothills of the Tararua with the Remutaka and Orongorongo behind and Pākuratahi Forest Park nearby.  Jessica was involved in establishing Hua ParaKore, a kaupapa Māori system and framework for growing kai. It’s sometimes referred to as Māori organics, but it’s much more than just looking after the soil and our health. Hua Parakore is about reweaving the intricate web of relationships that connect us with each other and with our cultural and spiritual landscapes.“When I think about Māori food sovereignty,” Jessica says, "I think about food as whanaunga. Food is our relation. It comes from our cultural and spiritual landscapes, from the deities, Tāne Mahuta of the forest, Haumia-tiketike, Hineahuone, deity of soil, Papatūānuku and Ranginui. We are connected to those landscapes through our whakapapa of being the younger sibling, the youngest in the order.”Jessica and Jo are storytellers, activists, researchers and gardeners. Through their work with the Trust they connect dots across the food system, hold hui and bring growers together to amplify those spaces. At their farm they put the ideas into practice, growing food and restoring the native forest to re-cloak Papatūānuku.Over the past decade, Jessica has also worked extensively in the Māori housing sector, leading the Building Better Homes, Towns and Cities National Science Challenge, as their Director Māori and helping to build Māori research and capability in the Māori housing area. Along with Jo, she edited the book Kāinga tahi, Kāinga rua, which gathers together Māori experiences and aspirations for housing. In our conversation, Jessica weaves together the kaupapa of housing and food sovereignty, showing how deeply connected they are. She talks about how colonial capitalism not only separated Māori from their ancestral kāinga, it has broken up family units, destroyed indigenous foodways and waterways and dismanteled the fabric of communities. She speaks about how current policy-settings create impossible barriers for Māori wanting to live intergenerationally and the pain of watching our current government pull out supports for papakāinga among many other things. Her hope and aspiration lies in Māori being empowered to take the lead in finding solutions. Her vision is for food to be the hub and heart of our communities - how we grow it and our relationship with the soil and seed. “I have a vision for indigenous food systems in Aotearoa”, she says, “that are thriving, intergenerational, connected to people in place, that are hua parakore, and that are creating a wellbeing of mauri-rich, abundant kai for people… My vision is for beautiful, healthy people, lands and soils, where we have sovereignty over ourselves.”Some helpful links: https://www.papawhakaritorito.com/https://jessicahutchings.org/ Get full access to The Good Energy Project at thegoodenergyproject.substack.com/subscribe

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  52:48

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