Maori Perspectives on Water

“He Huahua te kai? E, he wai te kai”

 Are preserved birds the best food? Oh no! Water is.

 

This Maori proverb illustrates the importance that Maori place on the value of water to be the source of food and life. Traditional Maori belief holds that everything in the natural environment, (including people) possesses a mauri or life force, and everything is inter-related. Abuse or mess with any part and you can weaken the whole.

 

Maori place a strong value on waterways, including springs, wetlands, rivers, hot pools and lakes. The quality and quantity of water affects how much food can be grown, what plants can thrive and habitats that can form for birds and animals. All of this means that quality of life is affected by quality of water, and so protecting the mauri of water is very important to maori.

 

‘Tikitere Mud Pool’, Rotorua, photo: JShook

 

Find out more about Maori perspectives towards water by downloading this document from the Ministry for the Environment

 

Global Cool boasts some (eco)sexy faces

Its been tried before and few of us would argue it isn’t effective way of getting an issue noticed, but does it work!? Slick, loud, with more A-list names than you could shake a stick at, it is … Global Cool, the latest celebrity backed attempt to save the world.

Global Cool is a long term environmental campaign that hopes to make tackling climate change cool. Through celebrity supporters, high profile concerts, programmes and events it aims to encourage a billion people to cut carbon emissions and give to green causes. Founder Dan Morrell believes the answer lies with individuals taking responsibility for their own impact on the environment and not just blaming governments and industry. “The one thing everybody has total control over is their own energy usage and therefore their own climate change impact. Cumulatively mass individual action adds up to the solution.”

 

Boasting such famous faces as KT Tunstall, Leonardo DiCaprio, The Killers and Scissor Sisters, the campaign is supported by a well designed website, which dubs itself a one-stop-shop for a cleaner, more energy efficient life. It provides information, news articles, ways to take action - although nothing groundbreaking- and some inspiring words from our famous friends. There is even some advice on how to find the man or women of your green dreams, intelligent, sophisticated and environmentally friendly - the ecosexual.

 

As well as asking you to think about your individual carbon footprint Global Cool also ask for your cash. $20 will buy you a Tonne of Cool – ‘a clever cocktail of environmental goodness that invests in energy reduction projects, alternative energy projects' and helps them put on more shows (carbon neutral of course.)’

 

Of course, there will be those who question why from a £20 donation, £4 goes back into Global Cool and to alternative energy/energy-reducing projects and others may ponder over the (tired) use of celebrities, but MY question is, are they targeting the right audience?

 

With the emphasis on concerts, celebrities and the website it does seem like a campaign aimed at young people. As the British press questioned recently, ‘isn’t it the kids who are the one group in society that do understand climate change, having had it drilled into them consistently at school?' A often referred to article detailed how children have started campaigning at home, prompting one parent to write in to a school saying, "Can you please inform Paul that it is allowed to have the light on to read at home?" The key question then is, will this campaign appeal to those who the climate change message doesn’t normally reach?

 

Their mantra: If we all leave everything up to everyone else, nothing happens, makes a fair point. And who knows, if there are enough people (young and not so young) who enjoy the Scissor Sisters telling them to buy locally and KT Tunstall asking them to wash their clothes in cold water, they might make some progress!