The festivities kicked off on Friday with a warm mihi whakatau at the Stewart Island Community Centre. Halfmoon Bay School pupils, Rakiura residents and mana whenua greeted those in attendance.
Tāne Davis, who has been chairman of Whenua Hou Komiti since its inception over 20 years ago, played an important role in the manaaki for all visitors to the hui.
The festivities continued on Friday with an evening dinner, where guests heard an inspiring talk from Jacqui Caine, Head of Strategy and Environment at Te Runanga o Ngāi Tahu, followed by an introduction from Darius Fagan, the new General Manager of Predator Free Rakiura.
Darius gave us all food for thought when he gave a metaphor of Whenua Hou as a beacon of hope for what can be achieved for biodiversity. Of course, Darius pointed out that beacons are not always about shining a light on wonderful things, but can be a warning that if you don’t take action now, catastrophe is coming.
This also applies to Whenua Hou, who warns us that Rakiura will soon need our help.
On Saturday the festivities continued with a panel on biodiversity, expertly chaired by Bridget Carter. The panel included the Department of Conservation’s Scientific Advisor for kākāpo and takahē Andrew Digby, Sandy King from Paws for Conservation, Te Arawhetu Waipoua — an MSc (Otago) student studying the Kuaka/Whenua Hou diving petrel, and Mike Slater from Zero Invasive Predators.
The discussion explored the development of eradication and biosecurity measures on Whenua Hou, efforts to save the precious kākāpō, and the urgent need to address the threats facing the Kuaka and other seabirds such as Hoiho from sea level rise and climate change.
Attendees were given a demonstration of the technology used to care for kākāpō by Doc Kākāpō Recovery team members Deidre Vercoe and Jake Osborne. A series of talks from cultural and academic experts Tāne Davis, Angela Wanhalla, Kate Stevens and Brooke Tucker provided insights into Te Ao Māori, archaeological discoveries and the role of Ngāi Tahu women in Whenua Hou history. There is no doubt that everyone who attended the whole day left with new knowledge and perspectives.
I hope the community enjoyed it as much as I did. I loved the speakers and was especially pleased that we were able to showcase the significant talent and experience in conservation that we have here at Rakiura. It created a space for interesting and important conversations and for people to learn and share ideas; I hope that we can make Rakiura the next place to be predator-free for 25 years.
Many thanks to Te Runanga o Ngāi Tahu, the Department of Conservation, Predator Free Rakiura and to the local people and businesses in Rakiura and Murihiku who have offered us support, money and kai.
As the festivities drew to a close, the legacy of Whenua Hou and the shared commitment to a predator-free future was still deeply felt by all present, making this milestone a truly unforgettable event.
– By Shona Sangster, Chair of the Southland Conservation Board