Dr Sir Toby Curtis is stepping down as the inaugural President of the Te Arawa Lakes Trust after 16 years in the role.
Talk to Thing at the Trust’s headquarters in Rotorua, he said it was not a difficult decision to walk away.
“If you look at the board we have, we’re very lucky. We have people who are very capable and perhaps more importantly, still young,” he said.
“I’m the old brumby among them and it’s important that the strength of how this council moves forward, and it moves forward, that it continues.
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“If I continue past 80, I have no guarantee that the youthful vigor that has been injected into our operations can continue if I am still Chairman of the Board.”
Curtis, 82, said one of the things he was most proud of during his tenure, although he made it clear more than once that it wasn’t him alone, was the growth of their membership base. ‘assets.
He said that when he took on the role of chairman, Te Arawa Lakes Trust had $33 million at its disposal.
“Today, about 15 years later, it’s $107 million, [and] we have 11 companies, booming.
He also said that when he took over, the value of their farmland per hectare was $160.
“Today it’s $77,000 per hectare. If that’s not progress.
He was also clear on what he saw as the main challenge that Te Arawa and Maori would face in the future.
“The main challenge is that we must not get to the point where we become so impatient with the leadership of the country, who are essentially Pākehā, because they do not quickly understand how things need to be done to make Maori more successful” , did he declare.
Rotorua Mayor Steve Chadwick and Te Arawa Lakes Trust Chairman Sir Toby Curtis, pictured in 2014, co-sign a letter to Treaty Settlements Minister Chris Finlayson seeking his support for a legislative change giving effect to the transfer of the Lake Okaro. Rotorua Lakes Council lakebed at Te Arawa Lakes Trust.
“They don’t understand and speak te reo, how we think culturally and what we prefer for the future for generations to come.”
He said that now every Maori can speak English and pronounce English words correctly.
“I look forward to the day when all Pākehā, children and adults, can say every Maori word correctly.”
The importance of te reo is an issue Curtis is passionate about, as he believes it acts as a bridge not just between people of different cultures, but between people within their own culture.
It’s also a topic he’s spoken about in the past, linking the disconnect between language and culture to issues such as meth, recounting Thing in 2018 “When our children learn te reo, we don’t have that”.
He also has personal experience of it, describing his passage among “the generation that was discouraged from speaking Maori”.
“We internalized that being Maori had no value. That our culture and lifestyle were not good for us and for the future.
It’s a serious subject, but Curtis can still find humor in the subject, noting that at that point “Nivea cream got a beating”, laughing as he said it.
The change came in fifth grade, when Curtis had the opportunity to attend a Maori language class.
It was clearly a turning point.
“I couldn’t stop learning. It was our opportunity to learn about ourselves and the man, we couldn’t stop learning and started enjoying other subjects too,” he said.
“We started to develop as people. What is it about te reo that does that to a Maori that English doesn’t? Don’t get me wrong, English is a lovely language, but it did nothing for me as a Maori,” he said.
Martin Holl
Maori Party Chairman Pem Bird, left, and Dr Toby Curtis pictured in 2013 at the Education and Science Select Committee on Charter Schools.
“This [English] helped build my brain, it developed cognitive intelligence but it did everything for my emotional intelligence, everything for my spiritual intelligence and everything for my cultural intelligence. He only educated 25% and the remaining 75% were educated when I started te reo.
“[English] makes you think as an individual. It wasn’t until I started te reo that I realized I had to do things for my whanau, marae, hapu, and iwi.
This disconnect is why Curtis believes Maori are thriving in Te Reo Kohanga.
Until Maori children were educated in their mother tongue, there would be problems, he said.
As for the future, Curtis said he intended to leave the Trust entirely, “but they had other ideas”.
“I will be on guard. I am happy to help everyone. How can I help others [tribe members] aspire to be president, not only Te Arawa but also other councils.
Curtis’s replacement as president, vice president, representative of the Te Ure o Uenukukōpako trustee and experienced iwi governor, Geoff Rolleston, was candid about stepping into the role when asked. asked about the big shoes he has to fill.
“Absolutely discouraging. I would be the first not to deny it. But in this two-year transition period, Sir Toby has been so accommodating. I was comforted by the thought that I can do it and I am happy to take on the role,” he said.
“Tā Toby isn’t going anywhere immediately, and I hope he’s here for another 15 years.”
Asked what lessons he would take from Curtis, Rolleston, who has served on the Te Arawa Lakes Trust since 2015, immediately replied that it would be his humility.
“Unaffected by the pressures, the embedded ideas of how he sees the world, how he thinks Te Arawa should be positioned. Hopefully I can emulate at least a fraction of what he was striving for Te Arawa.
“No one can ever fill Tā Toby’s shoes – and we should never seek to try,” he said.
“We have developed strong capabilities around the board table and across the Trust, and we are well equipped to pursue this mahi – which has never been more important.”
Rolleston (Nō Ngāti Whakaue me Ngaiterangi) has over 30 years of experience in various leadership and governance positions in the Maori, community and private sectors, encompassing the forestry, dairy, mixed livestock, tourism, food and beverage industries. horticulture and construction.
