Iwi Chairs Forum
Sharing the vision of Kotahitanga
About Iwi Chairs Forum
Vision
That through unity, sharing and working together we will honour our past and create a better future for whānau, hapū and iwi.
Our vision statement is guided by the whakataukī: "He waka kōtuia kāhore e tukutukua ngā mimira. A canoe that is interlaced will not become separated at the bow. In unity there is strength." In the highly developed craft of building ocean going waka the bow section was laced to the centre hull. The waka provides a metaphor for tangata whenua, in that a people interlaced will not be separated and through that unity we find strength.
Values
To be confirmed and defined:
Rangtiratanga
Whanaungatanga
Manaakitanga
Kaitiakitanga
Tikanga
Iwi Chairs Forum
The Iwi Chairs Forum meets four times a year with each hui hosted at different marae throughout the country. Collectively the forum represents more than 400,000 Māori, over 2/3s of the Māori population, with major iwi such as Waikato-Tainui, Ngāi Tahu, Hauraki, Tuwharetoa, Ngāti Kahungunu, Maniapoto, Te Arawa, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Awa, Ngā Rauru, Whanganui and many more involved.
The Iwi Chairs Forum chooses not to lobby on issues or seek publicity about its mahi. It prefers to work behind the scenes to develop effective co-operative relationships as part of the important process of bringing more iwi together.
While the forum concerns itself with such issues as climate change, freshwater management, constitutional reform and the Foreshore and Seabed Act its primary focus is to educate its participants about what each other is doing, how they are doing it and how they can best support one another.
The forum regularly invites Crown representatives, Members of Parliament and stakeholder and community groups to present to the group on projects and issues that concern iwi.
CEO Forum
Due to the success of the Iwi Chairs Forum the opportunity has been taken to create a forum for Chief Executive Officers, and their equivalents, to meet and exchange knowledge and ideas and support each other. The establishment of this forum recognises the unique role and responsibility that comes with directing the day to day corporate functions and the long term strategic objectivess of an iwi organisation.
The CEO Forum allows participants to set their collective agenda looking at diverse topics including how to support tribal leadership, building capacity, resources and effective governance structures, inter-iwi collaborations, international trade and building infrastructure to support it.
The CEOs meets twice a year in conjunction with the Iwi Chairs Forum.