BayBuzz Mar/Apr 2014

feisty MAORI Politics

who’s doing the

picking? stamp the anT

MAR/APR 2014

INCLUDING GST

dividE to rule? taste

Bridge pa

vege TARIANISM 02

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262009

Mystery at the Museum Mismanagement or growing pains? by jessica soutar barron

ATTN14GEM33

Showcasing the recently completed Napier Cosmopolitan Club redevelopment

ISSUE No.17 : MAR / APR 2014

8 mar/apr 2014

THIS MONTH Mäori politics is getting feisty in Hawke’s Bay. Controversy swirls around MTG … serious issues or growing pains?

Could Hawke’s Bay growers manage without imported seasonal workers?

Updates on the dam and amalgamation.

Ants and dairy cows invade Havelock North. Plus food and fashion.

Mãori Leadership

By Tom Belford

Divide to Conquer?

By Mark Sweet

Tom looks at competing bases of Mäori leadership in Hawke’s Bay. And Mark reports on how this plays out in decisions regarding the Tukituki.

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FEATURES 30

political round-up

By Tom Belford The politicking intensifies as decisions approach on the dam and amalgamation.

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EXPLORING THE COALFACE OF FASHION RETAILING

By Tom Belford BayBuzz takes a crash course in women’s fashion … where could this lead?

Mandy Jensen phone 027-593-5575 Mandy Jensen manages advertising and store sales for BayBuzz. She's worked in print media in the Bay for 20 years or so (Wow!).

In her leisure you can spot Mandy walking or cycling one of the numerous tracks throughout Hawke's Bay or sipping hot chocolates in any number of cafes.

ISSN 2253-2625 (Print) ISSN 2253-2633 (Online)

Mystery At The Museum

By Jessica Soutar Barron The new MTG Hawke’s Bay is barely out of the box, and already the gnashing of teeth has begun.

24 Who’s Doing All That Picking And Packing?

Keith Newman asks why Hawke’s Bay is so dependent on importing overseas workers for seasonal picking, packing and pruning?

ISSUE No.17 : MAR / APR 2014

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contributors >

IDEAS & OPINIONS

CULTURE & LIFESTYLE

4

38

public excluded Tom Belford

THE ugly spectator Damon Harvey

22

stamp the ant!

Rick Barker

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BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES: ‘SWALLOWS’ LEAVE AT SUMMER’S END Kay Bazzard

what's in a name?

David Trubridge

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'PRINTING' Jawbones and helicopter blades

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no room for complacency Patrick Jones

Keith Newman

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dairying comes to HavelocK North Sarah Cates

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VEGETARIANISM … SWIMMING AGAINST THE CURRENT Paul Paynter

TASTE bridge Pa Prue Barton

52

don't order chicken or steak!

Liv Reynolds

60 This publication uses vegetable based inks and environmentally responsible papers. The document is printed throughout on Sumo K Matt, which is FSC® certified and from responsible souces, manufactured under ISO 14001 Environmental management Systems.

MONSTERS, MIRRORS, BIG TOPS, BIG NOISE, TOP DESIGNERS Jessica Soutar Barron

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head of steam Brendan Webb

THE BAYBUZZ TEAM > EDITOR Tom Belford Senior writers Jessica Soutar Barron, Keith Newman, Mark Sweet, Tom Belford columnists Brendan Webb, Claire Hague, Damon Harvey, David Trubridge, Kay Bazzard, Paul Paynter, Phyllis Tichinin, Prue Barton, Roy Dunningham, Sarah Cates editor’s right hand Brooks Belford photography Tim Whittaker, Sarah Cates ILLUSTRATOR Brett Monteith creative, design & production Steff @ Ed art assistant Julia Jameson advertising sales & distribution Mandy Jensen Online Mogul business manager Bernadette Magee printing Format Print

JESS SOUTAR BARRON Jess is a wordsmith and project manager whose past gigs have included time with Sky TV, Hastings District Council and Band, as well as three years as a communications manager with the Metropolitan Police Service. She also produces Fruit Bowl Craft Jam and Pecha Kucha in the Bay. KEITH NEWMAN Keith is a journo with nearly 40-years’ experience across mainstream and trade media.

He’s won awards for writing about hi-tech, produces Musical Chairs programmes for Radio NZ and has published four books, one on the internet in New Zealand and three others on New Zealand history.

MARK SWEET Napier-born, Mark worked overseas in Hong Kong and Scotland, before returning to Hawke's Bay, and establishing Pacifica restaurant.

Re-creating himself as a writer, Mark's first novel Zhu Mao was published in 2011; an extract from his next novel, Of Good and Evil, has been short-listed for the Pikihuia Awards, and is due for publication early 2014.

TOM BELFORD Tom’s past includes the Carter White House, building Ted Turner’s first philanthropic organization, doing heaps of marketing consulting for major nonprofits and corporates. Tom publishes BayBuzz, writes an acclaimed blog for professional NGO fundraisers and communicators in North America and Europe, and is a HB Regional Councillor.

BAYBUZZ POSTAL: PO Box 8322, Havelock North

All BayBuzz magazine articles are archived 60 days after publication at: www.baybuzz.co.nz

FROM THE EDITOR

Once the ‘Public Excluded’ portion of the meeting was declared ended, thereby ending the official Council meeting (of course with media and the public long since gone), Chairman Fenton Wilson offered councillors the ‘opportunity’ to receive an update briefing on the dam from HBRIC chairman Andy Pearce, who had been on hand for the second ‘Public Excluded’ agenda item, and was still present.

Pearce began a presentation, but it was quickly noted that the ground rules were murky as to whether this briefing was considered public or confidential. Indeed, what was the official status of the ‘meeting’ at that point?

Public Excluded BY ~ tom belford

Just three meetings into the new year, it’s clear that promoting transparency at the HB Regional Council will be a struggle.

For example, at our first meeting on 29 January, we deliberated two agenda items in ‘Public Excluded’ session.

The outcome of the first item has now been announced to the public. In that matter, we commissioned two independent reports that will be critical to evaluating the financial and economic viability of the proposed dam. I discuss these in my Political Round-up article herein. There is absolutely no reason why the terms of reference for these studies could not have been released to the public. And public observation of councillors’ interrogation of the candidate firms would have been reassuring to skeptics of the proposed scheme. Financial terms and councillors’ deliberations over the candidates could readily have been kept private.

I have since published the terms of reference on the BayBuzz website. And I have been assured by HBRC chairman Fenton Wilson that both the ‘business case’ to be presented by HBRIC and the independent review of that case will be made public.

The second item considered in ‘Public Excluded’ was publicly titled: “HBRIC Ltd Staff Remuneration Request”.

As I write, I can say nothing about the content of that item.

Yet I have been approached by two reporters and a half-dozen individuals in the community who already know precisely what happened! Councillors Barker, Beaven, Graham and myself challenged the Council’s handling of the matter with an OIA rerquest and an appeal to the Ombudsman. The ‘powers that be’ then relented and I am hopeful that all will be revealed by the time you are reading this.

The penchant for secrecy didn’t end with the ‘Public Excluded’ discussion on the 29th.

After a bit of posturing by various councillors, it became clear that I was the party regarded with suspicion by the devotees of secrecy. The question on the table: If other councillors wished to proceed with an ‘informal’ confidential briefing, would I pledge to report nothing of it?

I declined to participate in a rump private meeting, giving my view that it’s overdue for the public to have a wide-open look at the total scheme, with all its aspects and assumptions finally on the table.

So I left the ‘meeting’ — or whatever it was — and the briefing commenced.

I’ve since discussed this episode with Chairman Wilson, suggesting the need for an official policy of what confidentiality should apply to unofficial discussions, like the Council’s ‘workshops’. Some councillors seem to believe that ‘Chatham House Rules’ apply.

Under Chatham Rules, any participant could disclose that our recent workshop on the next Annual Plan discussed funding proposals concerning the Napier-Gisborne rail line, HB Tourism and Business Hawke’s Bay, and even describe those proposals and the general leanings of the discussion (of course we didn’t adopt any ‘decisions’ … that would be illegal). However, comments of participants could not be disclosed in any manner that might identify the speaker.

While I am not keen on holding ‘workshops’ behind closed doors at all, Chatham Rules would be a step in the right direction. At least the public would know the content and tenor of these important meetings.

Many more transparency battles are to come, I’m sure. It’s trench warfare.

For me, the principle of transparency is paramount. I made that very clear during my election campaign and voters responded positively.

I will press our Regional Council towards transparency — the basis of public accountability and smarter decisions — at every opportunity. I will push the boundaries … vigorously. Anything less and I would be failing to keep faith with my constituency.

Tom Belford

Letters to the Editor We encourage readers to criticize, expand upon or applaud our articles as they see fit.

All of our magazine articles are published online – www.baybuzz.co.nz – where you can always comment … at any length and as often as you like.

But we are also happy to publish a limited number of readers’ letters here. You can email us at editors@baybuzz.co.nz or mail us at BayBuzz, PO Box 8322, Havelock North.

Cutting through the fog of parochialism

By David Marshall

Kudos

David Marshall is to be commended for the refreshing lucidity of the arguments expressed in his article.

Roy & Marie Dunningham

There was no need, however, to qualify his last sentence by saying the paranoia, petulance and parochialism of some civic leaders is ‘almost” embarrassing. Regrettably, it is completely embarrassing for Hawke’s Bay to have the city of Napier still being led by individuals with such narrow, insular and backward perspectives on the proposed re-organisation of our local government.

I returned to Hawke’s Bay in 2010 after 12 years in Auckland and Wellington and travelling widely during that time.

I currently reside in Havelock North but have also lived and worked and owned homes and businesses in both Napier and Hastings.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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It feels as if some of the more trenchant critics of amalgamation have seldom moved outside their own city limits and simply don’t understand how small and insignificant their environment really is and how a regional approach is vital to enhance the prospects of everyone in Hawke’s Bay, including the citizens of Napier.

When amalgamation does take place it is essential that the region is led and governed by people with much more vision and a wider and more rational understanding of the challenges facing our region than is currently displayed by many of the civic leaders of Napier.

Peter Wilkins

Keep up the good work. We tell everybody, nationwide, how lucky we are to have this publication.

Dear Editor, We love your magazine and the content is usually always intelligent and well written. However in Issue # 16 (Jan/Feb) the arithmetic in “Bring on the Electric Cars” seems odd, in particular the statistic on the amount of fuel annually imported and offloaded at the Port of Napier as being “in excess of 250 million tonnes”. This by my reckoning gives an average daily import of nearly 700 000 tonnes a day or the equivalent of a daily discharge from 7 very large oil tankers. Is this right? If so this already super efficient port must be the most efficient in the world. Must go up to The Bluff more often!

Which leads me to add that the other figures quoted may warrant a review specially the amount of fuel used by our hard pressed orchardists as being 324 L/ha. Is this true when a row crop such as wheat or maize should not normally consume more than 70 L/ha?

Otherwise a great issue, thank you.

Sincerely, Richard Winkfield Havelock North [Editor reply: Richard is absolutely correct on the fuel import number ... sloppy transcription. It should be 250,000 tonnes imported annually through Napier Port.

That’s confirmed by folks at the Port.

Thanks for bringing this to our attention.

The MAF on-farm fuel use numbers are correct ... or at least correct as far as MAF is concerned.]

The ‘Big A’ Debate

By Adrienne Pierce Adrienne, I have been calling for a business case on the benefits of amalgamation for five years now, and I still haven’t seen one. The Winder report was, quite frankly, rather substandard (and that’s being polite).

A Better HB put out a pamphlet saying that amalgamation will solve child poverty and create 5,000 jobs – and even those in ABHB seemed a bit embarrassed about these outrageous claims. As you are, no doubt, finding; local government is about representing key communities and constituents. As you also alluded to, even with 12 district councillors, this is a challenge; just imagine how hard this would be with four councillors! In fact, you couldn’t.

And community boards have been shown in Auckland to be pretty much powerless to influence any decision.

So, provide me with a well written, peer reviewed business case that presents a clear and rationale argument outlining the benefits of amalgamation for cities in a similar situation to ours, and I might start taking the arguments of the amalgamationists seriously. Until that time, the only report worth its salt is the Dollery report – and it outlines a number of very good reasons why we wouldn’t amalgamate.

Believe me, Bill Dalton and I are not the only people in Napier who have serious concerns about any form of amalgamation!

Stuart Nash

Kudos Many thanks, I love your mag, relevant topics and passion for what you do.

May you go from strength to strength.

Shirley Kemp

We live with Diabetes David Maunsell-Wybants Hastings

Lesley Hurrey - Hastings

“It’s changed my whole lifestyle. I “We will be left floating now have a better understanding without a life raft.” and can get to the bottom of the problem.”

Mark Oughton - Hastings

Katrina Spiers - Hastings

“Before going to the GPSI service I had no control of my diabetes, but now I am in control.”

“I’m now taking only a third of my insulin, and planning to have a baby in the future.”

Phil Hocquard Havelock North “I always feared using insulin, the GPSI service made me realise it could help me. This simple change improved my life.”

Bill Chalmers - Hastings “I feel a lot more educated about my diabetes from this amazing programme.”

Sharleen Araia - Hastings “Finally I could be myself. I wasn’t just a hospital statistic.

Please keep the GPSI service because it’s lifesaving.”

Jenson Cherapparambach - Hastings

“This service is a blessing to Hawke’s Bay.”

Matthew Mattakad Waipukurau “I’ve changed my diet so my blood sugar is 8, Before it was always above 10.”

Andrew Dickson - Hastings “I’ve had diabetes for 21 years and never had control until now.”

Kevin Isaacson - Waipawa “I felt 200 times better.”

Henry Ruwhiu - Waipukurau “I go to the doctor once a year now, when I used to go once a month.”

DHB listen to us

Kathleen Miria - Flaxmere “If you say you love your family, you have to go the GPSI way.”

Faye Te Nahu - Waipawa

Kim Saber - Napier

“I wish I had done the GPSI “Awesome, amazing the programme earlier because I hospital doesn’t understand” wouldn’t have had to take insulin unnecessarily for over 10 years.”

The GPSI service changed our lives. It gave us the power to control our diabetes.

Karen Shaw - Hastings “Without this service I would’ve cost the country thousands.”

Peter Price - Havelock North “Without GPSI, I could have ended up in hospital.”

Dave Kidger - Hastings “Please think about us patients.”

The DHB has taken away a service that has changed our lives, without talking with patients. Support us in seeking: • An extension to the contract to allow full consultation, including surveying patients • An independent report into the costs and outcomes of the DHB service to the GPSI service • A way forward to integrate and expand GPSI throughout HB so more patients, doctors and nurses have access

Join the campaign www.putpatientsfirst.co.nz

BY ~ tom belford

tim.co.nz

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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Maori leadership by ~ tom belford

The two burning issues before Hawke’s Bay at the moment, amalgamation and the dam, bring into focus the role of Mäori leadership in the debate.

Both initiatives have been Päkehä-driven; yet both hold significant implications for Mäori. So, how is the Mäori voice, given unique status by our governing Treaty, expressed in decision-making? And where does local Mäori leadership authority or legitimacy come from?

“Tomoana is perhaps the single most visible of Mäori leaders in the region. He is elected via a multi-level process that begins at the whänau and marae level, progressing through six taiwhenua, then ultimately a membership vote for the chairman position.”

Mark Sweet’s article, which follows, indicates just how complicated the ‘Mäori Organisation Chart’ might be, as illustrated by the consultation process conducted (or not) around the Regional Council’s plans for the Tukituki catchment. With amalgamation it is the same, with individual councils advancing positions that might or might not reflect advice taken from Mäori leaders, or from some Mäori entities and not others. And of course Mäori groups can submit directly to the Local Government Commission, as Ngäti Kahungunu plans to do, in their case supporting amalgamation.

Ngahiwi Tomoana, chairman of Ngäti Kahungunu Iwi Inc (NKII), the most inclusive Mäori grouping in the region, suggests the claim that Mäori leadership structure is ‘too complicated’ can be easily turned on its head. He notes that Mäori leaders in Hawke’s Bay alone must deal with five councils, who constantly squabble amongst themselves, as well as numerous central government agencies. Throughout

its rohe, NKII deals with 11 councils.

Tomoana is perhaps the single most visible of Mäori leaders in the region. He is elected via a multi-level process that begins at the whänau and marae level, progressing through six taiwhenua, then ultimately a membership vote for the chairman position.

He also chairs NZ’s Mäori Economic Development Advisory Board and the NZ China Council, and serves on numerous local boards, including the DHB. Given Tomoana’s local and national visibility, most ‘consultation’ processes in the region seek to involve him and to tick the NKII box, often as a ‘short-cut’ for councils to avoid broader engagement.

Excepting Central Hawke’s Bay, each of the councils has a self-appointed Mäori advisory committee of some sort.

Some argue these are relatively passive, rarely posing a challenge to council staffs who ‘manage’ them well and consult superficially.

Another Mäori voice is expressed at

Continued on Page 10

»

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

Ngahiwi Tomoana (2nd from left), chairman of Ngäti Kahungunu, the Mäori leader most Päkehä recognise

the grassroots level via the marae. The Hastings marae have organized themselves as Ngä Marae, led by Tama Huata and Des Ratima. Some marae take an active role in matters that most directly affect them (e.g., Kohupatiki Marae’s focus on cleaning up the Karamu Stream); others less so. None are swimming in resources to engage in local government decision-making.

A new ‘face’ in decision-making is the Regional Planning Committee (RPC) associated with the Regional Council. As Mark explains more fully, this group has been instigated by the Crown in the course of Treaty settlements and consists equally of regional councillors and representatives of Tangata Whenua – specifically the nine Treaty claimant groups in Hawke’s Bay. Co-chaired (with Fenton Wilson) by Toro Waaka representing Ngäti Pahuawere Development and Tiaki Trusts, the RPC must be given a direct voice in all natural resource planning in the region.

And finally are the few Mäori who have stood successfully for direct election to local government – Henare O'Keefe, Jacoby Poulain and Denise Eaglesome being the most visible.

Legitimate voices, one and all, at this stage with various degrees of experience at engaging in local government decisionmaking and politics. Add elders with kaumätua status and those with topical expertise (e.g., Morry Black on RMA issues, or Tracey Te Huia on Mäori health) and one begins to get the picture of Hawke’s Bay’s Mäori leadership.

Ngahiwi Tomoana views the present situation as “evolutionary”, with hapü-based organisations, using resources gained by Treaty settlements, building the knowledge base and fresh leadership to resolve local issues and pursue economic development, while NKII then “stops kicking at everything that moves” and focuses on region-wide matters.

With this current complexity in mind, consider Mark’s report on Mäori consultation on the Tukituki.

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divide to rule?

BY ~ mark sweet

Des Ratima, Ng채 Marae leader

tim.co.nz

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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First came the lawyers and the expert witnesses for Hawke's Bay Regional Council (HBRC), and their Investment Company (HBRIC). Eight days of detail on Plan Change 6 and the Ruataniwha Dam, which form the basis of the Tukituki Catchment Proposal.

In the Municipal Theatre in Hastings, the Board of Inquiry (BOI) sat and listened, and asked questions, and they didn't mix with the crowd. They took refreshments alone, and used facilities reserved only for them.

Next came the corporates, like Fonterra and Mr Apple, and the government departments, and the nongovernment organisations (NGO's) like Fish and Game and the Environmental Defence Society. Then individuals, acting alone, began to appear.

On the 19th day of the Inquiry the first submission from a M채ori organisation was presented. Tamatea taiwhenua, the tribe whose ancestral lands include the site of the proposed Ruataniwha Dam, made their case for being the primary consultative partner with HBRC, and enthusiastically endorsed the plan and the dam.

Consultation with M채ori is a requirement of the Resource Management Act (RMA) when local authorities are processing plan changes. It is a Treaty of

Waitangi obligation, under Article 2, in the partnership agreement between M채ori and the Crown.

By day 24 the inquiry should have finished. That was the plan. But an extension was required, and everyone went home for Christmas.

Last but not least The hearings resumed on the 15th of January on Matahiwi Marae. The Board members were welcomed as equals along with all the other guests, and

everyone lunched together, and used the same facilities.

First up was legal counsel for Ngäti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated (NKII), Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga, and six marae, collectively known as the Heretaunga Parties. The Board was told that, NKII supported and represented, “the collective issues of the six taiwhenua in the Ngäti Kahungunu Iwi rohe: Wairoa, Whanganui a Orotu, Heretaunga, Tamatea, Tamaki Nui-a-Rua, and Wairarapa”.

NKKI's lawyer then said, “The Hawke's Bay Regional Council did not seek to engage with any representatives from NKII for the purposes of Plan Change 6.” He said the same of Taiwhenua Heretaunga, and one by one he introduced the marae – Matahiwi, Waimarama, Kohupatiki, Waipatu, Ruahapia – and he ended with the same words, “HBRC did not seek to engage with any representatives from … for the purposes of Plan Change 6.”

Over two days, the Heretaunga Parties presented their case for opposing Plan Change 6 and the Ruataniwha dam, and for the first time the Board stayed late into the night to hear cross-examination of their case. Proceedings ended at 10.55pm.

Consultation was only one aspect of why NKKI and the Heretaunga Parties oppose Plan Change 6. They also challenge the untested TRIM model of nutrient management developed for the Regional

Council, and deem there is insufficient evidence to show that Tukituki water quality and ecosystems will be enhanced and protected.

For the last three days of submissions, the inquiry moved to the Municipal Theatre in Waipawa, and the members of the Board once again took their refreshments alone, and used facilities reserved only for them.

Day 29 and the marathon inquiry was winding up. The last item to appear before the Board, 40 minutes before the close, was a Memorandum of Understanding signed by HBRC, NKII, Tamatea Taiwhenua, and Heretaunga Taiwhenua.

From the Memorandum: “All parties agree that a constructive and enduring relationship between all parties is important. HBRC is committed to engaging in a meaningful manner with NKII and the Heretaunga Parties. HBRC acknowledges and agrees that re-engaging with NKII and the Heretaunga Parties will require kanohi-ki-te-kanohi, pokohiwiki-te pokohiwi (face-to-face, shoulder-toshoulder) engagement at the governance level of HBRC with NKII and the Heretaunga Parties as well as at hui and hapü and marae level.”

Consultation with Mäori has become a major issue for HBRC, and could delay their plans. Such is their confidence in Plan Change 6 being endorsed, and

“We have been to every Tamatea marae affected

by Plan Change 6 and the dam, but I admit we haven't been to every marae on the lower Tukituki.” liz lambert the dam approved, that construction is scheduled to begin this December.

If NKII, or any other party, appeals to the High Court for a judicial review, the delays will be costly to HBRC, with the added loss of political capital for the Government in election year.

Continued on Page 12

» Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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divide to rule?

After all, the Ruataniwha dam is the first project off the blocks in the Government's water storage policy. They've already put up $6.4 million to develop the Ruataniwha scheme, and a share of the $400 million earmarked for water storage will go the toward construction. Labour and Greens oppose the dam. It is an election issue.

Back to the beginning To understand how HBRC went about its consultation process, I ask acting CEO, Liz Lambert, to start at the beginning.

“Councils tend to rely on a nationalbased directory that's provided electronically on TPK on who to consult with [TPK is Te Puni Kökiri, the government department in charge of Mäori affairs] and back in 2005 there are emails [from NKII] which make it quite specific that in matters of resource management consultation we were to go through their taiwhenua.”

The web-site showed Tamatea as the taiwhenua of the dam site and the Tukituki River until south of Waipawa, after which, and all the way to the sea, the Tukituki flows through the taiwhenua of Heretaunga.

That HBRC chose to consult with Tamatea at the exclusion of Heretaunga seems a serious lapse in judgement.

“We have been to every Tamatea marae affected by Plan Change 6 and the dam, but I admit we haven't been to every marae on the lower Tukituki,” says Lambert.

However, she is adamant NKII was informed from the outset. “We followed the process NKII had put in place back in 2005,” says Liz. “They've changed their process and we're happy to accommodate that.” And … “If they want to take a more active roll in the Plan Change

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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Rachel Dailey rachel.dailey@sothebysrealty.com

M: 027 487 1231 D: 06 877 0903 Each office is independently owned and operated.

SHB Ltd (Licensed Under The REAA 2008) MREINZ.

development process, as the authority, we're happy with that.”

But how did NKII get themselves into the position they're in? Lambert replies, “NKII are in a difficult position because the Tukituki Catchment Proposal covers three of their taiwhenua – Tamatea, Heretaunga, and Tamaki nua-a-Rua. NKII appear to have come in on the side of Heretaunga and don't appear to be supporting the other two taiwhenua as much. Perhaps NKII have felt uncertain about their mandate to speak until now.”

Asked if a "colonial attitude of divide and rule might apply here,” Lambert shook her head, and replied, "I can't comment on that."

To be fair, Lambert wasn't the CEO when the decisions on consultation were hatched. Most of the credit for Plan Change 6 and the dam, and the strategy to achieve success, goes to Andrew Newman, past CEO of HBRC, now CEO of HBRIC, the investment company, and the man in charge of delivering the dam.

Divide and rule ‘Divide et Imperia’ was devised by the Roman Empire to control conquered territories. The concept refers to a strategy that breaks up existing power structures by driving wedges between the groups that were formally cohesive and linked. It includes conferring special privileges on those chosen to co-operate, causing divisiveness and conflict, with those excluded.

At the head waters of the Tukituki river, Taiwhenua Tamatea have signed an agreement with HBRIC to set up a

“There seems a clear intention not to consult with us ... It feels familiar. Isn't it what happened with the Treaty of Waitangi? If their intentions were honorable, then the systems should be very clear, but when the intentions aren't honorable, everything's confused.” donna kingi trust which will oversee certain aspects of the dam construction, and monitor the Tukituki, once it is operational. The budget is $8.9 million.

At the river's mouth, the hapü of Matahiwi Marae tell a very different story.

Tom Mulligan, chairman of the Marae Committee says, "In the past we've been asked our opinion, but with Plan Change 6 and the Ruataniwha Dam proposal, we were not involved in any consultation.” Tom invites as many people as he can muster to be part of the BayBuzz interview, and everyone nods in agreement when he says, "What really bugs us is that Tamatea through the Regional Council have the audacity to recognise themselves as the mana whenua (people) of the river, because we believe that wherever the river flows, the people on its bank are mana whenua."

I ask the group if they think HBRC has

divide to rule?

Dr Adele Whyte Roger Maaka is the voice of Tamatea on the subject of the Ruataniwha dam.

He was involved from the outset, serving on HBRIC’s senior stakeholder group for the project. From his position as Head of Mäori Studies at the EIT, he mentored Benita Wakefield, author of a cultural assessment, which advised HBRC how Mäori values might be respected and managed in the Plan Change.

Continued on Page 14

»

Pre-Planning: An Act of Love When you pre-plan funeral arrrangements, it’s an act of love.

Your family has a burden lifted. And your wishes are assured.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

employed the 'divide to rule' strategy, and one participant Donna Kingi, is certain they did. “There seems a clear intention not to consult with us,” Donna says. “It feels familiar. Isn't it what happened with the Treaty of Waitangi? If their intentions were honorable, then the systems should be very clear, but when the intentions aren't honorable, everything's confused.”

It seems implausible HBRC would have the oversight not to include consultation with Matahiwi Marae, so I ask Tom again, “Are you saying nobody came to talk to you?”

“Well,” Tom says, “Mike Mohi came to my house one day and said he wanted to talk to me about the dam, so I invited him to one of our monthly marae meetings.

He came with Roger Maaka but they did not talk about Plan Change 6. They said that going to a Mäori Committee was the best way to get the message across about the dam. That was it. They talked for no more than ten minutes.”

“And they call that consultation,” someone in the group calls out.

This view is echoed by NKII chairman Ngahiwi Tomoana, who refers derisively to “cup of coffee consultation” and insists that NKII had never been properly engaged.

“I’ll defend that to anyone,” he says. “I’m quite fluent on the processes of local government.” He notes that its experience and expert staff make NKII “hard Mäori to deal with, and so the Regional Council avoids us. They prefer to go to soft Mäori … people with a lot less knowledge, resource and investigative ability.” As he sees it, “The Regional Council has been going around looking for a ‘Yes’.”

Mike Mohi has been the Mäori advisor to HBRC for the past 12 years. He chairs the Mäori Committee, which was HBRC's main vehicle for consultation over Plan Change 6. Sitting on the committee for the entire Plan Change process was Liz Remmerswaal, and she's adamant the Mäori Committee was not a forum for consultation. “Reports would be presented, but there wasn't much discussion or feedback, and lot of people weren't happy with the process.”

NKII’s role Under cross-examination at the BOI, Benita Wakefield recognised the tension between Tamatea and NKII, when she told the Board that some people see, “… this dam is going to be the ruin of the iwi. It's going to bring down the iwi. You know,” she said, “it has never been my intention to be party to anything that is going to interfere with the mana of our iwi.”

At the inquiry, Tamatea Taiwhenua claimed their right to act on their own behalf, and manage the benefits flowing from the dam's construction. Heretaunga Taiwhenua and NKII challenged that stance, and NKII changed the TPK website as to who should be consulted on plan changes from taiwhenua to iwi.

Adding to the confusion over consultation is the parallel development of Plan Change 6 with the dam project.

As Liz Lambert points out, “Under the RMA consultation is not required for resource consent applications [e.g., for the dam], but having said that HBRIC did have extensive consultation, particularly through the Mana Whenua Working Party.”

There is a perception that this Working Party (MWWP) was a consultation vehicle for Plan Change 6. It was not. Here the roles of HBRC and HBRIC mingle without clarity; the former being responsible for the Plan Change, the latter for the dam, one requiring consultation, the other not.

Affected by the confusion is Des Ratima. He served on the MWWP as a representative of Heretaunga, and soon he found himself being singled out by HBRC. “They were saying we've talked to Des, so we've consulted with Kahungunu, … and I said [to HBRC] I have to be very clear with you, that has never been my position, and don't recall you telling me I was being used in this way.”

The outcome for Ratima came in January, when he was told by NKII, that for the Memorandum of Understanding to proceed, they didn't want him on any of the working groups related to the dam.

“I've taken that back to marae and they're not happy. It's not for NKII to dictate to them who they want to represent them.”

He continues, “NKII never had a mandate. They were set up for fisheries

13

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Tom Mulligan with members of the Matahiwi Marae

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

14

settlement. They're not a Rünanga [traditional tribal assembly]; they're an incorporated society. They pose as the mandated Iwi Authority, and it’s been unchallenged because that's suited everybody, until now.”

CEO of NKII, Dr Adele Whyte, led the negotiations on the Memorandum of Understanding with HBRC. In the final draft submitted to the Board of Inquiry on 8 February, HBRC acknowledges NKII, “as the iwi authority for Ngäti Kahungunu” and both parties “have committed to entering a formal relationship accord” to better their communication and relationship in the future.

NKII chairman Tomoana interprets the memorandum as giving his organisation the opportunity to conduct a full “peer review” of the standards and methodologies embedded in Plan Change 6 as well as the case for the dam and alternatives to it.

If that does not occur and NKII is not satisfied, then “all bets are off” he told BayBuzz. “It’s not a done deal at the Board of Inquiry. We’ll challenge it to the degree we need to … legal, political, social protest … any tool at our disposal.” Asked what he meant by alternatives to the dam, Tomoana suggested significant investment in developing Mäori agricultural potential in the Wairoa region.

If NKII ultimately opposes the dam, that will affect the investment in the dam that HBRIC is counting upon from Ngäi Tahu.

Says Tomoana, “If the dam does not meet the environmental standards of our iwi, then they will review the investment.”

Des Ratima is not surprised NKII is asserting their authority so firmly. “What they're trying to develop is a mandated Iwi Authority, but the thing that's going to undo

them is that each hapü are doing their own treaty settlements, and they've already been told by Pahauwera (Wairoa) to get out the way, and I wouldn't be surprised if the others (claimants) say the same thing.”

Treaty settlements are well advanced in Hawke's Bay and cited to be worth $200 to $400 million. Settlements will also confer kaitiaka on claimants – that is, guardianship of river catchments, forests, and tidal ecosystems, as has happened with the Ahuriri settlement.

Responsibility for the key resource management decisions for Hawke's Bay lies with the Regional Planning Committee (RPC) set up by HBRC in 2011. This implements a model advanced by the Crown in its negotiations with Treaty claimants, and is expected to be codified in legislation.

Sitting on the RPC in equal numbers are councillors and representatives from the Treaty claimant groups. NKII does not have a seat at the table, because the RPC was established as a Treaty of Waitangi redress for the Tangata Whenua Groups [Treaty claimant families], not the Iwi Authority.

Where NKII's input would be invaluable is as independent scrutiniser in the submissions phase of developing the key resource management planning policies for Hawke's Bay – the Regional Policy Statement, the Regional Resource Management Plan, and the Regional Coastal Environment Plan.

Access to expert advice – economic, scientific, cultural – within a Mäori framework, is something NKII currently provides, and its corporate structure is similar to Ngäi Tahu and Tainui, who have managed their Treaty settlements into billion dollar portfolios. NKII is well

“In the past we've been asked our opinion, but with Plan Change 6 and the Ruataniwha Dam proposal, we were not involved in any consultation.” tom mulligan positioned to serve in that role, but to remain relevant, it needs united support from its people, as well as recognition as leader of Kahungunu aspirations at the governance level.

I ask Tom Mulligan from Matahiwi Marae what he thinks will happen in the future, and Tom says, "We're not going to fight among ourselves. We must work together. And a good example was here during the hearings when we catered for 120 people on the first day. In the kitchen were representatives from all the maraes, we were Kahungunu all working for a purpose. We must unite, and work together, to overcome our problems."

And Tom thinks the chairman of the Board of Inquiry got the message about the Mäori way in consultation. “He asked me to call him Lester,” Tom says, “and he insisted we all eat together, and he insisted we all use the same facilities; that we do everything together. That's our way, kanohiki-te-kanohi, pokohiwi-ki-te pokohiwi (faceto-face, shoulder-to-shoulder).”

And as surely as ‘divide and rule’ is a strategy to maintain power through division, ‘united we stand’ is the way to defeat it through solidarity and cooperation.

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mystery at the museum by ~ jessica soutar barron

MTG director Douglas Lloyd Jenkins

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

16

After years of fundraising, packing, building, and living out of boxes in temporary accommodation the MTG has opened to the public. And the gnashing of teeth has begun.

The fanfare is slow in coming, the bricks are being thrown and the jewel in Hawke's Bay's crown is losing its patina before we've barely got it out of the wrapping. “Uninspiring” is a word often heard … sometimes describing the new museum and its innards, sometimes the public bun fight.

Some of the sturm und drang comes from the shared ownership of the collection the MTG was built to house.

Some comes from grumpy public and local media stirring the pot, and smacks of a provincial tall-poppy syndrome.

Potentially some comes from political maneuvering. This is afterall the Year of the Great Amalgamation Debate.

The issues include the museum’s storage capacity, consternation around

the name, a muddle in the expected visitor numbers, the entry fee, the poor ranking on online tourism portal Trip Advisor (13th out of 14 Napier attractions), divergent visions around contemporary museum goers and their needs and expectations (e.g., more digital interactivity), the management style of director Douglas Lloyd Jenkins, and the ultimate lines of accountability for the institution.

A quick-fire review commissioned by the Napier City Council (NCC) with a promised public-release date of late April will address some, but probably not all, of these matters.

Who’s in charge?

At its core the MTG project was meant to "build a home worthy of our collections and exhibitions". What does this mean in reality? Is it simply a box full of boxes?

An awkward structure of stakeholders means there are inevitably contrasting

voices in the mix. Two councils are involved financially (NCC and HDC); a third if you count the HB Regional Council, which donated $2.5 million during the fundraising drive. The HB Museums Trust is the caretaker of the collection of artefacts owned by the people of Hawke's Bay. The MTG Foundation, a community fundraising vehicle tasked with buying new works.

And last but not least, the museum director, who sets the direction and style for what the public actually views.

Complicating matters, the opening of the new MTG coincided with Napier's mayor and chief executive both retiring, and the people currently at the helm have varying degrees of history with the project, with plenty of out-clauses when it comes to taking responsibility.

Napier City Mayor, Bill Dalton, who appointed himself onto the Museums Trust when the fracas began, says, "My council has been given a hospital pass on

"The collection is rich and complicated and it really does reflect Hawke's Bay people and what we think about the world," explains Lloyd Jenkins.

That said, as the dispute has continued, his views seem increasingly at odds with those of his ultimate employer, Mayor Dalton, who asks (as reported in the DomPost): "Is our collection still relevant to the Hawke's Bay story? Is a vast textile collection appropriate for the Hawke's Bay Museum?”

“Boxing Overkill”?

At the root of keeping the collection safe and secure is the need for communication and joined-up thinking around its care. But no one agrees on how best to store the chattels.

Mayor Bill Dalton: "When (the MTG) was first designed it was intended the entire collection would go back in. It came out didn't it? And from a much smaller area. Then the collection was packed in substantial wooden crates to make sure no damage happened in transit or in temporary storage … The issue now is the building that was designed was never intended to have the items stored in crates and I dispute the fact we need to store the collection that way."

Lloyd Jenkins: "We expected all along that the collection was going to be packed (in specially made earthquakesafe crates). The confusion may lie in the notion that it'd be unpacked. But it would be a big mistake to go back to 20 year-old [storage] practices.

Bill Dalton insists the practice is a case of belts and braces.

"The building is at 100% of building regulation for earthquake protection. The Museum Director advises us this is best practice now. But to me it's like inviting

“We are the only museum in New Zealand that gets no acquisition funds from its council. Almost all our pieces are donations, I would say 90%, and we do keep developing the collection. To people who say we should stop, I say: ‘You give me a list of which generations don't get to have a record of their era’.” douglas lloyd jenkins friends over to a 100% earthquake proof home and getting them to wear hardhats and overalls. We've got a collection we're protecting as if it's the crown jewels. I am not an expert in museums, but it feels like boxing overkill!"

Writing to its patrons, the MTG Foundation cautions: “We would be concerned if there were any suggestions to reduce the number of items in the collection, or indeed to ‘down grade’ the recently upgraded conditions of storage of items in order to find a solution to the current problem.

Too small?

The lack of common understanding goes beyond Dalton and Lloyd Jenkins.

Mayor Lawrence Yule says he was never told the rebuilt museum would be too small to fit the full collection. "If someone Continued on Page 18

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this. There's a basic conflict in the way the museum structure is organised and it should have been resolved years ago. The Museums Trust wants to grow and grow their collection and nothing is ever taken away so we have storage issues."

Museum director Douglas Lloyd Jenkins, who has been in the role since 2006 explains the importance of this growth.

"We are the only museum in New Zealand that gets no acquisition funds from its council. Almost all our pieces are donations, I would say 90%, and we do keep developing the collection. To people who say we should stop, I say: 'You give me a list of which generations don't get to have a record of their era'."

"For twenty years potential donors have known the space was too small, and so have held off because of storage problems. A lot of people have come to us recently with their treasured items and they’ve given them in confidence to a top class institution in which things will be properly packed, stored and displayed."

Lloyd Jenkins adds, "We are aware of funds and of future growth, but we are also acutely aware of our responsibility to the people of Hawke's Bay as the home of their stories."

If MTG is a home, then NCC and HDC are mum and dad squabbling over where to put the valuables.

Administered by the Hawke's Bay Museums Trust, of which Barbara Arnott is acting chair, the two councils hold equal shares in the Hawke's Bay collection, a $43 million anthology of our social history dating as far back as the early days of our nationhood. Included in its archive is the only remaining firsthand account of the signing of the treaty at Waitangi. It is the fifth most valuable collection in New Zealand.

17

mystery at the museum

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

18

had told me a year ago, I would have done something and we would have planned for it. The feasibility that was done on this said they would have room and that there would be room for growth."

In early February Yule was told the collection didn't fit in the new building constructed to house it, and that part of the collection would need to be stored elsewhere. First, Yule was told (by new NCC chief executive Wayne Jack) that 40% fitted in the MTG, then it was 50% (Neil Fergus). When BayBuzz enquired two weeks later, it had grown to 60% (Jack).

"A combination of mistakes means the collection can't be housed in one place and we have never been told. The rent on an additional space, staff at two locations – it is unplanned for and if it was the plan then where is the financial modelling for that?" says Yule.

HDC's financial dog in the fight is the $1 million it donated during the original fundraising drive, plus the $463,00 it contributes each year to the upkeep of the collection (with NCC giving another $463,000).

Barbara Arnott, Napier mayor during the build and current acting chair of the Museums Trust says the storage issue is two-fold. "Part of each room is used for infrastructure (air conditioning ducts) and plant rooms, so that consumed space. And, nobody knew until they started."

Some say the impending shortfall was signaled to then-CEO Neil Taylor by the architect before construction even began. Mr Taylor refused comment to BayBuzz, saying he was no longer the chief executive and didn't want to talk about the MTG. Current NCC staff say it was in the later stages when the fit out for services was being done that council officers realised the space was significantly smaller than it had been on the plans.

Design manager John Wright was Napier City Council's man on the ground during the build. He oversaw the build, of which Gemco were the contractors.

When asked he said he was unable to comment on the issues at the Museum.

Further up the line BayBuzz was told the MTG's exact cubic metre capacity was as yet unknown and that Wright was still working out how big the place is.

The MTG Foundation seems relaxed about the situation: “The Board has no immediate concerns over the safety and security of the balance of the Hawke’s Bay Museums Trust collection that is stored offsite from the new MTG building.”

The marketing material produced at the time and distributed to potential funders claimed "our collections have outgrown the available space: our need for more room has become great", and "A large, flexible, dedicated collection store provides a high standard of care for the current collection, with room left for further growth."

Bruce Martin was the chair of the HB Museums Trust until he completed a three-year-term 15 months ago. "I decided at that point that I didn't want to make myself available for another term." Now that the build is complete, Martin is left confused about whether or not it's fit for purpose. He says he hasn't visited the MTG. "All I can say is that all the collection was housed in the HBMAG – it was taken out because of the build, then it was meant to be put in to an enlarged and enhanced complex. It all came out; it's now a larger complex and I can't understand why it all can't go back in."

NCC chief executive Wayne Jack is now taking charge and says there are things he would have done differently if he had been in the position during the build. He won't be pressed on what exactly.

"The MTG delivers what it was intended to – exhibitions, and arts and

culture – and it does that well. The main thing is collection protection and the levels of risk. Things (items in the collection) that are of strategic importance, you want to protect at a high level, other pieces don't need that."

As to the building itself, Johanna Mouat, acting chairman of the MTG Foundation, noted to BayBuzz that the design had to contend with key constraints, such as the physical size of the overall property and the important need to protect “two gems” of significant importance – the Guy Natusch-designed Century Theatre and the original Louis Hay gallery. A ‘purpose-built’ building might have offered more capacity and flexibility, but was simply not an option.

Others dispute that, pointing out that NCC rejected a proposal to use the Ahuriri-located historic Rothman’s Tobacco Building as a home with greater capacity and potential.

“What’s an MTG?” Another bugbear for some is the name of the museum, which has been the Hawke's Bay Museum and Art Gallery, or HBMAG, since 1931. Now it's MTG (standing for Museum, Theatre and Gallery), a name proposed by Auckland agency Beehive Creative.

"There was a consultation process using small focus groups and particularly with iwi regarding the te reo name (Tai Ahuriri). There were other names looked at and the final decision was made in a meeting with Napier City Council."

Beehive Creative, led by Justin Clow and Brenda Saris, keeps a low profile.

Cyber-stalk them and you'll find nothing.

Clow explains that he and Lloyd Jenkins have known each other for a long time, and that when the opportunity arose to pitch for the work Clow leapt at it.

"I've known Douglas for years. I did some work with him when he was at

mystery at the museum

Unitec (where Lloyd Jenkins served from 1992 as a design lecturer). I am very into 'who you know'; it means you can trust them, you have experience with them."

Brenda Saris explains how the name came about: "The name actually came from the building, the architecture. There are three parts to the complex, the museum, the theatre and the gallery, so it all fits into place quite beautifully. MTG is also an acronym for 'meeting', and the building is a meeting of ideas, a meeting of objects, a meeting of cultures and of people."

Lloyd Jenkins says it was a calculated decision to appoint an agency from outside the area. "Yes, we did go outside of the area. That is because we felt there were too many preconceived ideas of what we were and what we might be."

Anything other than a literal moniker hasn't got a strong history in the Bay. The Hawke's Bay Opera House is just that, the Regional Sports Park the same, a failed attempt at naming the Hawke's Bay Exhibition Centre Te Ara Rau means that space is now quite simply the Hastings City Art Gallery. HBMAG hardly had a ring to it and at least MTG takes in the importance of the Century Theatre, architecturally the jewel within the jewel.

"Most people like the name – but some people just don’t like change," Lloyd Jenkins says.

“My council has been given a hospital pass on this.

There's a basic conflict in the way the museum structure is organised and it should have been resolved years ago.” mayor bill dalton

The wee numbers Douglas Lloyd Jenkins calls the MTG a showcase of the best of Hawke's Bay. "It makes people feel part of the contemporary world. This is a place full of possibilities. We are a mix of the best of local history and of the bigger world experience. We want people to be in here and it gives people a space of their own in the city."

A sign of success would certainly be doors thrown open and visitors thronging through. Ratepayers’money has provided for not just a home for the collection but a window through which the people of Hawke's Bay can see it.

Exact expected numbers are hard to nail down and the figure of 690,000 flagged by local media has been called a mistake and put down Lloyd Jenkins as a “clerical error”. He says he is investigating how that happened.

Wayne Jack explains that about a third of people who enter the building are 'turn arounds'. That is they turn around and walk out when they find it costs $15 to get into the MTG. "The visitor numbers (in the 10-year plan) were just a mistake, we didn't really check the basis, but I'm not going to point a finger. There's been a number of errors across a number of areas," Jack says.

"We don't measure people paying, we measure people who enter the building; but I am more interested in how many Continued on Page 20

» Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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mystery at the museum

“The Board has no immediate concerns over the safety and security of the balance of the Hawke’s Bay Museums Trust collection that is stored offsite from the new MTG building.” the mtg foundation

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

20

people enter the building and then use the exhibitions."

Jack's guesstimate is that the actual visitor numbers are pretty much on track, "slightly below but within the expected." Bill Dalton disagrees. "No, we're not tracking to target, we're below that ... and we need to see why."

Trip Advisor, the website that lets people rank various tourist attractions, throws up a whole raft of criticism around the MTG. A main theme is the entry fee.

Lloyd Jenkins says, "The entry fee has always been $10. Every year we have come under pressure to adjust it for inflation, and we haven't. But NCC is driven by revenue and income. The [entry fee] decision was made by the council."

He does say he would prefer not to charge people but that economics are a

reality. "There is no gallery director in the world who wants a charge on their door.

I want everyone in Hawke’s Bay to come through the doors and to do so regularly."

Dalton, who was chair of NCC’s finance committee confirms the pricing and the structure were something the council agreed at the time.

"Put into figures it starts to make the budget look okay and so you approve it, but maybe it wasn't the right decision."

The museum director As reported above, it appears that Lloyd Jenkins and Mayor Dalton don’t exactly see eye-to-eye on fundamental issues like the nature and storage of the collection. And it is the NCC, which pays the operating expenses of the museum, that through its CEO, Wayne Jack, ultimately judges the museum director’s performance.

Douglas Lloyd Jenkins has directed the museum since 2006. He’s noted for his sophistication, scholarship, wit (often acerbic), and creative leadership. Less mentioned is his managerial nous.

Those involved in the actual construction of the new museum minimise Lloyd Jenkins’ role. Darren Diack, managing director of Gemco, prime contractor for the project, notes that the museum was completed “on time and under budget”. He adds: “The Napier City Council built the museum, not Douglas Lloyd Jenkins. Our client

was the Napier City Council; we took all instructions from them. Douglas and his staff had very little if any input during the construction phase.”

But as a day-to-day manager, Lloyd Jenkins has his critics. There has been significant turnover in museum staff in recent times, some disgruntled, some having signed non-disclosure agreements. Says Lloyd Jenkins, “Part of my job is to keep staff focused and philosophical and at the moment they are tired and exhausted, they have a lot of accumulated leave. But what people need to realise is that our staff are much admired by other museums. I have an excellent team.”

Sour grapes, exhaustion, changing expectations, or important managerial shortcomings to be addressed?

Time will tell.

But meantime, in the midst of the turmoil, the museum’s private sector patrons recently gave Lloyd Jenkins their vote of confidence. Wrote the MTG Foundation: “We have confidence in the past (and present) professionalism of the MTG Director Douglas Lloyd Jenkins and the Collections Manager Sara Browne in their care and protection of the collection at all times.” And Chairman Johanna Mouat commented to BayBuzz: “There are few people in New Zealand who could understand and interpret our collection as well as Douglas.”

mystery at the museum

What next?

Many of these issues will be the subject of NCC’s up-coming review.

Barbara Arnott proudly defends the building that has been called her pet project, telling BayBuzz: "The people who gave towards the project have got more than bang for their buck. The MTG is something the whole of Hawke's Bay should be proud of; it has state-ofthe-art storage; it can hold itself proud in the whole of New Zealand."

And while some still question the wisdom of an $18 million investment into “an edifice with narrow appeal” that will require ongoing subsidy, that question is moot … MTG is here to stay!

Johanna Mouat wants people to give the new museum a chance … “there’s been a lot of change … the raw material is there … we have a significant asset … it needs better marketing.”

Bill Dalton says: "We'll be looking at the relevance of the collection; which exhibitions we should be having and how many; staff levels; entry price, making sure it's accessible and available to ratepayers, because at the moment it is seriously too steep."

Wayne Jack has now taken charge of the situation and will see it through to its conclusion. "The review was always part

“The MTG delivers what it was intended to – exhibitions, and arts and culture – and it does that well. The main thing is collection protection and the levels of risk. Things (items in the collection) that are of strategic importance, you want to protect at a high level, other pieces don't need that.”

19

wayne jack

NCC chief executive Wayne Jack of the plan. The objectives have been expanded because 19 we have inherited storage issues."

Jack confirms the review will be external and independent, and findings 19 will be made public.

"We are working to an April deadline but it will depend on the capacity of the external personnel."

Douglas Lloyd Jenkins, the man at the helm welcomes the review and says he will "have a few things to say" when the findings 19

are in. For now, he gets the last word: "For me it's not just a job. I am totally committed to this. I came here because I saw a collection that had been neglected, and that had amazing potential. I always said I wasn't just here to build the building.

"Just you wait. We've got some sensational stuff still to come. I'm proud of MTG Hawke’s Bay, I want to front it for a long time yet."

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22

A grumpy letter by Jessica Maxwell of Havelock North drew my attention to the invasion of Argentine ants into the village … and with it a vexing policy problem.

The Argentine ant is placed by the World Conservation Union in the top 100 worst invaders. Originally from the Parana River basin of Argentina, they have spread rapidly across the world, surpassed in this respect only by humans. Great hitch hikers, they are often referred to as ‘tramp ants’ and are well-adapted to living with humans.

These ‘Argies’ got to Auckland in 1990 and sadly weren’t eradicated then. They arrived in Hawke’s Bay between 19982002 and – as willing travellers – haven’t stopped moving.

Their DNA varies little, enabling them to intermingle, which means they can form super colonies sometimes covering many kilometres, unlike most other ants where each colony will defend its own turf. Each Argentine ant colony has multiple queens and when faced with danger the colony splits as a protection mechanism. Resilient buggers.

They are omnivores, eating nectar, seeds, other insects and honey dew. They have been reported to attack nesting birds, skinks and will likely displace native ants to protect their food source. They are resourceful and determined. There are reports of them getting into screw top jars by following the turn of the screw and back.

Although not poisonous they have a bite that some react to strongly. In large numbers they can invade outdoor social events as unwelcome gate crashers, swarm over food, people and pets. They invade kitchens, fridges and pantries in their quest for sugar for the workers and protein for the queens. They can make outdoor areas almost unusable.

Facing such a threat, why haven’t we, the smartest here, simply dealt to the ant?

There are a number of reasons. The range of effective poisons for the Argentine ant is limited and expensive. But they are effective, more so on industrial land where there are limited food sources. Private land is more problematic because more food sources are available and there are more individual land-owning parties to gain cooperation from.

With an estimated 5,000 properties affected from Waipukurau through Havelock North to Wairoa, the size of the challenge multiplies.

Jessica writes that property owners lament the cost of attending to their properties, $150 to $200 each, with no certainty that their neighbours are going to do the same. The obvious problem is that having fixed your own backyard, amassing beyond the fence is a reinvasion force itching to reclaim lost ground.

Jessica believes, not unreasonably, that the Regional Council should embark on a mass eradication programme of the Argentine ant. The ants are a destructive pest and a public nusiance; they will create an economic loss and an environmental cost. But is their pestiness so great that we should put them ahead of pests like possums, mustelids, feral cats, rabbits and other enemies of the Regional Council?

Probably not.

How might we resolve this policy issue?

The first issue is cost. The Regional Council subsidises the bait for the ants with a 15% discount. Is this too little? If it were increased what would the likely uptake be? Jessica writes that she canvassed her neighbours for collective action, good on her. But while they agreed the ant was a pest they were not prepared to spend that amount of money.

Secondly, the more people involved, the less chance of effective action being taken.

If we are not confident our neighbours will take action, why should we spend the money and make the effort? The Regional Council works with a few groups who do work collaboratively, but this is only a tiny fraction of the households affected. What could be done to lift public confidence and improve this cooperative participation rate?

Thirdly, there seems to be a communication issue. The Regional Council wrote to Jessica in December, telling her the time to start baiting for these ants was in the spring. The late notice didn’t impress or provide confidence about the advice.

So where to from here? Some public engagement? Currently, it seems that neither the Regional Council nor the general public are willing to take sole responsibility for dealing with the Argentine ant. Divide and conquer – this is probably the ants’ preferred option. Only a joint approach has a chance of success.

Are the ants such a pest that they will move the people of Havelock North into action? No one knows because the people of Havelock North have not been asked.

Will we stamp out the Argentine ant?

Well that’s in your hands. I’d welcome your views. Email me at rickjbarker@gmail.com Meanwhile – while we dither – the ants march on!

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Who’s doing all that picking and packing?

Keith Newman asks why all the focus is on training fulltime horticultural workers and importing immigrant workers for seasonal picking, packing and pruning, when the dole queue’s still growing? chairman Ngähiwi Tomoana claims corporate employers often want everything “done in synch” and prefer a “contained” and “pliable” immigrant work force who don’t question things like Kiwis do.

He says this demand for efficiencies has ended up displacing semi-permanent contract jobs for locals; “some of our people who used to work day and night shifts in the pack houses are no longer getting hired.”

While there is genuine effort being made to retrain people, the model of horticultural corporates is now more aligned to employing overseas workers, something Tomoana finds disturbing when 13.4% of the unemployed in Hawke’s Bay, over twice the national average, are Mäori.

In late 2012, he says NKII nearly invested in a company employing about 1,000 people in peak season, but the deal fell through when they were only prepared to hire a small minority of Mäori.

Like other corporates, he says they were only interested in a “robitron workforce” which didn’t allow for flexibility, for example frowning on people taking time off for a tangi (funeral). “There’s no real passion for our region or our people, they treat us like a global town which undermines social cohesion, regional virility and community.”

Work for the willing Hawke’s Bay has a higher unemployment rate than the rest of the country, around 8% compared to the national average of around 6%, and more youth disengaged from the workforce.

Statistic NZ reveals an historical employment lift of 2,000-3,000 in the December and March quarters, dropping back a little for the June quarter and then a significant drop of 4,000-5,000 for the September quarter.

Around 65% of the region’s seasonal labour force requirements are filled by New Continued on Page 26 »

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While Work & Income New Zealand (WINZ) pays most of the region’s unemployed to stay at home, around 3,000 Pacific Island workers have flooded into Hawke’s Bay to assist orchardists, croppers and grape growers cope with the annual harvest.

Without a guaranteed labour force, horticulturalists are at great risk of missing seasonal and export market demands, and like the strict quality controls around their produce, they’re also increasingly particular about who does the picking.

Hawke’s Bay’s population is currently more diverse than usual with Melanesian workers strolling the streets or in the queues at supermarkets, an observation that’s at the root of many dinner table conversations about ‘lazy locals’ who should be made to work for their government hand-outs.

Unfortunately the solution is more complex than social banter might betray.

It’s even been suggested the problem is partly of our own making, based on the assumption that a local labour force has the skills, wants the drama of seasonal uncertainty and can simply be turned on and off like a kitchen tap.

While not buying into the lazy Kiwi stereotype, Xan Harding, chairman of HB Winegrowers Association, suggests our expectations are at times unreasonable.

“You cannot expect people on the unemployment benefit to climb up and down a three metre ladder for nine hours in the Hawke’s Bay heat and pick two tonnes of apples to specification and quality. It’s just not going to happen.”

Regardless, concerns have been raised that increasing corporatisation of many of our orchards and vineyards has transformed once enjoyable community opportunities into export-driven processes that treat people like cogs in the machine.

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picking and packing

Xan Harding

“You cannot expect people on the unemployment benefit to climb up and down a three metre ladder for nine hours in the Hawke’s Bay heat and pick two tonnes of apples to specification and quality. It’s just not going to happen.” xan harding Zealanders including locals, and semiretired ‘grey gypsies’ who travel around in vans to drive tractors, work in pack houses or help with harvesting. Another 5% are backpackers and those involved in the Working Holiday Scheme (WHS).

Many work for three months on kiwifruit, citrus or avocado orchards in the Bay of Plenty or Northland, or in forestry, shepherding or fishing before turning up in Hawke’s Bay. Serious seasonal workers can find at least 6-7 months work, but there’s always a labour deficit which has at times verged on crisis, particularly at harvest time, effectively holding horticulturalists to ransom.

Industry concerns gave rise to a representative lobby group, the Hawke’s Bay Labour Governance Group (HBLGG) in May 2007. The following year, after discussions with various government departments, a case was made for importing workers through the Recognised Seasonal Employer Scheme (RSES).

Today around 30% of the seasonal

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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workforce in Hawke’s Bay is sourced through the RSES for thinning, harvesting, sorting, packing, processing, pruning and clean-up, mostly for the pipfruit industry.

The majority come from Vanuatu and Samoa and some from Tonga, the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Kiribass, Tuvalu, and Indonesia. Many are now on their third and fourth season.

It’s imperative to get the numbers right as companies have to guarantee a certain number of hours. If they ask for ten workers and there’s only enough work for six, they end up carrying the cost.

There was a glitch in 2010 when not enough work permits were issued. Part of the solution was to form PickNZ, as a regional job vacancies hub. It processes around 1,500 visitor inquiries a year and assists with IRD numbers, extending WHS visas, RSES work permits and arranging basic training.

The bulk of RSES workers are allocated to larger companies. For example Mr Apple takes around 1,600 and JM Bostock about 240. Employers must demonstrate a close partnership with WINZ and show they’ve gone out of their way to employ Kiwis.

“We’re now getting it pretty well right most years,” says Gary Jones, president of the Hawke’s Bay Labour Governance Group and a Pipfruit NZ executive.

He says Pacific Islanders work side-byside with Kiwis for the same money, doing the “heavy grunt” including harvesting and packing. “They achieve at least the bin rates of the Kiwis and end up taking home a small fortune; a massive contribution to their village economies, including

investment in education, better housing and helping their families.”

“I went into an RSES orchard last year where there were 34 Tongans; 24 of them were earning over $1,000 a week. They were young and fit and those who had come back were getting quicker every year and probably earning more than most Kiwis,” says Jones.

The scheme is credited with a 20% increase in apple production over the past five years, and greater certainty and confidence for orchardists to reinvest in their businesses. There’s also a spin-off with some staying on to assist local vineyards during the pruning season.

Vineyard labour reduced Xan Harding of HB Winegrowers, who’s also owner-operator at Black Bridge Estate, says only about 100 RSES workers are engaged in the region’s vineyards, half what it was five years ago.

That’s largely because grape growers are becoming more automated, often because of the challenge of finding local people with the right “physical and mental attitude”.

“If the government says people have to turn up for a job interview or we’re cutting your dole, it doesn’t necessarily mean those who turn up actually want the job or are suitable or capable.”

Harding believes the referral process could be improved to eliminate time wasters. “The cold hard reality is the success rate of those turning up is very low for all sorts of reasons, including transport and motivation.”

This results in frustration and futility around the cost of sourcing labour and

picking and packing

Gary Jones

Ngahiwi Tomoana for the workforce. “It’s an indictment that Mäori aren’t full participants in the local economy.”

Last year he says New Zealand, and Hawke’s Bay in particular, created a $15 million boom for the Vanuatu economy through seasonal employment.

“That’s money that hasn’t gone into the HB economy.”

unemployed motivated, trained and back into the system”.

In fact, he suggests growers owe it to the local economy “in return for the privilege of having the RSES workers when we need them”.

He’s critical of many courses that fail to deliver suitable candidates for the industry, including those run by government departments. “There have been too many bullshit courses where the trainers make their money and tick the boxes to get ongoing funding, even when people don’t turn up.”

EIT training partnerships Bostock’s company is in partnership with EIT, WINZ and local iwi, running orchard-based training; 10 out of 15 candidates graduated from the first 20-week, level one and two horticultural course, in mid-February.

They learned basic work ethics and theoretical and practical training alongside Bostock employees, enabling most to step straight into full- and part-time positions Continued on Page 28 »

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

ultimately staff turnover. “If only one in ten people work out, it’s an inefficient way of running a business.”

Ngähiwi Tomoana claims some employers get around the RSES requirement by advertising for workers, telling applicants the positions are filled, then advising WINZ they couldn’t find enough Kiwis.

And he’s concerned at the trend of clawing back money paid to migrant workers through charging for accommodation, food and transport. “That’s part of the value to them which you wouldn’t get away with if you employed local people.”

Tomoana says the social wellbeing of the local workforce is effectively being undermined when WINZ ends up paying people to stay at home.

A good start would be offering them the same pastoral care as migrant workers, including skills development, transport to and from work, attention to their spiritual and cultural concerns and other incentives.

He suggests there’s room for another agency between WINZ and whänau (families), for example Taiwhenua o Heretaunga, where they speak Mäori, and can help train and prepare people

Industry responsibility According to John Bostock, owner of the JM Bostock group of companies, it’s “catch up time” for the industry, with employers needing to take responsibility for growing jobs and developing local people to fill them.

He reckons the horticultural labour mismatch first reared its head when industry growth outpaced the availability of casual workers at a time many local workers no longer wished to engage.

Bostock suggests Hawke’s Bay employers were irresponsible and the way they handled things contributed to a range of social problems.

Traditionally huge numbers were hired for the freezing works, tomato picking for Watties and in the pipfruit, stonefruit and wine industry “then they were fired and we wondered why a whole group were no longer interested in doing seasonal work?”

He says the need for stability was underestimated. Rather than a peak that reduces to nothing, preventing people from buying a house, paying a mortgage or even the rent, workers need “continuous employment that’s not interrupted by rain, changes in the market and seasonal factors.”

While a number of employers already cull the best locals from the seasonal pool for permanent work, Bostock says we need a stronger focus on “getting hard core

Bee27 in the know

picking and packing

Export driven growth ahead for orchards and vineyards

Hawke’s Bay is still ‘the fruitbowl of New Zealand’, remaining the largest and most diverse fruit-growing region in the country with everything pointing to sustained growth and expanding export opportunities ahead.

More than half of the nation’s apples are produced in Hawke’s Bay and 40% of the summer fruit, with 2014 shaping up to be a bumper season all round.

Following tough economic times that resulted in consolidation, including mergers and acquisitions, many horticulturalists and viticulturalists were forced to improve efficiencies, refocus on more profitable varieties and increase automation.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

28

Now it’s recovery time. Gary Jones president of the Hawke’s Bay Labour Governance Group and a Pipfruit NZ executive says it’s hard to find an apple season as good unless you go back to the vintage year of 1998.

Growth is across the board, but especially from integrated businesses that grow, pack and export their own fruit. These businesses are “hungry” for New Zealand workers, says Jones, and have increased full-time jobs by 25% over the past five years.

Pipfruit New Zealand is predicting the industry will return at least a billion dollars in exports by 2022, by which time Jones suggests the industry will need another 1,400 skilled full-time workers engaging in everything from management to marketing.

HB Winegrowers vice chairman Xan Harding says confidence is returning to

his industry after the post-2008 slump, with renewed investment in existing vineyards, a move to new varieties and some greenfields planting.

While 2014 is likely to be a bumper season, industry growth may be hampered by the lack of suitable land for the most profitable varieties.

The Chinese market is being touted as the next big area for expansion of red wine grapes best suited to the Heretaunga Plains, although preferred areas like Gimlett Gravels and Bridge Pa are already at maximum capacity.

While hand labour is still required, particularly for winter pruning, pruning technology from Marlborough is increasingly being used “to chop out horizontal canes and spurs”.

More mechanised approaches to harvesting are being adopted, especially at larger vineyards, including those at Crownthorpe and outlying areas, largely because it’s a long commute for part-timers.

Sheep are being used to get rid of low leaf around Christmas time; and over the past five years there’s been less hand harvesting as vineyards look to reduce the high labour component, says Harding.

That’s still not entirely alleviated the need for seasonal workers, particularly during the less glamorous summer training and winter pruning period, an issue that is likely to escalate if the industry goes through a period of expansion.

on orchards, including pruning, mowing, spraying, plant husbandry or seasonal work.

EIT regional tutor Erin Simpson says in the past the institute ran courses it thought the industry needed. “Now employers are helping to run these based on their specific needs … The idea is to provide a whole skillset so workers can be employed all year round.”

Simpson, who’s also head of recruitment and training at Mr Apple’s Waipawa plant, says the course mainly focused on long-term unemployed, with a mix of youth, middleaged and older people proving a good balance, particularly in “helping the younger ones into a good routine”.

John Bostock, employs over 500 people in his orchards, farms, fields, pack houses and offices during peak season, and was recruiting candidates for the 2014 EIT course as BayBuzz went to press. “I have positions that need filling all the time.”

Now he’s throwing down the gauntlet to other employers. “We want to match the RSES numbers with an equal number of full-time local jobs.” It’s believed Mr Apple and Apollo Apples are likely to run courses this year.

“If 20-30 employers get their mindset around this, we could make a real difference over ten years by training people from a dysfunctional situation into a functional situation,” says Bostock.

To that end the Hawke’s Bay Labour Governance Group continues to invest in a range of programmes, including case studies and advice for schools to highlight career opportunities in growing, packing, exporting and logistics.

Many motivated locals are already picking in orchards and taking second jobs in the field or packing houses, but those aren’t the kind of jobs the industry or even WINZ are focused on. Much of the effort is on finding the best people amongst part-timers to get qualified for full-time work.

The talk at the moment is about boomtime for horticulture and viticulture, which will increase the demand for full-time and seasonal labour and add fuel to the perennial debate about moving locals from the dole queue to the work queue.

So what about the cliché that Mäori in particular can’t be bothered? “That’s bullshit. We’ve been hearing that all our lives … that’s putting us down,” says Ngähiwi Tomoana.

He says the infrastructure of Hawke’s Bay was built on the back of Mäori workers. “I came from a generation of full employment … you could name the people on one hand who were unemployed. The whole region did well.”

Ideally Tomoana wants to see more seasonal jobs allocated to locals, but that will

picking and packing

Erin Simpson require more effort put into training and education system outputs. “It an evolving thing since the days of Rogernomics when thousands of our people were tipped out of jobs … we’re still lurching to find our feet again but it will happen.”

He says it’s going to take people like John Bostock to change things, and gives an assurance that Ngäti Kahungunu will work alongside and promote any employers that “upskill and train Mäori and put Hawke’s Bay first”.

Jones says, if they found their New Zealand suppliers were treating workers badly or underpaying Pacific Islanders “our apples would be gone from their shelves the next day”.

He insists there are strong commercial reasons to get it right; to that end the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE) monitor the system closely, including “accommodation, pastoral care, religious needs and ensuring everyone’s looked after”.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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Ethical trade relations Meanwhile the Recognised Seasonal Employer Scheme continues to be lauded as world-class, ethical and good for the country. Hawke’s Bay Labour Governance Group president Gary Jones insists it’s one of the best migratory labour and trade programmes in the world.

He says the industry and government partnership works for all parties and is intimately linked to ethical production methods, with huge global expectations around our social practices with migratory workers.

A lot of the RSES employers grow, pack and export to high-end supermarkets.

“Tesco for example comes out here and often asks to have private meetings with pickers. They’ve been very impressed.”

A cultural imbalance While critics slam the use of imported seasonal workers as cheap labour, there are no indications they’re paid any differently or face different work conditions than Kiwis; only that they’re at least as capable and in some cases more productive.

John Bostock says most in the horticultural sector want to do the right thing, especially when the economic drivers line up. “The penny has dropped and there’s now a real awareness that we’ve got to do a whole lot better in Hawke’s Bay.” He’s amazed the region remains at the bottom of employment, economic and social statistics. “That’s pretty sobering; the fact we haven’t been working as a whole community is why I’m so proamalgamation … This is a critical time for getting the model right.”

That means abandoning silo thinking and working regionally to ramp up the performance of horticulture as “the economic engine of Hawke’s Bay”.

Meanwhile the labour force dilemma is likely to remain unless more RSESstyle incentives are provided for locals, including training and career options that go well beyond the mechanics of part-time picking and packing.

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Political Round-up by ~ tom belford Most Hawke’s Bay residents probably sighed with relief when 2013 ended, thinking the year of politics in the region was over, with October’s election putting such distracting matters to rest.

However, the region’s political strife appears to be just heating up.

Key developments so far in 2014 include: The Board of Inquiry charged with the fate of the Tukituki catchment gets a onemonth extension in the deadline for making its decisions, signaling that critics of the proposed scheme have made an impact.

The region’s largest iwi, represented by Ngäti Kahungunu Iwi Inc (NKII), announces that it currently opposes the proposed CHB dam, and will pursue legal review if its concerns are not satisfactorily addressed.

A deep divide splits the Regional Council and NKII, centered on the Tukituki decision-making process, but

with further implications.

CHB Mayor Peter Butler suffers personal meltdown, threatening Mäori for opposing the CHB dam he wants the rest of Hawke’s Bay to pay for.

Public alarm revives over the present state of the Tukituki River, with cows in the river and concern about the efficacy of CHB’s sewage treatment.

With submissions closed on the reorganisation plan advanced by the Local Government Commission, and public hearings and a public survey soon to follow, advocates on both sides step up their campaigning, with virtually daily ripostes in Hawke’s Bay Today.

A major bun fight breaks out between Hastings and Napier officials regarding alleged mishandling and misrepresentation of key aspects of the freshly constructed and re-opened MTG Hawke’s Bay.

An even fiercer dispute erupts over the DHB’s cancellation of funding for a popular – and exceptionally successful – diabetes treatment practice.

Oil and gas springs to life in Wairoa with a major exploration well, which is sure to fuel public angst throughout the region.

Finally, the main parties decide who will represent them to contest the national election in the Napier and Tukituki electorates.

Plenty of action to amuse, excite or infuriate those interested in the region’s public affairs. Each of these controversies shapes citizen regard (high or low) for the responsiveness, transparency and intelligence of our public bodies and officials.

And, interestingly, the swirl of contested issues is generating new and occasionally strange alliances amongst the politically active, while in other circles certain topics are just not to be discussed!

Board of Inquiry In the view of John Cheyne, who chairs HB’s broad environmental coalition (Te Taio) and others, the Tukituki Board returned from its Christmas recess with seemingly greater regard for the concerns expressed by dam critics, as well as charges

by Ngäti Kahungunu that it had not been Continued on Page 34

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E T O V ! w o n l l o P w a r t S z z u B In a Bay

[ Just suppose Amalgamation happens! ] Who would be your choice for the first Mayor of Hawke’s Bay? Some say WHO fills the chairs is more important than the seating plan.

[ Experienced Hand? ] Would you go for experience ‌ a guiding hand to take us through a complex, sensitive transition?

[ Here are some Possibilities: ]

Barbara Arnott

Kevin Atkinson

Chris Tremain

Rick Barker

Fenton Wilson

Bill Dalton

Lawrence Yule

clean sweep?

Or would you prefer a ‘clean sweep’ … wiping away old baggage and enabling a fresh start?

Maybe a change in structure should bring a new face to the top job.

If you lean this way, YOU need to identify the possibilities.

Go ahead, start a wildfire for the candidate of your choice.

?

?

?

and what about amalgamation anyway?

Are you for or against?

Return this ballot to take our straw poll.

Or easier still, take the poll online at www.baybuzz.co.nz Results will be reported in our May/June edition.

FIRST

mayor ay of hawke’sw b l A BayBuzz Stra Pol

I prefer experience. My ‘guiding hand’ mayor would be: (tick ONE of the seven boxes to the right)

Barbara Arnott Kevin Atkinson

I prefer a clean sweep. I nominate... ______________________________________ for Mayor of Hawke’s Bay.

Rick Barker I support one Hawke’s Bay council.

Bill Dalton I oppose Amalgamation.

Chris Tremain Fenton Wilson Lawrence Yule

Please return your ballot to: BayBuzz, PO Box 8322, Havelock Nth Or easier still, take the poll online at: www.baybuzz.co.nz

political round-up

properly consulted as the Regional Council’s plans were developed.

The Board asked Fish & Game experts to provide an alternative plan for managing pollutants in the Tukituki catchment, and that was presented cogently in the final days of the hearing. It provides for management of both phosphorus and nitrogen, with more restrictive limits.

The Board also publicly noted the concerns of Ngäti Kahungunu regarding consultation. That seemed like a shot across the bow to the HBRC/HBRIC camp, and a flurry of negotiations began between them and the various Mäori parties. This controversy is fully reported in Mark Sweet’s article herein, Divide to Rule?

Two joint memoranda were filed with the Board as a result of these negotiations; but even as I write, the players involved hold different views as to where the dispute stands. NKII’s chairman Ngahiwi Tomoana indicates that the most sensitive points in the proposals remain in dispute, and legal review of the entire process has not been ruled out. Quoting from the final memorandum submitted to the BOI: “In view of the absence of agreement on these unresolved matters, the formal position of NKII and Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga (and the other Heretaunga parties) must remain one of objection to PC 6 and the RWSS. This position is acknowledged by the Applicants.”

While these negotiations were underway, the Board requested and was granted a one month extension of its stipulated deadline for making a decision. In its request the BOI stressed the complexity of the issues involved and the scope of technical disagreement on key points regarding water quality, water quantity and effects of land use intensification. The Board further noted the

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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far-reaching implications of this decision for other waterways in Hawke’s Bay, as well as the precedent-setting importance of the decision for all of New Zealand.

These are precisely the reasons many in Hawke’s Bay — Ngäti Kahungunu, Fish & Game, the entire environmental community, Transparent Hawke’s Bay and others — sought a delay before triggering a Board of Inquiry in the first place. Of course that original request fell on deaf ears at the then-HBRC, as well as EPA. On its face, the Board’s request affirmed that objections to the Plan Change and dam are not frivolous or the misguided sport of nutters. The request acknowledged that the most fundamental aspects of these proposals have been challenged by substantial technical evidence.

So now the BOI’s draft decision is due no later than 15 April, with its final decision no later than 28 May. Dam viability The BOI decision will deal with the environmental parameters of managing the Tukituki catchment (Plan Change 6), as well as establish any environmental conditions associated with the dam itself, should the Regional Council decide to proceed with it.

On a separate track, the HBRC has commissioned two independent reports that will be critical to evaluating the financial and economic viability of the proposed dam. One study, to be completed

by Deloitte, will examine the financial and economic case for the dam and the risks involved in an HBRC (i.e., ratepayer) investment, if any, of $80 million in it.

Deloitte has been given four weeks to complete its assessment, once HBRIC formally puts it ‘business case’ for the dam on the table. It’s not clear when that will happen, as conceivably environmental mitigation requirements ordered by the BOI (in April) could affect costs for the scheme.

Thus, the business case could be delayed until late April, with Deloitte’s report not then due until late May. What is not clear is whether Deloitte will confer with any experts apart from those already involved as HBRIC consultants on the project. To Pauline Elliott of Transparent Hawke’s Bay, this is a key factor in establishing the reliability of the underlying data and assumptions the assessment must consider.

HBRC chairman Fenton Wilson has indicated only that both the HBRIC business case and the Deloitte review will be available to the public.

A second study, to be completed by consulting firm Nimmo-Bell, will identify and evaluate alternative investments of scale that could be made to advance the strategic goals

of the Regional Council. In other words, how does the dam stack up against other possible regional investments? This study is already underway, with a March delivery date.

Dam decision timetable Once the BOI decision and all the pertinent economic studies are in hand, the Regional Council will be in position to frame and launch a ‘special consultative procedure’. The Local Government Act prescribes this process, which must last no less than one month and include an opportunity for submitters to be heard by council.

Of course, to set this process in motion will require a vote by the Regional Council to test the dam proposition (or some other alternative), since the public must be provided a specific proposal to submit on.

From where this councillor sits, it’s hard to see how that tentative decision could be taken before May at the earliest …

Late March 15 April 30 April 28 May 28 May 27 June 16 July 30 July

HBRIC business case tabled BOI draft decision Deloitte draft assessment tabled BOI final decision HBRC triggers public consultation Public submissions close Public hearings close HBRC final decision

Of course, meeting even this schedule presumes that neither NKII, Hawke’s Bay Fish & Game, or the Environmental Defence Society (each of whom has raised the prospect), nor any other party, seeks judicial review of the BOI process.

Amalgamation With public submissions closed on its preferred One Council option, the Local Government Commission (LGC) moves on to public hearings, expected to begin in mid-April.

What the commissioners will read is that amalgamation will bring about either much needed, unified leadership – or utter ruination – for Hawke’s Bay. They are unlikely to be surprised by either set of submissions. Councils have taken expected positions – Napier, CHB and Wairoa opposed; Hastings for; and HBRC sitting on the fence, with a 5-4 split amongst its councillors.

Proponents of amalgamation have made the only consequential recommendations that would change the structure envisioned in the LGC’s original proposal. A Better Hawke’s Bay (ABHB) has recommended a larger Hawke’s Bay Council – with 18 councillors instead of 9 – in order to

political round-up

provide additional representation for Wairoa and Central Hawke’s Bay. Their model is as follows: Community LGC Draft ABHB

Proposal Recommendation Napier Hastings CHB Wairoa Ngaruroro

3 3 1 1 1

6 6 2 2 2

9

18

ABHB’s submission offsets the larger council with smaller Local Boards than proposed by the Commission (24 elected members instead of 37). Much has been said in public debate about the desirability of Local Boards instead of the proposed Community Boards. Local Boards would have more authority and durability, and arguably would go further to protect community decision-making on local issues. However, they must be authorized by legislation that awaits enactment in Parliament (expected in June).

Sure to get a rise in any amalgamation debate is the debt issue. The LGC has proposed six-year ring fencing of councils’ existing debt, but has made clear that this time period can be extended as long

as the new council wishes. ABHB has recommended that existing debt be ring fenced until repaid, however long that period might be.

During the LGC’s hearings, much of the same ground will be re-plowed. The media will report further on the claims and counter-claims. Some voters will harden their existing positions; others might just begin to pay attention.

And then a key step will be taken, most likely in May. The LGC will commission its own professionally-conducted public opinion survey on its preferred option.

The outcome of the survey will be an important factor as the Commission decides how – indeed whether – to proceed to the next phase of its work … formulating its final reorganisation plan. The LGC has noted repeatedly that it will look at evidence of support for reorganisation at each step in its process.

First Mayor of Hawke’s Bay As leading politicians carry on so vociferously about amalgamation, their high profile on the issue has begun to stir up another calculation in voters’ minds … If amalgamation does occur, who will be the first captain of the ship?

For many voters, the structure of our local government is less important than who might be at the wheel. Who would be the

first Mayor of Hawke’s Bay? Without doubt, Lawrence Yule is the elected leader most strongly championing amalgamation. And the top job probably interests him. The most visible elected opponent is Bill Dalton; but would he decline to campaign for leadership of a structure he so ardently seeks to convince voters will fail?

If voters consider amalgamation itself is change enough, they might favour balancing that change by giving the top job to an experienced government hand. Yule and Dalton meet that test. But so too do elected officials like Kevin Atkinson (as the DHB’s top vote-getter, the only individual elected region-wide), Chris Tremain, and Rick Barker … or perhaps a resurrected Barbara Arnott.

On the other hand, if amalgamation wins public approval in a referendum, maybe the message will be that voters are hungry for change across the board … re-arrange the chairs and put fresh faces in them, starting with the top job. What fresh face up to the task of serving as Mayor of Hawke’s Bay comes to your mind?

BayBuzz would like to stir this pot with an early straw poll of our readers. And so you see the ‘Ballot’ we’ve provided on the previous page. Mail your ballot in; or you can more easily take the poll online at www.baybuzz.co.nz

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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What’s in a Name? by ~ DAVID TRUBRIDGE

“Naturally regenerating bush is unbelievably sprayed and destroyed by a greedy farmer. The forest has evolved for these conditions; the totally unsuitable grassland has not. In a storm slips will wash out much of the perilously thin soil.”

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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Some say that to name is to own. By classifying and naming the natural world, man started to own it. The nebulous mass of green stuff around us became individual trees and plants, each with a use. Now governments use euphemisms to hide unpalatable reality: murdered civilians become ‘collateral damage’.

To some farmers that flow of water is a drain; to someone who loves nature, it is a stream. The drain name is dismissive, denying its intrinsic value. It is something opened out with a digger to remove inconvenient water from land that is used for business. The farmer owns it.

To call it a stream gives it significance.

It is not just a means of directing water; it is a whole ecosystem in itself, supporting thousands of different life forms. And it is a vital part of a larger ecosystem, including the farm.

To Mäori it is a source of inanga and köura and drinking water. It will have its own name, probably recited in someone’s mihimihi. But no one owns it. Water has flowed down from springs on the hillside for far longer than man’s existence here.

A dispute arises. One side calls the stream a drain; we can do what we like with it. The other side says you have no right to threaten natural systems that go beyond your reach, purely for personal gain.

This dispute exposes the great divide that slashes right through our society, not just in New Zealand, but globally.

On the one side personal gain, on the other side caring: settler mentality versus

the ecologist; business profit versus environmentalism. It will only get worse as populations grow and our pressure on the environment increases.

Throughout our history human culture has been a writhing, fertile, internecine tussle of ideologies, beliefs, religions and politics. Even though this has led to suffering, in general, the more the friction the more the creativity. Single ideologies have led to stasis. There have been no absolutes: every ideology is only relative to another and in the end the best course has been to agree to differ.

Until now. At some point in the 1980s the human race started to use more than the earth can supply. We are no longer sustainable. We are living off the capital, not the interest. Now it is not a matter of opinion to say we use too much – it is a fact, it is absolute. We are uncomfortably aware of the limits of the planet. That changes everything.

Some people hear this. They care . . . they care about the future of their children and grandchildren, they care about the health of the world around us and all other living creatures, they care about our legacy.

Others refuse to listen. They are profiting well from the way things are and they are certainly not going to let that go.

They try to prolong the world of relative ideologies by portraying the opposition as just another (probably subversive) one. To admit the absolute factor is too much of a threat to their status.

And so we have the confrontation across

the stream/drain. The exploitative settler mentality lives on strongly in our country, ably encouraged by our government and our greed for profit. The land is a resource to be mined, dammed, drilled, and farmed to the limit and beyond. The ‘benefits’ (i.e., profits for a very few) outweigh the consequences, which can be left for the future (i.e., the rest of us).

Those on the other side are there, not for personal gain, but simply because they care; because they see the bigger picture, which does not have themselves at the centre. Our legal and governing system is against them because it sees the land as a resource to be exploited. The only way the Mäori Trust values land is by the stock unit – the number of sheep or cattle per hectare that it can sustain. So the wooded hillside above the stream is virtually worthless because the stock units are so low. No value is given to its environmental diversity, its springs which feed the stream, the carbon sequestering trees, the history of Mäori settlement and gardening.

Despite our entrenched positions on both sides, we all know this. But what can we do? How do we break the impasse? The more one side shouts, the more the other will dig in and resist. Time and accelerating events will eventually force us to accept the fact of over-exploitation, but by then it will be too late to prevent permanent damage to our life support systems.

If people don’t care I don’t know how you can make them. I recently visited a place which was a complete mess. The

house was tattered, ugly and threadbare; the garden was neglected and full of dog turds. Yet the owners were not poor, and even if they were that is not a barrier to

the many beautifully kept homes I have seen in very poor countries. If people can’t care about their immediate surroundings, which they see every day, how can they care about anything beyond them? Perhaps the ease of our lives makes caring redundant: “Ah, just chuck it and buy a new one.”

I am constantly amazed at how humans are able to utterly disconnect and abuse another living, feeling human being. I saw a documentary exposé of the Asian sex trade where young girls, barely teenagers, are rented to rich visitors for months at a time. The kids end up traumatised and seriously injured. How can one person do this to another? Is this some result of the power gained by money that makes them so totally uncaring for others?

In a lesser way, does the same thing happen to people in our affluent society, when we become indifferent to anything beyond ourselves? I can sort of understand it in hard times when it is a survival issue. Has our wealth and comfort made us indifferent to the discomfort of people, let alone flora and fauna? If so, it is a terrible price to pay!

The best example of bridge building that I can offer is Herbert Guthrie-Smith and his book … Tutira – the story of a New Zealand sheep station. He came to the country in 1880 as a farmer and developed the

rugged country around Lake Tutira into a profitable farm of 60,000 acres running up to 32,000 sheep. Initially his ambitious plans even extended to filling in the lake and planting rows of fruit trees. But over time his sensitivities to the land and the traditional Mäori ways changed him into one of our first environmentalists.

In his book he writes about “the ruin of a Fauna and Flora unique in the world – a sad, bad, mad, incomprehensible business.”

Today the Guthrie-Smith Outdoor Education Centre has been set up to instil his values into our young generations.

The story of his amazing conversion needs to be insistently spread throughout our society. He set out as a settler and the land turned him into someone who cared. He crossed the drain and it became a stream.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

Smart Kiwi businesses know great copywriting helps sell their products and services.

“At some point in the 1980s the human race started to use more than the earth can supply. We are no longer sustainable.

We are living off the capital, not the interest.”

Bee37 in the know

Check out Ed’s website for the work, partners and references www.empiredesign.co.nz

The Ugly Spectator by ~ Damon harvey

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

38

Two years ago I witnessed the ugly side of sport.

At the conclusion of a game of under 21s rugby, when the teams were lined up to shake hands, one player decided to use his fist instead.

I was shocked at this foul act of behaviour and I went straight to the victim’s coach to offer myself forward as a witness.

A few weeks later I was approached to write a witness report and in a strongly worded letter said that the thug should no longer be playing rugby.

What then transpired was the player

got a very light sentence. He was to miss a small number of games, when in my opinion he should have been banned for a season or more. Not only would it have been the best-disciplined approach, but it would have sent a strong message within a grade that was at the time grappling with violence.

I’m not sure if the player is still in rugby, but due to the light sentence I would say he’s hardly been scared off any further acts of thuggery. I hope I’m wrong!

The winter sport codes are close to starting again and I hope that there’s greater vigilance on poor behaviour both on the playing field and the sideline.

Sport Hawke’s Bay is set to launch a sideline behaviour campaign in partnership with some of the major codes such as rugby, hockey, football and basketball, along with EIT.

The code of conduct and a widened team approach has been developed by Edmond Otis, a senior lecturer in Sport and Health Science at EIT. It expands the nucleus of the team to everyone involved – both on the field and on the sideline, including family and friends, sponsors and administrators.

When I told my wife that this campaign was set to kick off and which codes were involved – she quickly wondered why it was restricted to them and not for all sports.

We have a family of five girls, four of whom play netball at varying school and club grades.

The eight year old is just learning the ropes and parents and other family members of budding netballers of this age are mostly positive and supportive.

However as the other girls have moved

into high school and club grades, the more competitive nature has brought out the nastier side of sport.

At this point I should emphasize that I’m not picking on netball, I’m just using netball as an example, based on it’s a sport we regularly watch.

Rugby, football, et cetera are no different in their increase in sideline ‘misbehaviour’ as the stakes rise and parents start to take the game more seriously than perhaps their children.

I recall back to my childhood and I actually don’t think too much has changed over the years. As a junior rugby player I recall two sets of parents being asked to tone it down on the sideline.

Funnily, both players went on to very high honours in the game. However, I’m sure they were also not comfortable with the attitude of their fathers.

The Otis Edmonds sideline behaviour campaign must have buy-in from everyone and although the campaign has merit and the potential to be very successful, it will rely on the leaders setting an example.

The leader is the team’s coach and it will be his or her role to put in place the behavioural expectations of the players and their sideline supporters.

Otis calls it ‘the simple solution’ and

it’s being successfully implemented in a variety of forms, by more and more sport codes.

All parties are on THE TEAM and are told that they have a role in the desired outcome of positive, supportive, and sportsmanlike sideline behaviour.

The coach could call a pre-season meeting where the conduct plan is developed and outlined with everyone understanding how important their contribution is.

There could be strict rules and penalties, to education and branding, to mentoring and ‘cheer teams’, based on the code, the problem, and the goals.

An example of this is if you are the host of a gathering (e.g., party, wedding) whereby you police your guests and you are responsible for their behaviour.

So will it work?

I think it has huge merit and it will work if there’s also plenty of promotion and a genuine buy-in from parents on the sideline.

As adults we don’t really like being told what to do. But we have to realise that it’s in the best interests of our children and that if we act responsibly on the sideline and actually enjoy watching the game, so will they enjoy playing.

“As adults we don’t really like being told what to do.

But we have to realise that it’s in the best interests of our children and that if we act responsibly on the sideline and actually enjoy watching the game, so will they enjoy playing.”

Their experience will be one of fun … without worrying about Mum or Dad playing foul on the sideline.

We want as many kids as possible playing sport. We don’t want them put off the game by our behaviour and instead head to their bedrooms and play Xbox or Play Station.

The benefits of sport are just too great!

Edmond Otis is a Senior Lecturer in Sport and Health Science at the Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT), in Hawke’s Bay. He can be reached at eotis@eit.ac.nz.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

39

No Room for Complacency by ~ patrick Jones

Throughout New Zealand, school boards of trustees (myself included) are debating National’s recent announcement to spend an extra $359 million to create four new teaching and leadership roles working across schools - Executive Principals, Expert Teachers, Lead Teachers, and Change Principals. The purpose of these new roles is to lift educational achievement in all schools.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

40

My initial ‘google research’ on the announcement seemed to play out true to form – one side of the political spectrum blaming poor student achievement on rubbish teachers and school leaders, the other end hitting straight back with the usual ‘kids can’t learn if they’re hungry’.

But as I made my way through the various press releases, blogs and articles I observed a noticeable lack of heat in the debate. According to my more experienced and cynical colleagues, apparently ‘any major education policy announcement usually sends the whole country completely bats**t for weeks’.

Was the lack of more debate clever political timing (we all got busy getting back to school and work), clever distraction (hooray, let’s talk about the flag instead!), or possibly, was it because the ‘establishment’ were all eyeing up what they could personally gain from the announcement, unwilling to rock the boat just yet? Or, take a deep breath, is it possible the ‘establishment’ might actually think this policy has some merit? From voices not typically known for moderation, I read phrases in press releases like ‘cautiously optimistic’, ‘has potential’, ‘significant’.

So what thoughts could I offer the average BayBuzz reader on this topic?

National didn’t say it explicitly, but this

policy is aimed directly at poor and/or complacent teaching and leadership in some schools, right? I quickly made the huge generalisation – based on the types of services and products advertised in this publication – that it is very unlikely that most readers’ children are in one of those schools.

So why should you even care about this announcement?

In some ways you have to give credit to National’s education announcement in that it didn’t pretend to be something it isn’t. They didn’t pretend that this policy would do anything to immediately address the fact that 25% of our nation’s children live in poverty. In his state of the nation speech John Key asserted the many things his government are already doing to address this. But at the end of the day, even if we start to improve the home lives of those 25%, a poor teacher and/or poor school leadership is still going to be exactly that.

But like a hungry belly, you can’t ignore the grumblings from the left either. The Greens came up with a proposal to make schools hubs for social services (lunch included) and Labour offered better starts to childrens’ lives. Both of these are admirable, but neither actually said anything about how their parties would address teaching and leadership performance.

Could the fact they didn’t argue back

signal that we all agree there is an issue to address here?

After all, let’s not pretend that crappy teaching and leadership exists only at the ‘worst’ schools that have the ‘worst’ social issues to deal with. Poor performance can exist in schools with wonderful resources and reputations and I bet lots of readers would have examples of that, albeit isolated examples.

The reality is poor student achievement occurs in a context. There will be crappy and brilliant teachers teaching hungry kids; likewise, crappy and brilliant teachers teaching well-fed kids. I think most would agree with that.

So if we all agree that poor performance in schools needs addressing, the conversation can turn to what an acceptable level of achievement might be. If this policy lands in the ‘worst’ schools first, what results would you want and how quickly would you expect some return on that investment? Determining acceptable levels of achievement within various ‘at risk’ factors is a minefield of a topic to write about.

Fortunately though, some of my teacher friends provided inadvertant insight.

Progress is relative I and two brilliant and experienced teacher friends were having a lovely chat when one of the kiddies with us was overheard to ‘name drop the big guy’ (i.e., blaspheme). One of my teacher friends remarked that they were trying to stamp down on that type of language at their school. Fair enough. The conversation moved on. But later on, the other teacher friend quietly commented to me that, where they worked, they’d happily take a few ‘goddammits’ if they only replaced the ‘f**k its’ and ‘f**k offs’.

The chat reminded me that achievement does need to be considered within the

achievement, huge social challenges, and poor educational leadership (which leads to poor teaching in some cases).

Don’t for a second make the assumption that those first off the rank schools and communities will resist this offer. After all, if the government offered you additional guaranteed one-day-a-week expert mentoring linked explicitly to performance improvement in your business, would you take it? I’ll bet some schools are already banging down Hekia’s door asking to be picked first. Some of these schools may have been struggling for many years to turn things around, but it’s hard to attract and keep talent when, for the same money, quality teaching professionals might choose to take an ‘easier’ job elsewhere.

So perhaps the challenge for those of us whose realities lie in schools unlikely to be initially impacted by this announcement might actually be to butt out. Let’s not pretend that just because our children’s schools run efficiently and have satisfactory achievement that we automatically have the answer (and right) to making this work in all schools.

Let’s also not fall into the trap of thinking that we could get some ‘kudos’ (or worse, some financial gain) from releasing some of ‘our experts’ to help in ‘those’ schools. If a teacher or leader from your well-performing school is appointed to one of these important roles, let’s view that not as a statement about how good our school is, but as a statement about how good that individual is. Let’s get behind them and give them every opportunity to make a difference to someone else’s child’s life, which in turn might bring benefits to yours.

On that note, one of the potential ‘side’ benefits this policy might highlight is the wealth of teaching talent we already have

“The reality is poor student achievement occurs in a context. There will be crappy and brilliant teachers teaching hungry kids; likewise, crappy and brilliant teachers teaching well-fed kids. I think most would agree with that.”

– thousands of unsung educational heroes who, despite all the swearing and lunch boxes filled with crappy life stories where sandwiches should be, already make a huge difference in the lives of some of our most needy cohorts of children. Let’s hope they shine as the amazing people they are.

Meantime, your call to action might be to take a more active interest in your school to ensure it is doing the best it can and does not become complacent in its performance.

This announcement puts all schools on notice. When the gaps start closing between the currently ‘worst’ schools and those schools who don’t currently stand out, schools and communities who have previously not been too worried about achievement might find themselves asking if they are really doing as well as they could be.

And is that a bad thing?

Patrick is Director of Policy and Projects at EIT, and board of trustees chairperson at a local primary school, with many personal and professional connections within NZ’s education sector.

WE CREATE THE SPACE TO LEARN AND GROW As experts in learning areas, we create inspiring spaces so every student feels comfortable, inspired and motivated to learn.

www.furnware.co.nz 0800 655 155

Proud to have been a Hawkes Bay business since 1934.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

context the teaching is delivered. And more importantly, achievement is actually measured by progress; that is, how far you have come to get to where you are.

Getting a child to ‘well below’ against a maths national standard might be an outstanding example of excellent teaching performance when the child starts school not knowing the difference between a number and a letter, or perhaps not actually knowing a number or letter.

When a child actually uses the term ‘f**k off’ as normal vocabulary, not attaching any social inappropriateness to that, then you start to realise for some poor wee souls, the journey along the national standards grid is starting in some category way worse than ‘well below’.

Perhaps your child’s school has very small percentages of students in the ‘below’ and ‘well below’ columns. So whilst you might worry about your own child’s progress at times, you don’t worry too much about the overall progress of the school. The nation’s poor student achievement is someone else’s problem, right?

But just how sure are you about the standard your child’s school is presently meeting? The school that might not seem bad when compared to the low decile schools in ‘those’ suburbs might not look so flash when benchmarked against schools with similar characteristics and cohorts. If you don’t know what your school’s stats look like, visit www.educationcounts.govt. nz/find-school and be amazed and scared at what information is held on every school and is so easily accessible and comparable.

If the government is true to its word and involves the profession in determining how and where to start, the likely reality is that the first ‘worst’ performing schools to be addressed will probably have poor student

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tim.co.nz

THE BEST YEARS OF

OUR LIVES by ~ K AY BAZZARD

Brian Kieran, roving military historian

‘Swallows’ leave at summer’s end David and Morag Black have lived in Hawke’s Bay for most of their lives. It is where they raised their four children and made their living, and, for some of the year they still do.

Bee in the know ~ jan/ feb 2014

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They also make their living in England or Scotland, returning each UK summer to work. They return when the season is over to pick up their summer jobs in Hawke’s Bay. It is a lifestyle they love and which they feel privileged to be able to do.

It turns out that there is a large number of ‘swallows’ in New Zealand, people who step between countries and cultures year in and year out; spending typically six months here and six months there, for a variety of reasons. For most of us the thought of such disruption to one’s life routines couldn’t be imagined or endured; but for this group, this is their life’s routine.

David Black (known affectionately as ‘Blackie’ at the Cornwall Park Cricket Club, Hastings, where he works his Hawke’s Bay job) has found a niche using his cricket coaching skills in junior and women’s cricket at the Bath Cricket Club. Because of this link, junior cricketers of both clubs are involved in exchange visits.

Recently, they lived in the World

Heritage city of Bath in a house next to the Bath cricket ground and Morag worked in the bar of the Bath Rugby Club across the road, a popular stop for international rugby players.

Other years they managed a pub in the Scottish fishing village of Elie on the North Sea coast, with Morag as cook and David organising the cricket games played on the sands on summer Sundays at low tide.

The Blacks are age 65 and 63; they look a lot younger than their age and intend continuing with this lifestyle for as long as they can. This adaptable and outgoing couple have established wonderful relationships through their seasonal work over the ten years in the UK, loving the variety and challenge the lifestyle provides.

“We have been asked many times, both here and there, what we’ve been doing.

And when we tell them, the incredulous response is, ‘Oh, I couldn’t do that,’ or ‘Gosh you’re so brave’.” Morag adds, “But brave has nothing to do with it; you

just have to make the decision and then go and do it.” She believes people put themselves off by worrying thoughts of undergrounds, airports and long flights or fears of driving in foreign cities. “But,” she says, “you can do it if you put your mind to it.” It is fortunate that Morag and David have the same approach to their expeditions, their mottos are, “Give it a Go!” and “Home is where I live now.”

An experience branded in their memory was the day of the London bombings, 7 July 2005. On that day Morag and her friend were visiting London.

David: “I was in the cricket club and I got a text from Morag saying ‘We’re on the buses seeing London’. Then, I heard on the news that there had been a bomb blast on a London bus. I tried but could not get hold of her … no answer.

I became convinced she had become a victim of the terrorist bombing.”

Morag: “All the networks were jammed and no one was able to use their phones.

It was eerily quiet on the London streets, no buses or taxis or traffic. It just stopped; people were walking. We heard someone say, ‘A bomb’s gone off’, so we began walking back to our accommodation through Hyde Park, where we just sat and listened to the emergency sirens in the otherwise silent streets.”

Travelling as a Way of Life Brian Kieran’s story is a life of travel – during his career as a merchant banker, the pursuit of his passionate interest in military history, and his compulsory six-

z

“All the networks were jammed and no one was able to use their phones.

It was eerily quiet on the London streets, no buses or taxis or traffic.

It just stopped; people were walking. We heard someone say, ‘A bomb’s gone off’ ...” morag black

David & Morag Black Bi-hemisphere ‘swallows’

He was successfully rehabilitated in a clinic in Hong Kong, but has been permanently affected in his ability to calculate numbers or to adapt to the evolutions of the computer age.

Two years later in 1999, when he was sufficiently recovered, he visited New Zealand and fell in love with the sea and the sky of the Napier coastline and very much wanted to live here. And so began the ten year process towards gaining New Zealand residency. Every six months he had to leave and stay away for six months before returning, an interruption to his life that he turned to good effect by using it as an opportunity to do original research in war archives around the world.

It is all the more remarkable that following his two-year rehabilitation period he studied for his MA and PhD in military history – a story of determination and making the most of what you have been given.

During that decade (2000-2010) he was fortunate, given his disability, that

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

monthly departures from New Zealand while awaiting NZ residency. He is now, at last, settled in Napier, having gained his much-treasured permanent residency in 2010. Today, his travel is devoted to visiting his widely dispersed family, but always with a bit of historical research on the side.

As a young man in the 1960s, Kieran trained as a barrister, but he dreamed of becoming involved in the exciting developments in air and space transport.

However, the prosaic world of the British Inland Revenue claimed him and he became a specialist in tax law. After doing his time prosecuting tax evaders for 15 years the Englishman became a merchant banker during the 1980s and 1990s, travelling to cities around the world setting up companies while based in the Cayman Islands, and later, as a tax and business consultant in Hong Kong.

In 1997 a severe stroke at the age of 58 ended his career, paralyzing his right arm and leg, rendering him speechless and affecting his short-term memory.

tim.co.nz

the war museums of the world had not yet fully moved into digital archiving, thus providing a window of time when he could do original research in the old style. He was able to visit the war archives, find original documents, explore linkages to people, dates and events and bring his research back to Napier, where it was collated into his current book project.

Today, he is Doctor Brian Kieran, author of seven specialist books on events in military history and international tax law. The books are a culmination of his lifelong interests and original research conducted at the National War Archives in Kingston Jamaica, Vancouver, Ottawa, Belgium, Delhi, Hong Kong, Sydney, Melbourne, London and Wellington. Two of his recent books relate to this country: The Military Heritage of Streets of Napier (2010) and The New Zealand Cross – the Rarest Bravery Award in the World (2013).

In 2006 Brian met and married Ros, a New Zealand nurse, who lived next door to his home in Taradale. They share a lively interest in military history.

Ros has strong military links through the generations of her family and an interest in collecting war medals and memorabilia, so now when they visit their families, historical research projects are an important part of their overseas travel.

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TechFocus

Keith Newman discovers a Hawke’s Bay company at the forefront of the 3D design revolution.

‘Printing’ Jawbones and Helicopter Blades

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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A revolution in digital design technology that enables three dimensional objects to be ‘printed’ from layers of fused powders or resins is being used to create plastic and metal components for cars, planes, appliances, electronics and the human body.

Large-scale printers have been developed that can construct a house in a day, while at the microscopic end, veins and arteries can be built … and soon entire cellular structures and DNA strands.

Ahuriri-based Axia Design, a design and engineering company specialising in ‘printed’ prototypes for product developers, has gained an important edge with precision-made animal and human bone replacements.

The game changer was its investment in European software that converts human CT scans into engineering files that can be accessed by its in-house 3D CAD (computeraided design) modelling, scanning, prototyping and printing technology.

Previously it was impossible to get bone data accurate enough to use with CAD equipment. As early as 2008, Axia designed a complex eye socket, cheekbone and upper mandible which was printed offshore using fused titanium powder and implanted into a New Zealand patient.

After working collaboratively with Massey University’s Institute of Veterinary, Animal and Biomedical Sciences, Axia was asked to form an IP-based (intellectual property) partnership to create animal implants for veterinarians around the world.

In August last year there was a challenge to print a jawbone to help save the life of a Boxer dog with an aggressive form of mouth cancer. Axia contracted the Titanium industry Development Association (TiDA), which had imported one of the first commercial titanium ‘selective melting’ 3D printers, to urgently ‘print’ a titanium jawbone.

Printing on-demand Rather than having to wait weeks for output from the US, it was delivered within days. Axia converted a CT scan of the dog’s

tim.co.nz

jawbone to a 3D scan which was printed by TiDA, fitted the next day and just 12 hours later the dog was eating.

Since then Axia has created forearm implants and cranial skull plates for animals.

In mid-February it completed another dog jawbone for an Australian vet to replace one that had been damaged by a tumour.

It was able to mirror the good side of the jaw and design an implant with fixing plates, screw holes and an internal porous lattice structure so the bone could grow through it.

Axia Design director Andrew Kersley, says one of the weak points of metal plates is that they are solid and the screws that go into the bones loosen due to shock and vibration.

Previously machining a jawbone would have cost thousands of dollars, whereas printing them in titanium using the latest TiDa machine costs hundreds.

All implants are retrieved and examined on the death of the animal so Massey University can determine how successfully the printed implants have integrated with the bone. This research data, proven methodologies and practical examples will help establish that

Andrew Kersley with 3D ‘printed’ products

Axia’s 3D designs are appropriate for widespread use in animals and humans.

The company has already produced human check bones, jawbones and cranial plates. “Previously a surgeon might screw a plate over a piece of bone to repair a broken arm, now we can manufacture a replacement piece of arm bone in time for surgery,” says Kersley.

Hope for hips and hearts Once the process gains more exposure and acceptance, it’s expected a range of possibilities will open up in human medicine including customised hip joints that stimulate bone growth and “work involving valves for the human heart … It could be a global breakthrough if that went ahead.”

However, winning over medical science is a complex challenge. It’s an area that’s fiercely protected by specialists and experts who are reluctant to allow a design engineer access to their hallowed craft, particularly one with no medical background.

Kersley says there’s still some education to be done, but it’s a goal worth persisting with through synergies with partners

who recognise the potential in this hotly contested and potentially lucrative market.

Achievements in the veterinary sector are expected to help ease the way. Massey University and Axia began sharing their joint venture capabilities at an international conference of veterinary surgeons in Colorado at the end of February.

Ideally says Kersley, “Vets from all round the world could be uploading their data to us and then sending the result on to their closest 3D printing facility.”

Meanwhile Axia is currently keeping a close eye on developments with hydrogen carbon-based materials that can be absorbed into the body. “Instead of creating a metal jaw, for example, we could use a natural biomaterial and in two years it would have been replaced by bone.”

In expansion mode Having proved itself locally and found its services in demand nationally, Axia Design moved from shared backstreet premises in Ahuriri to a more prominent position in Bridge Street in December where it can enter a phase of planned expansion.

Concurrently it formalised its Auckland presence with partner Nick Gledhill buying out a former director and establishing an office in Freemans Bay to avoid the constant travel. Both Hawke’s Bay ‘born and bred’ owners are determined to keep the headquarters in Napier and expect to expand from four to seven staff this year.

Hawke’s Bay clients include Equiptech which creates adjustable ladders and work platforms for the mining industry in Australia. “They had great ideas and product but didn’t produce their own production drawings.”

Another project was creating a range of “beautiful” high-end outdoor fitness equipment with internal resistance for Hotshot Sports. Axia designers worked with the company on prototypes and then commercial production of an exercycle, leg press, overhead press and a walker.

Fast broadband is imperative for collaboration between the company’s designers and clients locally and around the country, as they’re often working on gigabit sized files. “The infrastructure here is mostly fine, although it can be a bit slow depending on the time of day.”

Kersley and his team are big fans of Napier’s bid to become a Gigatown, known for the breadth of its resilient and high-performing broadband infrastructure.

“Any improvement would help.”

Kersley says there’s now an expectation in the engineering world that additive manufacturing provides strong advantages and consequently several local firms have invested in cheaper 3D printers.

“It’s going to be the way forward. Most Hawke’s Bay engineering companies are progressive and open to doing things in new ways and are respected for that around the country.”

An inventor’s dream While 3D printing is likely to find a prime place in mainstream and on-demand manufacturing, it’s also a hobbyist and inventor’s dream, sparking a revival in do-ityourself groups on the internet and in real world communities including the ‘maker’ and ‘fixer’ movements.

Paul ‘Dutch’ Sandkuijl, one of Axia’s design engineers with a degree in aerospace engineering, is looking to launch a shared urban workshop in Ahuriri where people can learn, collaborate or create their own projects with access to standard tools, plus high-end computers, CAD software, laser cutters, 3D scanners and printers (www.makeplace.co.nz).

Dutch believes encouraging people to experiment with electronics, arts and crafts, computer programming, engineering, model making and new business ideas can help inspire young people in particular to stay in the Bay. He sees it as a ‘seed of change’ to increase opportunities.

He’s run well-attended 3D printer workshops and is currently in negotiation with Napier City Council and the HB Chamber of Commerce to support the ‘Make Space’ concept and is in the process of securing premises in Ahuriri.

Dutch reckons Hawke’s Bay is the ideal environment to become a hub of innovation and research and development like Silicon Valley, which he says is uncannily similar in its location, and its early days was also fully dependent on orchards and vineyards.

Founded in 2007 MOGUL IS

HOMEGROWN and proudly independent

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

New spin on rotor blades Outside the medical field there’s plenty of scope for Axia’s design and engineering skills, including the creation of helicopter rotor tail blades, which are typically made of carbon fibre and only available in bulk at great expense.

Axia has created its own more affordable tail blade designs and begun producing them in titanium, alongside other innovations with sports, engineering and big brand equipment.

Although many design houses outsource 3D facilities, few have that capability inhouse. When Axia first acquired its fused definition modelling (FDM) printer there were only around five in the country.

The machine, which produces ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) engineering-quality thermoplastic, cost around $50,000 new, but equivalent models are available today for $500- $2500.

The 3D printer enables Axia to test design principles and build prototypes for clients before they engage traditional injection moulding, metal extrusion and fabrication processes.

The first printed item was a belt buckle; since then it’s ranged from water pumps to

brackets, bottles, medical equipment. “Any plastic thing you see on a shelf … we’ve probably done a version of it.”

A recent example was designing handheld equipment for a sports company.

“We tested a lot of handles to see how they worked for different people before deciding on a final design.”

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Sponsoring insight into smart farming in Hawke’s Bay

Robotics meets the dairy cow

Dairying Comes to Havelock North by ~ sarah cates

Bee in the know ~ mar /apr 2014

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Havelock North is on the verge of receiving some very special new residents – 120 Holstein cows to be exact.

These bovine residents will be the stars of a showcase model in ‘smart-farming’ practice.

Michael Whittaker, a Hawke’s Bay entrepreneur and successful businessman, sees his model as the future of dairy farming in New Zealand. A man who senses opportunity and looks beyond the current status quo, Whittaker says, “We need to look at different farming systems in order to prepare the industry for the future in the best way”.

Better known locally as the owner of the second largest mushroom business in New Zealand, Te Mata Mushrooms, Whittaker decided to better utilise his 20 hectare site, and open his doors to a potential catchment of 18,000 people. His journey led him to micro-dairies. He believes a micro-dairy,

completely transparent to the public, will not only help bridge the gap between industry and public, but could become part of a fully sustainable enterprise comprised of both mushrooms and dairy.

He’s not planning an ordinary dairy.

His dairy will be a flagship in New Zealand, showcasing a robotics-based Automated Milking System (AMS) developed by the Netherlands-based Lely company, and housing the herd in a barn. Whittaker asserts, “Barning and robotics offer solutions to numerous industry problems such as effluent management, high land prices, lack of skilled labour and a limited suitable land resource.”

This may sound a little Star Trek for Havelock North, with images springing to mind of robots moving themselves around the herd with outstanding precision and speed. In fact, it is the other way around; the cows take themselves to the robot or the ‘cow box’. Whittaker is installing two Lely robotic cow boxes inside the barn. Literally, when the cow feels the need to be milked, day or night, she voluntarily enters into the cow box where a reward, in the form of feed, will be dispensed to her.

The robot identifies which cow is which from their electronic tag. From this the robot customises her feed to the level of production, extends its high-tech Lely Astronaut arm which cleans her teats, attaches the milking cups and begins the process. All the data gathered from the milking experience – such as body weight, milk quality and quantity – is collated and sent to a single computerised dashboard.

This ensures the farmer receives a constant stream of information regarding all the individual cows.

Clever stuff! With 18,000 robotic milking systems throughout the world, Lely prides itself on being ‘cow centred’. Lely’s website notes: “Research has shown that a ‘walk in, walk out’ cow box design eliminates any unnecessary obstacles (apparently cows are not keen on having to make turns), it is a

utilised. Whittaker has seen that: “Barns housing a herd of 300 in Europe can be managed by one skilled person. This person is no longer required to put on and remove cups from teats but can spend more of their time observing animal behaviour.” Indeed getting used to this new technology may prove difficult at first. It appears the cows only take one week to ten days of training to understand how the system works; it can take the farmer up to a year!

This is not the first use of an AMS in New Zealand. Dairy farmers Janet and Bill Overgaauw from Southland adopted this technology, on a pasture-based system with wintering barns, eight seasons ago. They report both an increase in milk production from a higher milking frequency and an overall improvement in animal health.

The system has allowed the Overgaauws greater flexibility in their working day, improved business manageability and has given them the opportunity to continually evolve their business.

Whittaker sees this model as being a potential solution to many of the issues facing farmers who live in Central Hawke’s Bay. Indeed, CHB could become the leaders in this farming practice.

Arguably, the proposed Ruataniwha Water Storage Scheme would be able to provide the year round water required for this system. Estimates vary from about 35% to 60% regarding how much dairying would result from the irrigation scheme, with opponents insisting the higher range will result due to the high cost of scheme-provided water.

Whittaker sees the barning system as a possible middle ground required to make this project more acceptable on both sides. “The pertinent issues that have been brought to the table are the

L and wanted

downstream impacts on our environment through high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus resulting from the intensification and land use change that this project will bring.”

He argues that barning with correct management can minimise these harmful impacts. Barning will allow the surrounding land to be used more efficiently and effectively. Paddocks previously used for grazing can be used to grow crops which will feed the herd. Feed wastage will be reduced as the cows are being monitored individually in terms of feed requirement. The effluent produced by the herd, completely controlled within the barn, can be utilised and spread back onto the land to grow the crops. Not only does this minimise leaching and resultant downstream nutrient pollution, it decreases the use of chemical fertiliser inputs.

Keeping the effluent on the land and out of the water saves the farmer both in environmental costs and financial costs.

Is this the ‘new face’ of dairy farming?

Will the shift in farming practice bring new young farmers back into the industry?

Whittaker passionately advocates that barning combined with robotics is the only way forward for the New Zealand dairy industry. “We need to stay ahead of the game and embrace the technology which will enable us to do this” he said.

Who would have thought … dairy cows in Havelock North?! Whittaker’s cows will enjoy the Rolls Royce system with animal comfort being the highest priority. The barn is scheduled to be fully operation in December. And, with visitors welcome, you will be able to observe this new technology in action first-hand … and make up your own mind about the ‘fit’ of dairying within Hawke’s Bay.

s– land – both large and small section We want to lease your cropping ons, squashes and feed crops. for our wonderful Hawke’s Bay oni how we could work together, To find out about our packages, and 3 or email chrisz@bostocks.co.nz contact Chris on 021 843 97

JM Bostock is committed to sustainable, GE-free land use, leaving fertile soils and clean water supplies for future generations.

We also believe in creating solid business relationships, securing a healthy future for Hawke’s Bay agriculture.

JM Bostock Ltd NEW ZEALAND

JM Bostock Ltd. 3 Kirkwood Road, Hastings, NZ · www.bostocks.co.nz

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

cow friendly design and allows the cow to be in constant contact with the rest of the herd.

This interaction minimises undue stress”.

Using an AMS is a large technological step up in New Zealand dairy farming and will require some radical changes in thought and farming practice. This technology, already extensively used in Europe, measures physiological, behavioural and production indicators on individual animals. In effect each cow is treated singly and receives the unique attention it requires. Not only does this allow for early detection of illness, it will also increase both productivity and efficiency. In addition, the cows are able to exhibit more of their natural behaviours having the freedom to be milked as and when they need to be.

Expensive initial set-up costs and operational costs could be a restraint for many farmers interested in adopting this model. The system uses high inputs of both energy and water. However, the operational costs are claimed to be offset by increased milk productivity and general business efficiency.

Whittaker notes that the current New Zealand average of milk produced per cow per year is 3,800 litres. Using the AMS approach one can expect levels of more than 10,000 litres. In addition, animal health is greatly improved; one such example is a lower incidence of mastitis, thus reducing medical expenses and improving animal comfort. “The cows will have their feed brought to them; they will not need to exert energy in foraging and walking long distances, twice daily, to be milked. This saved animal energy is converted into milk production”.

Further, labour costs can be reduced, and labour that is required can be better

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Missy P says .....

TASTE BRIDGE PA

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

48

Tacked up and ready, I lead my pony to the gate. Swinging it open, being mindful of speeding cars, I decide to explore the Bridge Pa Triangle. We are both ready for a little adventure and exercise. Hacking off down the road I find myself alert and taking in all the country aromas. Missy P is Prue Barton, proprietress of Mister D. This region is famous wine country with vineyards in close proximity to one another. A unique viticulture area with ‘red metal’ gravels, the Bridge Pa Triangle Wine District extends over more than 2,000 hectares on the western side of the Heretaunga Plains.

Today I am on the hunt for the unexpected. The first thing I spy are foxgloves and then rosemary and lavender spilling out from under a hedge. A gangly

borage plant with vibrant blue flowers comes into view. It is said that borage gladdens the heart and surely the purple flowers are cheery.

Considered an herb, but often grown in vegetable gardens, borage flowers and leaves taste like cucumber. Freeze borage flowers in ice cubes to smarten up cold homemade lemonade or to perhaps drop into a Pimms (a standard cocktail at polo matches). You can also make a refreshing

tea by steeping young leaves in boiling water. Arataki Honey, Hawke’s Bay’s premium honey producer, makes a borage honey noted for its unique herbal flavour and rich gold appearance. Make an Italian panna cotta by simmering together cream, milk, sugar, blue borage honey and setting with gelatine. So easy to make it makes a great companion for roasted peaches or your favourite summer fruit.

The verge now gets greener and I see

“Recently Mexican food has had a surge of popularity with a ‘Mexican Wave’ of new restaurants opening in the Hawke’s Bay.”

a squeeze of lime and chilli will surprise and modernise this humble presentation.

Soften butter, add lime zest and some chopped chipotle chilli and mix through.

Another easy way of preparing is to barbecue whole leaving on the husk.

This way it steams naturally keeping all the moisture in.

Recently Mexican food has had a surge of popularity with a ‘Mexican Wave’ of new restaurants opening in the Hawke’s Bay. In Mexico street food is extensive and the fast foods prepared on the streets are tasty snacks including tacos, tamales, gorditas, quesadillas, tostadas to name a few, and the majority of this food is based on corn products. Try an ‘elote’ which is simply fresh corn served whole on the cob, coated with mayonnaise and dusted with finely grated cheese, lime juice and condiments such as salt, chilli powder and sour cream.

Remembering that February and March is the time of year for fresh figs, I search them out. Pick plump, ripe figs and eat on the same day if possible however they will store in fridge for a couple of days. Wiped, cleaned and placed individually on trays you can freeze them as well if you have a bumper crop. Birds are the number one enemy of any fig tree so they need net protection if any good crop is going to be harvested.

Continued on Page 50

»

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

some wild stinging nettles. These have a similar flavour to spinach when cooked and are rich in vitamins. Soaking stinging nettles in water will remove the stinging chemicals from the plant. Nettles can be used in a variety of recipes such as polenta, pesto and purees. Wilted, they make an unusual soup with a silver green shade. (Historically they have been used to make clothing during a shortage of cotton during World War I, and turn up in many quotations and figures of speech: e.g. ‘to grasp a nettle’, or in Henry IV Shakespeare’s Hotspur urges that “out of this nettle, danger, we pluck this flower, safely”.) To pick you need gloves and a pair of snippers so I will be back later to collect them.

In the distance a huge field of sweet corn flutters in the breeze defining acres of country green. Sweet corn production in New Zealand is a large and established industry with production figures of 100,000 tonnes grown from the principal regions of Gisborne/Hawke’s Bay, Marlborough and Canterbury. Our major export markets are Japan and Australia and sweet corn is the fourth largest vegetable export in excess of 25,000 tonnes earning around $50 million.

There is nothing better than eating fresh corn straight off the cob with lashings of melted butter. The addition of

49

taste Bridge Pa

Roasted figs with blue cheese and prosciutto makes for a delicious lunch.

Cut the figs to make a cross on the top.

Insert blue cheese into the top and wrap with prosciutto. Fasten with a toothpick and place on a baking sheet. Splash over a little Village Press olive oil and bake for about 10 minutes in a medium oven.

Further out on Maraekakaho Road at Sileni Estate is the home of Village Press Olive Oil. They are New Zealand’s largest

producers of extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil. The company was founded by Maureen and Wayne Startup in 1994 when they bought a property near Havelock North where there were already fortyyear-old olive trees. In the early days they travelled abroad to study olive oil growing and processing and imported a second hand press from Italy. Other equally passionate shareholders have joined them now and their new state-of-

the-art centrifugal olive press is capable of processing up to 1,800 kilos of olive fruit per hour.

A tour and tasting is available between April and July by appointment only. This tour commences at the Sileni Estates Olive Grove and then moves into the state-of-the-art Press House to watch the olives being pressed. It ends with a varietal tasting of the olive oils and some superb Sileni Estates wines. If you get a chance

The Designer Series A new style of heat pump has arrived

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

50

www.HBR.co.nz 06 878 8002 / 06 835 8002 enquiries@hbr.co.nz

Authorised Installer of

taste Bridge Pa

the skin for weeks. Prick the nuts, brine, dry and pickle. A lengthy process, but well worth it. Pickled walnuts create a surprise

Bridge Pa Country Lunch • Corn on the Cob with Chilli and Fresh Lime • Fresh Figs with blue cheese and prosciutto • Roasted Peaches with Blue Borage Honey Panna Cotta

ingredient on a ploughman’s platter and pair very well with cheese. In winter they also work well in stews and casseroles adding a nutty flavour.

Towards the end of Ngatarawa Road are the vineyards of Salvare, Bridge Pa, Ngatarawa and Triangle Cellars. There are many various options for lunch along here with fresh local produce and wine tastings on offer. At Salvare I select a 2009 Syrah, which I will tuck away for winter. Perusing the back label it reads “slow down and enjoy the journey”. I certainly have and hope you will.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

try the textured and toasty ‘The Circle’ Semillon 2010, one of their specialty wines and one listed by the glass at Mister D. Not directly visible from the roadside I see an old walnut tree. This takes me back to when I was a child as we had a walnut tree at the end of our garden and my grandfather used to collect them when still green and then pickle them. A tradition we continue today.

Pick fresh green walnuts from the tree, before their shells have formed. Make sure you use gloves before you start as the stain is hard to remove and will stay on

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Don't Order Steak! o

trademarks of a culture and yet still is our common ground across the globe. Food brings people together. It is a universal experience and often the pinnacle of any special occasion, important conversation or memorable event.

I returned a little over a year ago from my overseas adventures, after working my way around the world for six years onboard a private motor yacht. The nature of my job meant I was lucky enough to dine in some of the most prestigious establishments and stock up on provisions in some of the most fabulously hectic market places.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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It was culinary bliss to eat my way around the globe. I became completely captivated by the expansive range of flavours, combinations, and cooking methods that were available beyond the humble Hawke’s Bay shores. I began to appreciate that my prior knowledge of food was limited and my hospitality perceptions were narrow. I decided to take full advantage of the food scene in every destination and never passed up an opportunity to devour any local delicacy … no matter how strange or foreign to my taste buds.

I started my travels with a list of foods I didn’t like, shellfish being one main contender. However, with a mission to ‘Eat my way around the globe’ I soon realized that I needed to minimize this list, or better yet, get rid of it altogether.

I chose the latter and specifically sought out dishes that contained food I wasn’t particularly fond of.

‘Moules et frites’ was the first thing I ordered in France. I was hesitant at first, but by the time I got through the steaming pot of fresh Mediterranean mussels I had mastered the ‘slurp’ action and was very excited about my newfound relationship with this salt-water mollusk.

It became clear to me that my attitude towards food was a major contributor to whether or not I enjoyed it. Luckily, with no food allergies to contend with, technically there was nothing to stop me from sampling and enjoying the different representations of food on my journey.

For some people food is nothing but a necessity, for me it is an experience.

It is one of the single most significant

“I eat anything” Upon my return to Hawke’s Bay in 2012 it was exciting to see a growing mix of hospitality establishments that supply a diverse platform of authentic flavours for us ‘locals’ to indulge on.

I and two fabulous business partners (Nick and Clint) recently opened Mamacita Restaurant. We’re very excited about the concept of incorporating authentic Mexican recipes with local produce. It is this fusion that has become a foundation for our business as it creates yet another level of flavour. Our seafood is sourced locally. Our fresh produce is grown nearby. Even our hot sauces are developed for us by the wonderful team at Orcona (who specialise in Hawke’s Bay grown chillies).

We are going to be introducing a bit more heat in some of our dishes and incorporating specials that will test your Spanish pronunciation. It will be interesting to see how this is received, but we hope our local supporters will be adventurous enough to try some new creations.

So this is where you come in…

Ask yourself, are you taking full advantage of the pleasures you can receive from a home-cooked meal or a dish that is prepared for you? Get creative.

Be courageous. Order something off the menu you usually never would. Try something different every week. This doesn’t mean you need to eat out all the

or Chicken

time; experiment with recipes at home.

Experiment with the foods you have avoided in the past. Try new cooking methods for food you didn’t particularly like the taste of. You just might surprise yourself how many items now on your ‘dislike’ list re-introduce themselves to your palette in a whole new light.

Visit some of the local Asian supermarkets and delicatessens and add some flair to your

by ~ liv reynolds

pantry. Use your hands or chopsticks to eat if necessary. Don’t order steak or chicken!

Be adventurous. Guys – take a punt and try the vegetarian option!

When I am at someone’s house for dinner and the host asks me “Is there anything you don’t like?” … it is with great pleasure that I can now truthfully answer, “Nope, I eat anything.”

Food is fabulous and we will forever

depend upon it – not only to live but for utter enjoyment.

Bon Appetite!

LOOKING FOR A CASUAL DINING EXPERIENCE?

Come and check out our interior and menu changes New Head chef Claire D’Ath brings her flare and experience from travelling and competing overseas with the NZ Culinary Team and working in some of Hawke’s Bays top restaurants.

CHANGES TO THE MENU INCLUDE: Sliders and antipasto platters with after work drinks Thursday and Friday 4pm to 7pm on the deck Small plates all at $15 or choose from our full bistro menu.

Like our e g Facebooekdrapwa to WIN

114 Havelock Rd, Havelock North.

Ph: (06) 877 0008 offthetrack@xtra.co.nz www.offthetrack.co.nz

th and go into to platters for 1 of 2 antipas le of Te Hua 4 and a bott ay or Friday rsd wine on Thu ing week. ow ll fo e th

To view our menu go to www.thepost.co.nz Make your booking now! 06 877 1714

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

Off The Track is a family owned and operated Restaurant.

The focus is on providing a warm and welcoming atmosphere for all and any diners from all walks of life.

Off The Track is the ideal venue whether you are after a relaxing cup of coffee with friends, weekend brunch or a three course meal from our fabulous menu.

Children can entertain themselves on the fantastic playground and large lawn while you enjoy grown up conversation.

Off The Track also offers 3 private self contained cottages situated in rural surroundings with stunning views of Te Mata Peak.

“Visit some of the local Asian supermarkets and delicatessens and add some flair to your pantry.”

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Vegetarianism…

Swimming Against the Current by ~ paul paynter

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

54

Recently I’ve been reading the rants of militant vego’s. While wildly inflammatory, I love the intellectual and moral confrontation. And I confess they’ve driven me from ‘light vegetarian’ to a much higher level of adherence.

Whether it’s killing giraffes or whales, or eating dogs (versus bacon), few things upset humans more than killing animals, or at least the species we favour for various reasons … an arbitrariness termed ‘speciesism’. Indeed, the most common motivation for vegetarianism is the welfare of the animals.

That’s certainly true for Donna, the local contact person for both vegetarians and vegans. Donna is a vegan, avoiding eggs and dairy as well as meat. She’s no urban idealist though. “I grew up on a lifestyle block where we raised and killed our own stock. I watched my father home-kill sheep when I was young and my dad is a hunter.”

Donna has, if you’ll excuse the pun, a beef with speciesism. “We need to have some compassion for the anonymous species and what’s going on with factory farming. The

demand is for cheaper and cheaper food and that’s often to the detriment of the animals and their ability to live natural lives.”

It’s difficult to conclude that man is simply at the top of a Darwinian food chain.

What we do has little in common with what happens in the wild. When a carnivorous animal kills its prey, it’s often taking the old, the weak and the sick, thereby strengthening the population. In factory farming there’s no natural selection going on.

Nobel prizewinning author, and vegetarian, Isaac Bashevis Singer described modern meat production as ‘an endless Treblinka’. While that may seem a highly inflammatory statement, you’d probably get his point if you visited a factory chicken producer.

Vegans like Donna often argue that ethically it’s worse to eat eggs and dairy than meat. At least with meat the male and female of the species have some sort of a life before gracing our plates; but with milk and egg producers, the fate of 50% of the species is grim. Bobby calves get the best of it; their meat and skins, having some value,

get a few days of life. Male chicks in the egg industry are ‘liquidated’ as soon as they can be sorted.

Vegan’s oppose the exploitation of ‘sentient animals’, that is, those that have a central nervous system and can feel emotions. They believe these species have intrinsic and moral value, while lesser species, like plants, have only instrumental value. They oppose treating these sentient animals as commodities. While this is also speciesism, it does seem more rational and consistent than the emotional or aesthetic speciesism we’re usually confronted with.

Health concerns are another factor motivating vegetarian diets. Denis is a good example. He lives in Havelock North and is a recent retiree with three stents and ongoing rheumatoid arthritis. On the advice of his specialist, he’s now a vegan, excepting the occasional serving of fish.

A considerable and growing body of evidence indicates that a vegan diet is healthier. It is usually higher in fibre, lower in fat and more nutrient dense than a diet based on animal protein. It also seems to

reduce the risk of many types of cancer.

Most powerful of all is the evidence that a healthy vegan diet almost eliminates the risk of heart disease. “Plaque does not develop until the endothelium, or the lining of the arteries, is injured -- and it is injured every time people eat meat, dairy, fish, and chicken,” Dr Caldwell Esselstyn, a leading advocate of a plant-based diet, states emphatically. Esselstyn believes the evidence is clear in vegetarian cultures in Africa, Asia and Central America, where heart disease is almost unheard of. For these people a vegetarian diet is completely natural and therein lies the challenge in New Zealand.

world. Demand for meat has doubled in the last 30 years and is forecast to double again in a similar timeframe. “The trend is for the emerging world to copy the excesses of the first world. For them we have a seductive and exotic culture and they don’t see through the gloss,” says Trubridge. “We need to set the trend; to present a vegetarian diet as an attractive option. Right now they’re clearing native forests in South America to produce soya beans to ship to the US as stock food to produce beef. It’s an unbelievably wasteful use of resources.”

Meat production is much more demanding of land, water and fossil fuels than are plants. Studies indicate that meat production takes between 10 and 20 times as much land as do field crops, and in some cases 100 times more water. The key way to make meat production more efficient is to intensify factory farming. If you cramp your livestock up indoors, keep them warm and bring the food to them, they put on weight more efficiently. This is the giant flaw in the popular idea that free range and organic meat production is the future. Such systems simply can’t produce enough meat to feed the demand for meat that is forecast.

The only good arguments for continuing to eat meat are that it provides vitamin B12, for which vegetarians need to take a supplement, and that it tastes good. Many people would give vegetarianism a go if it wasn’t such a cultural challenge. In some ways it’s like changing your religion. The Sunday roast and the BBQ snarler are part of our heritage, part of our way of life.

To become a vegetarian is to swim against a strong current; but sometimes the current is going the wrong way and it has to be done. It’s clearly the healthy choice – healthy for the animals, healthy for our bodies and healthy for the planet.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

Better than boiled The typical dinner when I grew up was the kiwi ‘meat and three veg’. The meat was clearly the star of the show. The vegetables were mostly boiled – and boiled for a long time. Seemingly the only flavour they had came from the salt we liberally applied.

Thankfully we imported some people who could make veges taste better. First the Chinese, then Malaysian, Thai, Cambodian … and their veges taste wonderful. Once it was difficult to be vegetarian or vegan, but now the supermarkets are packed with options that make it appealing.

The health arguments are not just about avoiding disease. Vegetarian and vegan diets are increasingly common amongst endurance athletes. Campbell is a local runner and has gone veggie “to reduce the risk of injury and improve recovery times”. The science to back up these ideas is inconclusive at this stage, but Campbell insists he’s seen enough. “I run with this young vegetarian and he’s just a machine!” he says.

We have a misplaced confidence in the healthiness of our traditional meat

and dairy based diet. Thirty years ago the prevailing urban myth was that eating butter was important to our wellbeing and that it contained vitamins you couldn’t get from other sources. Today everyone believes that consuming milk is the best pathway to maintaining healthy bones – except that the evidence doesn’t quite back this up.

The big milk consumers are found in North America, Scandinavia, UK and of course, New Zealand. Oddly these countries also have some of the highest rates of hip fractures, a key measure of osteoporosis.

One of the key causes is the acidification of our blood. The human body needs to maintain pH balance and in order to neutralise acidity, it leaches calcium from our bones. A key cause of blood acidification is the consumption of animal proteins, including milk. Countries like Japan, Singapore and South Korea don’t have a culture of regular milk consumption, yet they seem to get plenty of calcium and have much lower rates of hip fractures.

If you don’t find the ethical and health arguments compelling, then the coup de grace is the environmental argument.

“I respect those people that don’t want to kill other living things; it’s very noble.

But surely the environment is the critical issue,” says designer and environmentalist David Trubridge. There are many startling facts that back up Trubridge’s concerns.

The UN calculates that the climatechange emissions from animals bred for meat makes up 18% of the global total.

That’s more than all the cars, trucks and aeroplanes combined. Environmentalists wage war on fossil fuels, but if you had to choose between giving up your car or giving up meat, which would it be?

The global population is growing rapidly, as is the purchasing power of the emerging

55

Exploring the coalface of

Fashion Retailing tim.co.nz

Tom Belford visits Papillon’s Dale Cooley for a crash course in women’s fashion

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

56

From time to time the BayBuzz team gets the advice … you need to make BayBuzz more ‘woman-friendly’ … you need more content for women.

Except for the fact that such comments come exclusively from women, I’d tend to regard them as sexist. Women, I think to myself, are just as interested as men in dams, education policy, amalgamation and museum politics. ‘We’ gave them the vote, after all.

But bowing to the pressure, I’ve been giving the advice some thought. Perhaps nothing would better illustrate BayBuzz’s responsiveness and versatility than beginning a regular feature on fashion.

Let me be precise … women’s fashion.

Because all blokes know there is no such thing as men’s fashion. Our section of the clothes closet is measured in centimetres; theirs is measured in metres. And do you think we’re envious? No way!

Now the hard part is figuring out what to write about women’s fashion that would be true to the BayBuzz brand. That means saying something provocative, insightful, a bit edgy … in other words, not doing what Hawke’s Bay Today would do.

I began by trying to think of fashion story titles that would be true to BayBuzz. I came up with ideas like: Who is Hawke’s Bay’s best-dressed female councillor?

Picking your ensemble for the Board of Inquiry Leave green to the greenies Dressing to turn heads at the hui Buying cyanobacteria-resistant swimwear Unfortunately, my wife vetoed all these great ideas, mocking my inner femininity.

“Do some serious first-hand research,” she said. “You can’t just Google and look at magazines. Go to a shop!”

Great idea … a surefire way to get story inspirations, right from the coalface of fashion retailing.

So I drew up some questions and off I went to Papillon in Havelock North, a shop I had seen more than once on our credit card.

Dale Cooley, who seemed shocked to see an un-attended man enter her premises, greeted me. I pretended not to notice she’d picked up her mobile phone as a precaution.

However I explained my predicament and she graciously agreed to give me a crash course in women’s fashion.

What is ‘fashionable’?

I began with what I thought would be a simple question: “Dale, if you were to look at a woman and say to yourself – Wow, she’s fashionable! – what would you be meaning by that?”

I expected something like hot brand, trendy colour, right length, matching shoes.

Instead, her answer was almost metaphysical.

“Not necessarily what’s the latest trend, or what’s in the latest magazine. She’s wearing something that suits her body, suits her age … she’s comfortable in what she’s wearing … she’s moving with the times, but not clinging to something she’s liked in the past, and not copying. Even if she’s wearing a tee shirt, she’s wearing it her way.”

Wow, I thought, dressing is selfactualising. No wonder it takes me less than two minutes to get dressed in the morning. I never realized that most of a woman’s dressing time was simply visualizing.

I asked, “Do you think this means anything to the man in her life?” “No!” was the emphatic answer. “She’s doing it because it makes her feel good. She puts on something she feels good in and it’s like an armour … you can get out there and do anything.”

It got a bit more complicated as Dale explained further. Certainly younger women dress to be attractive to the opposite sex, said Dale, but as they get older, they wear what they feel good in, what makes them feel like an individual.

They become more conscious of what other women might be wearing and thinking. Women do compete through fashion … it’s their “plumage”.

I wondered how often a woman needs to refresh her armour or plumage. In my googling I had read about ‘SS14’ in London. Dale explained there was a sixmonth fashion cycle, but that didn’t mean a woman needed to start over each time.

“One or two new pieces are enough.” I made a note to mention that to my wife.

The interview was already paying off.

How fashionable are Hawke’s Bay women?

Dale has visited some of the fashion centres of the world, and regards New York women as the most fashion conscious … “very focused on appearing to be put together, which isn’t the same as being fashionable.” With that distinction, I realized I was getting even more out of my depth.

Still, I couldn’t resist asking, if New York was ten on the fashion scale, where was Hawke’s Bay? “Way, way down … five” she reluctantly offered (I had the feeling she was trying to be generous). She couldn’t resist giving local men a ‘One’ rating. No high-end men’s shop has ever survived in Havelock North, she noted.

But she rallied to the defense of New Zealand women. “It’s our lifestyle. We’re just more casual and laid back, especially here in Hawke’s Bay. After all, what is a woman doing on an average day … taking kids to school, going to pilates, having a coffee with friends, doing some grocery shopping. What we put on in the morning needs to work for all the things we do in the rest of the day.”

Aha. Back to my wife visualizing in the closet.

Continued on Page 58

»

Bloke’s Fashion Quiz Define these fashion terms: 1

Clutch

2

Skin

3

Shoulder robing

4

Suckerinerer

5

Ballerinas

6

Bao Bao Issey Miyake

7

SS14

8

Gingham

9

Mulberry

10

Deconstructed

Men, get half of these right and you might as well put the ring through your nose.

If your partner gets half right, kiss your credit card limit goodbye!

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

57

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fashion retailing

Kathryn Wilson Shoes

I tried a trick question. Is there such a thing as being ‘casually fashionable’, I asked. “Nice tee shirt and trousers, not track pants,” she answered cautiously.

Then “No polar fleece jackets,” she blurted out. “Unless you’re walking the dog.” And, “If she’s wearing sneakers, they should be a fashion sneaker, not something from Rebel Sports.”

Reluctantly, Dale conceded a woman could make a fashion statement reflecting ‘inner disheveled’. It just wouldn’t be her.

Hot brands Now we’re getting somewhere I thought … some concrete do’s and don’ts. This is what I’d want from my fashion guide. I asked about ‘hot’ brands.

One example Dale gave for ‘hot’ in Hawke’s Bay was fair trade, organic cotton.

And the brand best representing that in

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

58

her opinion is kowtow, a New Zealand label (carried by Papillon) that’s apparently selling strongly overseas as well.

“Well-priced. Easy to care for. Customers like the feel. And they feel they are doing something good.”

[When I proudly gave this tip to my wife, I discovered I was unfashionably late … unbeknownst to me, kowtow has invaded our household already.]

I moved on to shoes. Even I – who have bought one pair of shoes since arriving in New Zealand nine years ago – know how passionate women are about their shoes … they can never have enough.

Personally, I reserve that feeling for barbequed ribs and fried squid.

Dale’s pick of hot shoe brand is Kathryn Wilson, a ten-year-old awardwinning brand (along with the newer Miss Wilson line). Another home-made NZ brand; the real Kathryn is a Massey graduate. For her, a ‘stylish’ woman is defined by “confidence, simplicity, happiness, courage and integrity”.

I asked if New Zealand has originated any major fashion trend. “Not really; we’re more of a follower.” And as much as fashion plays with colour, “New Zealand is a black country.” But we do great things with it.

How might a Hawke’s Bay woman keep abreast of fashion trends, I asked. Dale said she would probably be looking at overseas fashion online and reading the New Zealand Fashion Quarterly and/or Simply You. So I bought a copy of Simply You at the New World check-out line. I thought there was something fundamentally incongruous about buying a flash fashion magazine – the 15th Anniversary edition, no less – along with the cod and broccoli.

But that’s another story.

One look at the cover and I thought,

“I’ve never seen a woman in Hawke’s Bay wear anything like that!” Talk about aspirational advertising.

The magazine’s ‘Style Team’ (would BayBuzz need a style team, I fretted) gave their brand picks: Mi Piace heels, Sable & Minx jacket, dresses by Paula Ryan and Clover Canyon, Louis Vuitton necklace, and a clutch by Deadly Ponies. Can’t wait to display my fashion nous at the next Hawke’s Bay charity auction!

I plowed through 274 pages of fashion and cosmetics (is that a different column?) advertising and advice … that’s 4.3 times the size of BayBuzz (would I need to add pages to cover fashion?).

I have to admit, the photography and the women fashions were gorgeous.

One ad that caught my eye had a model ‘voicing’ one simple copy line: “My SUCKERINERER always gives me a lift.”

The copy meant nothing to me; the photo made me … linger. I think I got the point.

Amidst the visual feast, I did notice a statement by the aforementioned Kathryn Wilson in response to the question: “What do you wish you had purchased at age 15 to keep forever?” She replied: “…purchase quality pieces that will last you for years, rather than filling your wardrobe with multiple versions of the same thing that are made cheaply … start collecting quality items you will keep for years rather than things you will throw away.”

Spoken like a true Kiwi I thought. Even a bloke would ‘get’ that.

Should BayBuzz do fashion?

My Fashion 101 ended. Dale could not have been a better tutor, especially considering the caliber of student she had to deal with.

I did pick up a few ideas for how

fashion retailing

KowTow clothing is fair trade, organic

Kowtow’s Philosophy For a long time, many of our consumer habits have appeared to have no consequence. It is now quite apparent that there is an imbalance in standards of living throughout the world which is fuelled by the West’s continuing short changing and exploitation of labour markets in the so called third world.

We don’t believe anyone who is truly aware of what is going on in the world would want to turn their heads and support a slave trade economy.

Being into clothes we decided to do something about it. Certified fair trade organic clothing that is ethically and sustainably made from seed to garment.

KOW TOW

www.kowtowclothing.com

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Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

WINTER 2014

BayBuzz might uniquely cover fashion.

But I and the rest of our ‘style team’ would like to hear from you. Is there a ‘BayBuzz way’ to treat fashion? Assuming we can find better writers than me for the topic, what can we usefully say to Hawke’s Bay’s fashion-conscious women? Email your advice to: tom@baybuzz.co.nz

59

Monsters Mirrors Big Tops Big Noise top designers Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

60

Jessica Soutar Baron previews what’s on her personal calendar over the next few months in Hawke’s Bay’s arts and culture scene.

Godzilla With a preview in mid-April at Common Room in Hastings and a second showing in May at The Cabana in Napier, Adrian Thornton’s Godzilla will be a feast for eyes and ears. Using the compositions of Akira Ifukubi, renowned Japanese film score composer, and film footage from classic Toho monster movies, Thornton’s People’s Revolutionary Arts Council will stage a silent film experience like you’ve never seen before.

Supporting this spectacular happening is Fane Flaw’s latest project, No Engine.

After thirty years away from the stage Flaws has a renewed thirst for the gig circuit and is performing at every opportunity, often, as with this gig, alongside omnipresent muso Anton Wuts. Once the Godzilla show wraps Thornton and Revolutionary Arts Council will move on to a collaboration with Martin Poppelwell and the music of Dmitri Shostakovich, at the Hastings Community Arts Centre in May/June.

Vague de Cirque Anything to do with circus was bound to make it onto my list. Still breathless from seeing De La Guarda at London’s Roundhouse in 1999 (twice!) and Cirque du Soleil at the Royal Albert Hall in 2003, I try to soak up as much sawdust and grease paint as I can.

Vague de Cirque

Contemporary circus Vague de Circe, from Canada, will perform at Hawke’s Bay Opera House on May 2 and 3. Many of the principal acrobats have done time with Cirque du Soleil, so derring-do and high flying are expected.

Reuben Paterson Reuben Paterson’s show At the Edge of a Mirror opens on 3 May at Hastings City Art Gallery and runs until 27 July. Full of his signature glitter, the show is said to present to viewers a gallery space reimagined as a kaleidoscope, with Paterson’s vibrant, sparkling paintings acting as a mirrored surfaces. ‘Refraction, tessellation and symmetry’ are the promised themes, but what gallery visitors will really get from seeing this show is an overwhelming feeling of frivolous, unabashed, flamboyant fun. So much ‘feel-good’ that it may

‘Whakapapa: get down upon your knees’ (2009) by Reuben Paterson

well be a bit hard to take in long bursts – like wheatgrass on an empty stomach.

This exhibition gathers together a large collection of Patterson’s work from Milford Galleries and Gow Langsford Gallery.

A who’s who of new Newness in every corner of the Hawke’s Bay arts world will potentially (read hopefully) bring a sprouting of fresh

growth. New venues and new helmsmen promise to pump some energy into our full, but arguably stagnant, arts scene.

Napier’s community arts centre will open in September and this year will mark MTG’s first year of operation.

MTG director Douglas Lloyd Jenkins promises a particularly exciting show opening in September, but won’t divulge details until plans are firmed up. Roger King’s appointment as events manager at Napier City Council should bring new ideas, but whether they will push that city past the art deco and into a new phase remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, at the other side of the Expressway, Hastings City Art Gallery will appoint a new director after Maree Mills left late last year. Pitsch Leiser will complete his first year as manager of Creative Hastings (he’s already brimming with ideas; watch what happens in September when he throws local artists at Blossom Parade floats), and Christine Spring will also have done a full year at the wheel of the Opera House.

Continued on Page 62

Hawkes Bay’s

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Adrian Thornton takes on Godzilla

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

Rhythm and Resonance Two pianos with percussion will bring pandemonium to the Municipal Theatre when Chamber Music New Zealand’s season of Rhythm and Resonance comes to Napier on 28 August. Diedre Irons and Michael Endres on pianos and Thomas Guldborg and Lenny Sakofsky on percussion will deliver works from Bartok, Mozart and Ravel. A magical interplay between four virtuosos and two giants of the aural world, this night will bring colour and depth, refinement and drama.

If your passion is classical music, but you have a secret penchant for the dramatic, then Rhythm and Resonance is a musical spectacular you won’t want to miss.

Godzilla coming to HB!

61

the arts

Hawke’s Bay Better Through Design From the rubble in 1931 came new growth, new spaces, new landscapes, new buildings and new opportunities that continue to tell a story about who we are and who we wish to be.

Art deco arrived on an ocean liner. It was the hot new style of the time. Deco was bold, and so were we for taking it on.

It showed the world we were innovative, sophisticated, glamorous and thoroughly modern. So where has our Hawke’s Bay aesthetic gone from there, and now in the 21st century what spaces - public and private, civic and civil - reflect us and the way we live in the world?

Designer and urbanist Anthony Vile is a recent Auckland escapee who now lives and works in Te Awanga, running design outfit Urban Futures Research Lab. In one of his current projects the big idea is about building a community founded on a shared passion for architecture and its place in our region.

“I think there’s a general lack of awareness around the value architecture has in our culture and there’s a tradition of innovation in Hawke’s Bay architecture that’s fallen off the radar,” explains Vile.

To help bridge the gap in understanding Vile, with support from NZ Institute of Architects, is facilitating a lecture series

to present projects currently in the design or build phase in Hawke’s Bay. Leading practitioners will present under the umbrella theme of The Tradition of Innovation in Hawke’s Bay Architecture.

Stevens Lawson Architects will talk about their Hawke’s Bay projects and the inspiration found in Black Barn, Craggy Range and the architecture of John Scott.

They are New Zealand’s most highly awarded residential architects. Although Auckland based, Nicholas Stevens and Gary Lawson find themselves working increasingly in Hawke’s Bay. Their Te Mata House won an NZIA National Award in 2011 and they are currently completing a new auditorium and a new library at Iona College. They will be presenting their lecture on 18 March.

On 26 March Mike Austin and Ginny Pedlow from Mitchell and Stout Architects will talk about a cornerstone project for Hastings, the redevelopment of Civic Square. This project has been a long time in the pipelines and so it will be exciting to see where the project is now and how the designs and ideas are developing. Mitchell and Stout is a well established practice with a solid standing in the architecture world and having them onboard can only be a positive thing for the Bay. They will be representing New Zealand in the upcoming Architecture Biennial in Venice.

The third lecture will come from Christopher Kelly at Architecture Workshop on 2 April presenting his project, Te Mata Visitor Centre. As much as the Civic Square is pivotal for Hastings’ urban space, Te Mata fills that role in our rural landscape. There is much interest from the public in both these projects and many are waiting to see if they will deliver what’s been promised.

The lecture series will be an excellent opportunity to get a “work in progress” up date from the designers.

To wrap up the series, a fast-format presentation night in the style of pecha kucha – multiple presenters; quick-fire presentations; 20 slides of 20 seconds each – will take place on 9 April. Architects and collaborators from around Hawke’s Bay will present and this will be a chance for local practitioners to have ‘right of reply’ on the overarching theme: The Tradition of Innovation in Hawke’s Bay Architecture.

“The series will appeal to anyone who is interested in architecture and design, and will be an opportunity to grow an understanding of the value design disciplines have in creating a better Hawke’s Bay,” Vile explains.

All presentations begin at 5.30pm in the Magdalinos Room, Havelock North Community Centre. Entry is by koha.

Why should you subscribe to BayBuzz?

BayBuzz delivers depth. With insider perspectives. Range of viewpoints, strongly presented.

Issues and topics that matter.

Bee in the know ~ mar/apr 2014

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Head of Steam Beads of perspiration trickled down the beard of Bull Doltus as he soaked in a private hot pool on the Paradus Marinus.

Napierion’s new ruler breathed deeply as steam billowed around his face. He felt he thought best with his head in the clouds but today he was building up a different head of steam.

Doltus was desperate for some strategy to fight off compulsus amalgamatus, a deadly administrative virus spreading north from the Capital. It was rumoured to have been secretly released in the Bay of Hawks by provincial governor Lawrencus Yulus.

Doltus knew the virus would wipe out Napierion’s policy of splendid isolation, leaving her citizens at the mercy of rampaging sheep-worshipers and hordes of red-skinned apple growers from the dark lands to the south.

But he also knew he could not turn his broad back on the legacy of his fighting predecessor, the Iron Maiden Barbarous Arnottus.

Suddenly an idea flickered in his mind.

Turning his back was the answer.

“Eureka, I have found it!” Doltus bellowed, clambering naked from the pool and leaving a large vapour trail as he pounded down the street to his chambers.

Bee in the know ~ mar /apr 2014

64

That afternoon, Doltus called a special meeting of councillors.

“I have a plan to defend Napierion that came to me in the bath,” he announced.

The councillors nodded but said nothing. One took off his straw boater and scratched his head.

“What’s the point?” he said. “The warlords in Wairorus and The Central Bay of Hawks don’t want Lawrencus anywhere near their flocks after seeing his collection of sheep statues.”

Doltus nodded grimly.

“But Lawrencus is a crafty sod. He knows if they hold a vox populi on amalgamation we don’t have the numbers to beat it. So if we can’t keep our necks, let’s at least save our faces by making it look like we’re preparing for battle.

“Firstly, we need a large, symbolic banner to rally our people, like the oriflamme the kings of the Franks carry into battle.

Something iconic that sums up Napierion.”

His councillors frowned.

“You mean something like a big Pinus Norfolkus tree?” one asked. “Or what about a large chariot carrying piles of logs down the Paradus Marinus?”

A second councillor spoke up.

“We have the relics of our patron saint Artus Decus -- the sole of his left sandal and that fragment of the sackcloth singlet he wore without washing for 40 years. And we’ve got that pile of Sacred Rubble from the ancient town destroyed in AD31.”

Doltus shook his head.

“Not any more. When they built that new plaza at the top of the main street they discovered rats had eaten the sandal and made nests out of the singlet. And someone used the Sacred Rubble to replenish our shores.

“So I’m thinking of an Artus Decus banner, featuring a straw hat woven in gold thread, with rampant fox furs on each side, and a thick border of silk stones, representing our beaches.”

There was silence in the room. A seagull squawked overhead. Something landed on the roof.

Sensing some wavering of support, Doltus pounded the table with his fist.

“The flag’s just the start. I’ve got a battle strategy that Lawrencus would never expect, even in his wildest dreams.”

His councillors shuddered at his words.

The dreams of Lawrencus Yulus were rumoured to involve cider-drinking contests, a wild herd of shaved goats and winemakers wrestling sheep. They gripped their chairs.

“My strategy is not to face our attackers but to turn our backs on them,” bellowed Doltus.

“It’s always worked for us. By turning our backs on the rest of Heretaungus we have preserved Napierion from the ravages of progress. Our drains and sewers are all original, just as they were laid after Neptune decided to destroy our town in AD31.

“So while Lawrencus thinks Napierions will have their backs to the wall when he arrives, we will actually have our backs to him.”

Nobody spoke for several minutes. Then one councillor cleared his throat.

“Is turning our backs on Lawrencus safe?” he asked. “It sounds a bit like the strategy the Franks always use. It hasn’t exactly been a great success for them, although to be fair, it gives them a good head start when they retreat.”

His colleagues nodded. Then one spoke up.

“Will you be standing with us when we face – or back on to – Lawrencus?” he asked.

Bull Doltus “Symbolically, of course,” replied Doltus, “but on the day of the battle I’ll be leading from the front, which, because we will be facing away from the enemy, means I’ll be on the opposite side of town from you.”

Again the room grew silent as councillors tried to envision being attacked from behind by the enemy, with their leader far in front of them.

After a few minutes, one of the councillors raised his hand.

“It’s an unusual plan all right,” he said slowly, “but what if old Lawrencus reaches us before we can turn around? Won’t it look like we gave in without a fight?”

Doltus gave a hearty laugh and slammed his hand on the table.

“That’s the beauty of the whole plan,” he said.

“We know we can’t win but we have to put up some sort of show. So when we get overpowered by Lawrencus we can simply do an about-face, or volte-face as the Franks would say, and declare we accept amalgamation after all … apart from Lawrencus’ bad debts.

“That way we might lose the battle but, like the Franks, we can say we have won the war because we have kept our integrity and our dignity intact. Simple.”

His councillors stared at him until one slowly nodded and broke into applause.

The others followed, clapping and cheering as they lifted him on to their shoulders and carried him into the street.

“Drop me off at the hot baths,” shouted Doltus. “I’m feeling a bit light-headed.”

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