Lokal Magazine

08/09/2020

Nandi Glassie's support helped us to get our first grant. He made a personal donation to our project. His encouragement throughout our journey was unflagging. Today we mourn the loss of a leader and visionary, our relative and friend. Aue te akāroa. Rest in love, Uncle Nandi 💚

“I’m in 100% support of traditional medicine. There are people who shy away from it because they were western-trained, but as someone brought up in Atiu, I know that if you got a tu pito, you pick five tiare Māori -- the pakapaka one -- and the breadfruit leaf and you get the kumete and pound and then add coconut oil and tie it up and roll around your stomach 10 times clockwise, 10 anti-clockwise. That’s Māori medicine -- the list of examples from real life goes on and on. My position as the Minister of Health is I truly believe in traditional medicine.”
– Hon. Nandi Glassie

The Lokal Magazine team is grateful for the minister's verbal and financial support. Thank you ranuinui Nandi!

Photo credit: Pacific-Community-SPC

08/09/2020

Nandi Glassie's support helped us to get our first grant. He made a personal donation to our project. His encouragement throughout our journey was unflagging. Today we mourn the loss of a leader and visionary, our relative and friend. Aue te akāroa. Rest in love, Uncle Nandi 💚

03/12/2019

'Many parents overlook play as a tool for discipline, Markham says... "Play is [kids'] work," Markham says. "That's how they learn about the world and about their experiences." Which seems to be something the Inuit have known for hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of years.'

At the top of the world, the Inuit culture has developed a sophisticated way to sculpt kids' behavior without yelling or scolding. Could discipline actually be playful?

06/11/2019

In memory of our friend, Ina Katu (left), who passed away over the weekend, here are some beautiful moments from a story by Mark Mcdermott in our first issue about what it means to be a Boonga Boy.

1)
Part of living is that sometimes life will slam you. To surf the waves outside Rarotonga’s reef is invariably to feel pain and fear — the scrapes and bruises from the reef, the sheer panic in the long moment between the wave spitting you out and the impact of rock on skin and bone.
'As soon as we experienced our first wipeout, we saw the light. And that was the way to go,' says Ina Katu, one of the Boonga Boys who comes from Aitutaki. 'We saw what is more important in life, after nearly dying.'

2)
There is no strict definition [of what it means to be a Boonga Boy].
'It’s like everything you do with your life, pretty much,' Ina says. 'If you are in need of some cash, you go pick mangoes, or coconuts, and sell it to the tourists, or the restaurants...You go fishing and even if you can’t sell it, give it to the locals. It’s taking what nature provides, but not too much. The Boonga way.'
'The island way of living,' Manutai Bird Metuakore says. 'Keeping our mana true, our culture alive.'
Rest in peace, Ina. Your legacy reminds us to live large, laugh, dance, squeeze every drop of joy out of life, and respect what nature provides.
📷:

06/09/2019

Public health students are taught about traditional practices in order to provide more effective health care in Native Hawaiian and other underserved communities.

20/08/2019

09/08/2019

"I go lick you!"
Is physically beating your keiki the "Hawaiian way?"

Please take a little time to read this eye-opening manaʻo shared by cultural historian and researcher Adam Keawe Manalo-Camp:

Traditional Hawaiian parenting was far different than what is practiced today. Too often the term "I go lick you!" is used in Hawaiian households. I know of stories from the previous generation where a Hawaiian child would be caned and/or whipped and then salt or vinegar would be thrown on the wound and they called that the "Hawaiian way". Torturing children in the name of "discipline" was not the Hawaiian way.

Traditionally, Hawaiians kids spent more of their time with their grandparents than their actual parents. This allowed knowledge to be passed down directly. Hawaiian children under the age of 8 were in general taught manners, etiquette, polite behavior, values, and the mo'olelo of their ancestors.

Polite behavior and manners was thought of as the first steps towards learning a trade and living within a community--not unlike our Polynesian cousins and the Japanese way of education. That is also a key point--living within a community and how to behave within a community as a part of child development. They were allowed to play around and encouraged to learn by modeling their elders.

Discipline normally came in terms of explaining and admonishing behaviors through words. Hawaiians had a process of exclusion (hoʻomū) when it came to children who consistently misbehaved but that was after discussions with a priest and after a change in diet, exercise and massaging. Hawaiians believed that kids could change their behavior if that energy could be discussed with experts, diets changed, that energy could be massaged out and healed.

Hitting, spanking, slapping and caning a child were considered kapu because a child especially under 8 years old was considered to still be spiritually directly linked to the deceased ancestors. One can not slap one's ancestors therefore one can not slap a child. As a child grew older, past 8, other methods were used to "discipline" the child mostly assigning him/her to projects such as building walls or paths. In worst case scenarios, exclusion was used.

Children of the kahuna class in addition to value-formation would be given games to enhance their memories. Practicing oration and memorizing chants would begin around age 6 and continue for the rest of the lives. Some islands had special kahuna schools as well where children between the ages of 8 to 13 could be sent to learn.

Children of the ali'i were normally at some point around age 6 transferred to a pālama, a type of fort like school where they would begin their training in politics, war, history, as well as the martial arts. Sometimes the children of the kahuna would also attend. But before attending the pālama, children of the aliʻi were also "disciplined" in the same ways as the common children.

What radically changed Hawaiian child rearing was the Calvinist missionaries--and their impact still continues. The Calvinist missionaries brought with them ideas that children were "little adults" and introduced corporal punishment. The "I go lick you" or "I go paʻi your mouth" or the notion that physically abusing a child in order to discipline the child has no basis in pre-Contact Hawaiian culture.

We also know that Māori (https://teara.govt.nz/en/nga-matua-maori-parenting) and Tahitian child rearing and underlining ideas were almost the same as Hawaiian so that confirms that these principles were very ancient and ingrained to our ancestors before the missionaries came with their "spare the rod, spoil the child" and "idle hands are the Devilʻs play things" mentality.
That missionary way of thought and that systemic violence that many of our kūpuna faced in their own lives, they brought it into their homes. Thatʻs something we must decolonize ourselves.

Mahalo nui e Adam Keawe Manalo-Camp for sharing these invaluable insights!

19/07/2019

This week at the access road to Mauna Kea on the island of Hawai'i, hundreds are gathering in prayer, in solidarity, and in song to oppose the government's decision to build a 30-metre telescope on a sacred mountain and freshwater source.
The trucks and machines, protected by police officers, soldiers, and the law, are ready to roll anyway.
The peaceful protestors have been called terrorists. More than 30 elderly Hawaiians have been arrested for sitting in the street. This photo wordlessly describes what it was like to watch them being carried into police vans.
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In 2015, hundreds of people on Rarotonga publicly protested a potential deal with a Spanish purse seining company; more than 4,000 signed a petition opposing it.
The deal went ahead anyway.
This year, experts from around the world responded to the draft Seabed Minerals Bill with concerns that it doesn't mitigate the risks of mining or protect against negative impacts on our ocean environment.
The bill passed anyway.
Recently, Te Vai Ora Maori, a group motivated not by payment but a belief that we should be drinking water without chemicals in it, has been organising at the community level. Members have been publicising peer-reviewed studies that should make us think more deeply about what our bodies were designed to process; politicians have responded to them on social media with words like "ridiculous". Contracts for supplying chemicals to treat drinking water were tendered out in May, before the public was consulted.
Chlorination appears to be happening anyway.

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Tou Ariki Travel Tou said once that traditional leadership used to be about two things: land and sea. Ariki used to make decisions based on what was best for the resources, and therefore what was best for the entire community, because between us and our world there is no separation.
Our natural resources – land, sea, sky, food, water – are free gifts that have nourished us since the beginning of time. Decisions about how we use them and ingest them and what we do to them are being made by people who believe more in "progress" than in honouring land and sea and our connection to both.

12/07/2019

Thanks, BTIB!

12/07/2019

A limited number of Lokal shirts will be for sale tomorrow morning at the Punanga Nui Market Rarotonga - find Luduina T Williams (pictured), who's selling our shirts in addition to her organic plants and baked goods. (Check out our story about her natural lifestyle in the first issue of , available online at lokalmag.org.) We have mostly large sizes left. Get one before they sell out!

10/07/2019

“When you grow your own food, generate your own energy, and work from a home office or farm for your livelihood, the so-called ‘costs of living’ largely disappear. You become untethered to the work-earn-spend consumer economy and thrive, instead, in a more locally centered, self-sufficient economy in which monetary income is less essential for a rich life.”
– ECOpreneuring by Lisa Kivirist and John Ivanko (Book)

This is a philosophy that resonates for June and Andrew Hosking, pictured here in 2012 with batteries storing the solar energy that powers their Mauke home. Read for insight into their journey and the possibility of becoming "untethered".

📷: Noel Bartley

09/07/2019

Have you read our plastics feature in the new issue of ? It discusses the ways plastic harms our environment and health and the innovative solutions that people all over the world are finding to deal with this. In this video, celebrity Jaden Smith commissions the founder of Precious Plastic, a global community of people working to transform plastic into useful items, to build him a dining table made entirely of recycled plastic.

This is a conversation that affects everyone because burning plastic is highly toxic to our bodies and burying it in the ground has toxic effects on our soil and water, which in turn affects our health. The tide is turning, thanks to the hardworking and passionate people who were recently able to achieve the legislation of a ban on some single-use plastic items, but there is work to be done.

Check out our new issue and visit preciousplastic.com for more ideas, information, and to see how easy it is to design machines that transform our trash.

https://preciousplastic.com/en/pilots/jaden-table.html

08/07/2019

"It's a symbiotic relationship," said Geoff Matamaki Nati Halston (Geoffrey Thor). "You give them shelter and food and they pollinate and produce honey."

Learn more about bees, the role they play in sustaining the natural systems that give us breath and life, and the work local beekeepers do in the new issue of , out now. Check out the story by Rachel Smith on page 61.

Get your copy today!

📷: Matariki Wilson

02/07/2019

"You always hear the old people who grew up in the countryside say they were poor. They say they had nothing. They say they could only afford one can of corned beef to feed a family of 10 for a week. But they can also give you a whole list of things that they did have – kuru, mango, rūkau, fish, pawpaw, bananas, māniota, taro, and it goes on and on. When did our abundant food supply become 'nothing'? We were good, we had heaps of food. We had everything we needed. Next thing we knew, people were walking around thinking they were poor. So we got jobs and loans and a better education to get a better job so we could afford the food rich people were eating, and it made a lot of us sick. ... New research is telling us to eat mostly plants. These are the foods 'poor' people were already eating."

Check out our breakdown of what we're importing and eating today and what it's doing to us on page 12 of the new issue of , out now. See yesterday's post for a list of locations they're available - get yours today, as they're going fast!

Photo used with permission from the Cook Islands National Archives

01/07/2019

RAROTONGA! You can pick up a copy of at the following locations:

Arorangi: Kavera Store, Beluga Rarotonga, The Coconut Crab Cafe, Friendly Mart, the market next to Inave laundrette;

Nikao/Panama/Atupa: Super Brown, Ka Pie Ltd, Tepuka Store, Areanu Store, Mike Tavioni's gallery;

Town: SALT cafe/gallery, The Cafe at BCA, Treasure Chest, Library & Museum Society, Tex Mart, Bus Stop Cafe, Fave Designs - Red Door Rarotonga, Tuakata Café & Catering, Te Nira Store, Reefside Rarotonga (both locations), TEM Store, Convenience Store;

Tupapa/Matavera: Super Brown, Love Cafe, Tex Mart;

Turangi/Muri: Kia Orana Store, TEM Store, Kitesup Cook Islands Water Sports Centre, Te Ara - Cook Islands Museum of Cultural Enterprise, Muri Outlet II;

Titikaveka: Charlie's.

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AITUTAKI: Contact Misepa at Cook Islands Tourism or head to Heineken store or Maina Traders.

ATIU: Contact Titiama John or Jude Isaia.

MANGAIA: Contact Sue Ngatokorua.

MITIARO: Contact Inangaro Taia.

MAUKE: Contact June Hosking.

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Thanks to the support of the Ministry of Education, magazines are coming to the north soon, so stay tuned.

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And a shout out to Stevie Ataera and Tūrama Photography for our stunning cover image!

28/06/2019

"This hunt is a symbol of community, connection, and how using resources teaches you to be a good steward of them. ... 'Whatever we do, we do together,' says Titiama, a 30-year-old father of five who hunts, fishes, and works as a mechanic. 'That's the Atiu way.'"

Check out our story about a pig hunt on Atiu on page 50 of the new issue of , out now. We owe thanks to the boys of Teenui for letting us tag along on a hunt, to Tūrama Photography for coming with us and snapping some stunning images of the experience, and to Air Rarotonga for making sure magazines made it to Atiu (and other parts of the pa enua!).

Keep an eye out this weekend as we'll be doing drop-offs around Rarotonga and posting a list of locations where you can pick up a copy of Lokal #2.

27/06/2019

Thanks to the generous support of Air Rarotonga and the boys at JetX, magazines are coming to Aitutaki, Atiu, Mauke, Mitiaro, and Mangaia! We'll be arranging to get some boxes to the north, too, so stay tuned for news about that.

On Rarotonga, for now you can pick up a copy at the following locations:

Tupapa - Cook Islands National Environment Service
Town - SALT cafe/gallery
Panama/Nikao - Kareha Polynesian Art Studio and Rarotonga Rentals

Keep checking back for updates as we'll be doing some drop-offs this weekend at new locations.

25/06/2019

Before Anneka Brown started working for Cook Islands News, we asked her to write something for . Now she's writing about us. Cheers to the paper for this little story.

http://www.cookislandsnews.com/features/weekend/item/73158-stories-for-the-return-home

25/06/2019

25/06/2019

24/06/2019

Thanks to all who came out to celebrate with us on Friday evening! Part of what we wanted to do with Lokal Magazine was reach a cross-section of community and it was really cool to see a cross-section show up.

An incredible team of people helped us to put on Friday's event. There are many to thank and though a Facebook post falls short, here's a Facebook post anyway.

We owe thanks to the Ministry of Cultural Development Cook Islands for sponsoring the venue and to Kate Marina Ngatokorua for helping with setup; to Natua Teururai for providing background music full of energy and aro'a; to Aunty Babe Ataera and the Arorangi School kids (and Tylani Ataera!) for putting on an awesome show; to the vendors (Sunshine Cultutal Activities Cook Islands, Teuvira Upokotea and Inano Vaiitirau McMurchy, NUKU KAI, June Hosking and Jude Isaia, Stevie Ataera with Josh and Jordan) for supporting both Lokal and what's local; to Manutai Bird Metuakore for catching fish, to the boys who provided goats and pigs and put on the umu, and to so many Ataeras for putting on a beautiful island feast; to Mama and Jarvis for coming to Rarotonga to help out; to Junior and Cheryl for sharing knowledge about plants and how they interact with our bodies; to Julian Zeman and Rene Hand for doing last minute errands; to Helen Greig and Mama Pauline for (wo)manning the magazine table; to Jarvis Ataera and Daniel Ataera for selling shirts; to Api Teiri for making the shirts; to Daniel Mark Johnston Haimes for always being willing to lend a hand; to Anneka Brown for writing about us. Community sustains us – (read about how in Lokal Magazine!) – and we are really blessed by ours. (Note that this is likely to be edited as there are probably people that I've forgotten and will later remember!)

The magazine itself wouldn't have happened without a lot of generous people, either. We're grateful to our funders: Cook Islands National Commission for UNESCO and Dani Cochrane for your wholehearted support; and Ministry of Internal Affairs, Cook Islands for supporting art and media, in addition to so many other worthy causes. Thanks to Helena Mitchell and HPM for your kindness; to Julian, Paul Mangakahia, and Tabbs for being the transport team; to Sarah Mare for being our #1 marketer. Thanks, as always, to our contributors – you remind us of how much creativity and talent exists in this little community – and to the people who allowed us to photograph and write their stories – you remind us of how much wisdom exists, too.

Every collaborative project is a reminder that none of us is an island and we are better together. Thank you, everyone, for your aro'a and for making this work so worthwhile.

Stay tuned for news about where you can pick up the new issue of Lokal Magazine. For now get to SALT cafe/gallery in town, next to the police station, for a coffee and a copy!

Thanks to Brie Zeman and Josh Baker for snapping some photos of Friday's event!

24/06/2019

24/06/2019

24/06/2019

Thanks to Brie Zeman and Josh Baker for snapping some photos of Friday's event!

22/06/2019

22/06/2019

Happening now! Still some food left but not much - come down and get yourself a magazine!

21/06/2019

Come talk to Teuvira Upokotea at our event today about the profound healing powers of massage, which has always been an important element of Māori healing. Inano Vaiitirau McMurchy, who also works in massage, will be there too. Today's event - and this magazine - is about celebrating local food, local music, and local healing. Come be part of the celebration.

📷: Jessie Lee Cederblöm

21/06/2019

We're excited that The Little Book Media will be joining us again this year to demonstrate how to juice plants and run some sessions about the healing properties of what grows freely around us. There's a story about the Marsters' community-level work in this issue of , which we'll be handing out for free this afternoon! See you there.

21/06/2019

We're stoked to have joining us this afternoon outside the Auditorium, serving up some fresh local kai. Get in quick before it sells out!



Photo by NUKU KAI

21/06/2019

We are excited to announce that we'll have Lokal tees for sale at tomorrow's event. We'll have a variety of sizes and colours. Get in quick before shirts sell out!

FRIDAY, 21 JUNE // 4-7PM // OUTSIDE THE AUDITORIUM

20/06/2019

A couple of tonnes of magazines are en route, making their way into town. Pick up your copy tomorrow!

20/06/2019

Get down to the Auditorium tomorrow afternoon for raw fish and plenty of other local kai. And to pick up your free copy of Lokal Magazine. See you there. // FRIDAY, 21 JUNE // 4-7PM // OUTSIDE THE AUDITORIUM

📷: Tūrama Photography

20/06/2019

We're grateful to our friend Natua Teururai, ukulele builder and player extraordinaire, for agreeing to perform at our event on Friday. Here's a photo of the music man in his workshop, where the magic happens, and another of him playing at our first event.

Come to the Auditorium on Friday afternoon for local music, local food, local dance, and a free copy of . See you there.

(( Workshop photo by Jessie Lee Cederblöm ))

19/06/2019

Some snippets of kids practicing with Aunty Babe, getting ready for Friday's event. Don't miss out! // 21 JUNE // 4-7PM // OUTSIDE THE AUDITORIUM

18/06/2019

Who's ready for some umu food? Come to our event on Friday for a plate and a free copy of the second issue of .

21 JUNE // 4-7PM // OUTSIDE THE AUDITORIUM

📷: Jessie Lee Cederblöm