News & Results
Connecting and upskilling through Mana Taiohi
Across June and July 2022, Sport Bay of Plenty collaborated with Ara Taiohi - Aotearoa's peak body for youth development - and Sport New Zealand to embark on a sector-wide connection and upskilling effort on youth engagement.
Known as Mana Taiohi, the principle-based framework informs the way organisations can work with young people in Aotearoa.
The aim of the Bay of Plenty Mana Taiohi Wānanga was to begin a journey to increase knowledge of the ‘Mana Taiohi framework' which contains eight principles that, if followed, ensure quality engagement with young people through a mana enhancing approach.
"The voice of young people and working with them in positive, mana enhancing ways is critical to the growth and development of quality relationships in active recreation and sport in our rohe," explains Sport Bay of Plenty's Active Young People Team Leader Calvin Buttimore.
"At the heart of that engagement is respecting and developing the mana of adolescents (taiohi)."
A key area of focus in Sport Bay of Plenty's 2022-26 Strategy is to reduce barriers and facilitate access to quality physical activity opportunities for young people aged 15 to 17.
To support this strategic focus Ara Taiohi facilitators delivered 10 wānanga, across eight days of engagements in the Central, Western and Eastern Bay of Plenty, including sessions for Sport Bay of Plenty staff. Engagement across all wānanga was substantial, with 172 individuals from 99 organisations attending.
In addition to upskilling sport providers and facilitators and schools, the wānanga also enabled Sport Bay of Plenty to connect with active recreation groups and people improving physical activity opportunities for women and girls.
"As a result of these connections we were able to establish four new networks or communities of practice that we aim to engage with on a regular basis," says Calvin.
"For the sport and recreation sector, these wānanga posed a completely new way for providers to think about and approach their respective activities when attempting to activate rangatahi.
"Active recreation providers, secondary school sport staff, regional sports organisations and sports clubs were challenged to genuinely put youth at the centre of everything they do, and the Mana Taiohi principles established a way to get better at doing this."
"Active recreation providers, secondary school sport staff, regional sports organisations and sports clubs were challenged to genuinely put youth at the centre of everything they do, and the Mana Taiohi principles established a way to get better at doing this."
Participant feedback collected by Sport New Zealand showed 79% of workshop participants reported feeling confident to apply the Mana Taiohi principles in their work contexts.
The eight Mana Taiohi principles include:
The Mana that young people bring:
- Mauri (life-spark, values & identity)
- Whakapapa (Geneology, ancestral stories & history)
- Hononga (connection to people, land, resources, spirituality, digital world & environment)
- Te ao (Worldview)
How Youth Development can enhance the mana of young people:
- Manaakitanga (hospitality, kindness & respect)
- Whai Wahitanga (youth agency, participation, and citizenship)
- Mātauranga (knowledge, wisdom, understanding & skill)
- Whanaungatanga (quality relationships, kinship, and family connection)
