Fish Hook Summit 2026
Fish Hook Summit 2026 Focuses on Resilience, Climate and Collective Action
More than 200 people gathered at the Napier War Memorial Conference Centre on 10 June for Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated’s 14th Fish Hook Summit, united by the theme “Resilience – Climate, People, Hoha.” The annual event brought together kaitiaki, environmental practitioners, researchers, community leaders and whānau from across the six Kahungunu districts to explore solutions to the growing challenges facing the environment and communities.
Throughout the day, speakers highlighted the importance of strengthening relationships with the whenua, waterways and each other. A recurring message was that resilience is not only about responding to climate change but also about nurturing people, culture and future generations.
Jonathan Dick of Te Whanganui-a-Orotū reflected on the role of whānau in environmental stewardship, saying, “Resilience to me is about whānau.” He emphasised that succession planning begins by connecting tamariki and mokopuna to the natural world. “Take them out there and they’ll fall in love with it, then they’ll want to look after it,” he said.
Guest speaker Mike Smith addressed the accelerating climate crisis and the need for accountability. He told attendees, “The scientific evidence is clear. We know that it’s happening. We can see it through our own eyes.” Smith urged communities to focus on action rather than debate, highlighting the impacts climate change is already having on people, infrastructure and the environment.
Raihania Tipoki reinforced the importance of reconnecting people with the whenua, stating, “Our collective resilience lies in our relationship with the whenua.” He spoke about regenerative agriculture, environmental restoration and the need to strengthen collective approaches to caring for the land.
Closing themes centred on kotahitanga, knowledge-sharing and building resilience through rangatiratanga. Shade Smith reminded participants that resilience comes from culture and collective identity, noting, “Resilience – you can’t get that from certainty, it comes from culture.” He emphasised the importance of equipping future generations with both healthy ecosystems and the confidence to make decisions about them.
The summit concluded with a clear message: protecting the environment and strengthening communities requires collaboration, cultural knowledge and collective action. As participants reflected on the challenges ahead, there was a shared commitment to ensuring a thriving future for the whenua, waterways and people of Ngāti Kahungunu.
PRESENTER QUOTES
Jonathan Dick & Pereri King – Te Whanganui-a-Orotū
“Each body of water, each rock, each tree. They have their own kaitiaki. We listeners, we interpreters of their kōrero.”
“Mauri is the presence of life and what you do with it.”
“We take the voice of the taiao and we put it into numbers in different shapes.”
Joe Reti & Albert Hapuku Te Nahu Baker – Te Whanganui-a-Orotū Video
“The whenua became our teacher, the awa became our classroom, and the tohu of the taio became our greatest source of knowledge.”
“We realised we weren't monitoring projects, we were monitoring relationships.”
“The strongest infrastructure for us was not physical, it was relationships.”
“Slow down. The whenua is really telling us what we need to know.”
“The maramataka did not tell us what to think. It taught us what to pay attention to.”
Katarina Kawana & Michelle McIlroy – Te Wairoa
“We've given our lives to Papatuanuku and that's going to stay like that.”
“We're here for life, not for three years, not for one year, not for three months, we're here for life and we'll die doing this.”
“We need to plant, plant, plant, as far as the eye could see, for ten kilometres.”
Mike Smith – Constitutional Climate Crisis
“Climate change is not simply an environmental crisis, it's also a constitutional challenge.”
“Those that have contributed the least to the problem are often amongst those most vulnerable to its consequences.”
“The decisions we make today will affect generations yet unborn.”
Raihania Tipoki – Back to Land, Climate Adaptation, Mitigation and Opportunity
“What’s happening to our taiao is no joke.”
“We are the taiao. We are the taiao.”
“Our collective resilience lies in our relationship with the whenua.”
“We need to hongi our whenua.”
“We have to be really honest with what colonialism has done to us, not just our whenua but of our mindsets.”
Shade Smith – Kahungunu Resilience
“What would a River look like from a Ngāti Kahungunu worldview?”
“We want to be culturally connected to these waterways.”
“Resilience through rangatiratanga.”
“It's not about simply more monitoring.”
Anaru Te Rangiwhakaewa – Wairarapa
“The wellbeing of our whenua cannot be separated from the wellbeing of our whānau.”
“Our key focus is to return whānau to the whenua and to create kaitiakitanga.”
“Not only are we growing the Taiao spaces in our waterways in the whenua, but we're also growing the people simultaneously.”
“If the whenua is unwell, the people is unwell. If the people is unwell, the whenua is unwell.”
Hamuera – Wairarapa
“Climate change, ae, kei reira. Biodiversity declining, ae, kei reira. So we've got to work harder.”
“I realised we need to connect people if we really want to affect change in the taiao.”
Crystal Pekepo, Matariki Makoare & Henare Kani – Tamatea
“Wai is not merely a resource requiring management. It’s a living relation, it has whakapapa, pūrakau, kōrero and identity.”
“Our awa is not a servant to humanity, she is our kin and we must start behaving and thinking that way.”
“Mauri thrives through reciprocity.”
“When rivers lose Mauri, people lose Mauri.”
“Whakapapa itself is a governance system.”
GALLERY
PRESENTER DATA
Kiino Krystal
MC - Facilitator
Crystal Edwards, Independent MC/Host, has been facilitating Kahungunu Conferences and Events for over 10 years. She brings a bilingual flow and a Kiino flamboyant flavour to our events. Crystal is also the the Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga representative on the NKII Board.
Hori Reti
Respected Chairman of the Te Whanganui-a-Orotū Taiwhenua
Hori represents Te Taiwhenua o Te Whangnaui A Orotu on the NKII Board. Respected Minister, Hori will open our event as a Tangata Whenua leader and lead us into the Te Whanganui-a-Orotū Presentation.
Pereri King
Co-presenter for Te Whanganui-a-Orotū Taiwhenua
Pereri King (Ngāti Kahungunu) is a Napier-based kaiwhakaako, storyteller, artist, and environmental advocate whose work is dedicated to reconnecting people with te taiao through mātauranga Māori, whakapapa, and pūrākau.
Jonathan Dick
Presenter for Te Whanganui-a-Orotū Taiwhenua
Jonathan Dick is a resource management and Māori development specialist with more than 20 years’ experience in environmental planning, fisheries management, and Treaty settlement processes, having held senior leadership roles within Ngāti Kahungunu and worked extensively to advance sustainable, iwi-led environmental and economic development.
