Healthy Families Rotorua will be presenting Māori Systems Return or Kaupapa Māori approaches at the Salzburg Global Seminar in Austria.

The Salzburg Global Seminar is an independent non-profit organization with over 37,000 Fellows from more than 170 countries who foster lasting networks and partnerships for creative, just and sustainable change.

Manager Mapihi Raharuhi will be joining more than 60 leaders from all over the world to discuss solutions on the following topic, Halting the Childhood Obesity Epidemic: Identifying Decisive Interventions in Complex Systems.

Raharuhi says, “I’ll be sharing how a Māori Systems Return approach can strengthen the prevention pathway that leads to achieving health and well-being; looking to the past, to assist us in the present to move confidently into the future.”

Maramataka in Contemporary Settings, Marae Ora, Hapū Wānanga, Rūrū Parirau are some of the Māori systems that will be shared, as preventative pathways and holistic approaches to creating healthier environments for communities.

“It is important to remember Māori had a system that sustained us for thousands of years. Māori were a thriving and flourishing people prior to first contact. Legislation and regulation had a significant impact on the ability for Māori to maintain their health and well-being and the negative impact for Māori can be seen in all sectors including health, education, justice and housing.”

“Te Arawa Whānau Ora and Healthy Families Rotorua are testing Māori systems such as Maramataka – a response to food insecurity and food inaccessibility. Rūrū Parirau – changing negative stereotyping regarding alcohol reduction. We have found that leadership, collaboration and community involvement are key to the success of these tests.”

Obesity and being overweight affect over 2 billion people worldwide, causing at least 2.8 million deaths annually.

Raharuhi says while the issue is complex, working strategically and collaboratively at this forum could provide opportunity to create impact at scale.

“Attending this seminar are fellow system disrupters with ideas and knowledge on what is being applied in their countries to tackle childhood obesity. I intend to take this opportunity to share what we are doing in Aotearoa New Zealand with a key focus on Kaupapa Māori or Māori Systems Return.”

“In exchange, I also intend to bring back new learnings to enable the work we are doing for Healthy Families New Zealand, to accelerate and connect with like-minded people from around the globe to grow healthy communities.”