Welcome to Ōtautahi Christchurch.

You will not believe how excited we are to be welcoming you here since the first time we hosted this event 14 years ago.

A lot has happened in those 14 years.

We have experienced more than our fair share of the challenges nature and life can throw at a city. But we have become known as a city defined by its response to those challenges rather than the crises we have had to confront.

And that’s why I can stand here and welcome you to a new and ever-evolving environment that embraces opportunity in a way we would not have done the last time you were here.

And that’s what makes this place special.

We have proved ourselves open to new ideas, new people and new ways of doing things – a place where anything is possible.

We have embraced our pre-European history in a way I would not have imagined even 14 years ago.

We have embedded that history into our natural and built landscape – from our world-class convention centre Te Pae to Turanga - our amazing new central city library designed by the people it was for – note the stairs and the hat tip to Harry Potter.

Victoria Square was once Market Square where local Maori traded with the early settlers – today Queen Victoria is flanked by Mana Motuhake, a new element that offers balance to the bicultural narrative of our city - a celebration and reflection of our shared cultural heritage - creating opportunities for understanding our past but more importantly our shared future.

Everywhere you look you can see the progress we have made as a city.
While you’re here at MEETINGS, you’ll hear the team talk about Finding. Your Space, and this couldn’t be easier in this city.

Take time to explore everything that is on your accommodation’s doorstep: the event venues, the open green spaces, the riverside restaurants, and bars. Everything you could need as a visitor, and a delegate, is conveniently close. Forget long bus rides or Ubers across big cities – here in Christchurch everything is within reach.

No doubt you came through Christchurch Airport on your way here. This international hub is of particular pride to our city. It is one of the most sustainable airports in the world with plans to become even more so.

Our venues are world-class, spacious and high-tech. We are confident in our business events offering, from hangars filled with vintage planes, to flexible convention centres catering to the smallest and biggest of events and here our Christchurch Town Hall – its restoration has brought back something that is truly special.

Pair these venues with high quality accommodation and a city centre filled with hospitality and visitor offerings – Christchurch just makes sense.

It gives me great confidence talking about the people here on the ground that can help you deliver your event. From the team at ChristchurchNZ, to the vast business network ready to support you, you will feel welcomed here.

So please, while you’re here – find your space, explore our venues, meet our people.

We are a city on the up and up and would love to host you.

​It’s who we are.
  

 Mā te pohewa mā te auaha hoki, ka whakapuaki ngā kura e huna ana.

With imagination and creativity a hidden jewel can be revealed.

This whakataukī refers to the Ngāi Tahu relationship with pounamu, a unique treasure of the South Island, Te Waipounamu.

And it is very relevant to tonight.

Boost Ōtautahi is an opportunity to grow the opportunities for hidden jewels to be revealed, building on our reputation as a place of experimentation and artistic risk taking.

Over the past decade or more we have seen what arts and creativity have made to healing, to entertaining, to challenging, and to enriching our city and communities.

We are seeing the results of mentoring programmes for screen, music and shortly for stage.

Boost Ōtautahi is an opportunity to diversify and increase investment in the arts.

New funding relationships for artists and arts organisations, and new donors and audiences are some of the outcomes we believe can come from this modest but important investment.

​As attendees at this Boosted Ōtautahi event you are also part of raising awareness of local creativity, you are champions and cheerleaders for our city and the arts. 

​Acknowledge
Hon Megan Woods
Ngai Tuahuriri representatives
Councillor colleagues
Business leaders
Venue clients and suppliers
 
 
I was invited to give the first official speech here at Te Pae five months ago, almost to the day – 17 December 2021.
 
It is not surprising I feel this year has been slipping away. It’s a shared experience.
 
I went back to my speech notes from last year and thought I would repeat some of them.
 
I remember when the government released its blueprint for the rebuild of our central city; it was hard to imagine the scale of a convention centre that could connect Victoria Square to Cathedral Square.
 
And here it is Te Pae, Ōtautahi Christchurch, the place where people will gather together for conventions, conferences, business events, trade exhibitions and meetings.
 
I said the other night that I was attending a conference in Sweden this week, and I am. I can manage the mornings – 7pm – 10.15pm, but not the afternoons. The advantage is that I can play back the sessions I am interested in, but what I love about conferences no Zoom experience can give me.
 
It's not the keynote speakers – I can watch them online – it’s the spaces in-between – it’s where you bump into someone you want to meet – it’s the chat about the keynote speaker – it’s the exploration of ideas that start to swirl when we are listening – listening together – and that’s what makes the magic of a conference.
 
And that’s what Te Pae is inviting here and all of you who are suppliers and contributors in one shape or another help make the magic happen.
 
The commitment to local produce and local suppliers – that’s what creates a unique experience that is ours and that we invite the world to share.
 
When I spoke at the earlier opening, I said people who come here will see our past meet our future – the juxtaposition between the two squares that now also reflect our pre-European history – and the outlook to our river as familiar to us today as Ōtākaro – the place of play – as it is the River Avon. 
 
This place is already known as Te Pae – as is Tūranga across the road – our extraordinary city library.
 
And across the other side of the river on Conservation Land, we see the last remaining example of the seat of Provincial Government in New Zealand – a category 1 heritage building. Its reinstatement will add enormous interest to the area.
 
And all around us we see the new architecture of our city, alongside that which we have been able to preserve, with an incredibly diverse and rich range of dining and venue experiences all within walking distance of here.
 
Our oldest city by Royal Charter is now our newest city as well.
It really is an exceptional location.
 
Our international airport means we are also a gateway to our region and the whole of Te Waipounamu.
 
This means that Ōtautahi Christchurch is now the complete package with today’s opening of Te Pae, the first new generation convention centre in Aotearoa New Zealand.
 
Coming together to celebrate not just the opening, but this time the operating of Te Pae, is an enormous pleasure.
 
I look forward to seeing Te Pae and our city go from strength to strength.
 
No reira tena koutou, tena koutou, tena tatou katoa
 

​Arapata Reuben, Rex Williams, Antony Shadbolt, Representatives from Christine Heremaia’s Family and Trustees of the Styx Living Laboratory Trust past and present.
 
I originally came here today, because as Mayor of Christchurch I wanted to acknowledge the significance of the 20th anniversary of the formation of the Styx Living Laboratory and the incredible partnership it has represented with the Council and all those with a passion for Pūharakekenui.
 
I wanted to congratulate you on all your achievements of the past 20 years and everyone who has contributed along the way. The phrase it takes a village to raise a child comes to mind – because for me, it takes a community to restore a river.
 
I knew that the Christine Heremia Field Centre was to be officially opened today as part of the celebration, but I didn’t know her or enough about her. To have a facility named for a council staff member means she had brought more to the place than her work.
 
And that wasn’t just the strategic approach to getting council to purchase the land in parcels. Christine was the one who introduced into Council the integrated planning approach when it came to land drainage and stormwater management - built upon values such as landscape, ecology, recreation, heritage and culture - that we now take for granted today. A councillor who was quoted at the time said, "This is the kind of planning that I hoped would occur with local government reform".
 
It saddens me to say that it has taken another set of reforms – not all three waters – but stormwater and its role in restoring ‘te mana o te wai’-that has opened my eyes to the significance of the leadership of people like Christine, and why we need to work hand in hand with mana whenua. Understanding what this place meant for Ngai Tuahuriri has been key to creating the vision for the future.
 
Protecting this precious ecosytem - Ki uta ki tai – from source to sea –the Living Laboratory it offers to present and future generations – a place to be - and when we come together, that is the promise that this place holds for you and me.
 
2040 seemed a lot further away when the Styx Vision 2020-2040 was written, but it is even more relevant today.
The Trust was established 20 years ago to develop the 'Living Laboratory" that focuses on learning and research in the Styx River catchment. It goes without saying that knowledge about the Styx River ecosystem and the impacts on it is essential to protecting the river's values.
 
If we we writing a report card, this wouldn’t be an achieved, it would be an excellence.
 
But even though I say this, this is not where it ends. This is an inter-generational commiment that we must ensure is passed on.
 
So today, we are not only celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Styx Living Laboratory Trust, we are also celebrating 20 years of commitment of communities partnering with mana whenua and all the experts, so that there is a sharing of traditional knowledge, local knowledge and technical, scientific and ecological skills and expertise.
 
And I can’t think of a better way to do this than for the Trust to open the Christine Heremaia Field Centre today.
 
Mō tātou, ā, mō kā uri ā muri ake nei – for us and our children after us.
 

Your excellency Ambassador Kowal, Ministers, Members of Parliament, council colleagues, from the city and Waimakariri, Representatives from Australia and other parts of New Zealand, distinguished guests and members of the Polish community.

Can I thank the Ambassador for making this special visit to celebrate what is an important occasion not only for the Polish community but also for the city.

I remember the celebrations of 145 years of Polish settlement back in 2017 – it feels like more than 5 years ago, but that is a reflection of the times we have been living in.

Our city has lived and breathed crisis for over a decade and we know the effects of the disruption this causes people’s lives.

And when we look to your side of the world and the memories that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine must be invoking, and the generosity of the Polish people to their neighbours, all I can say is our hearts are with the Polish people as they are with the people of Ukraine at this time.

We have experienced here in our city, man’s inhumanity to man, and I truly hope for the sake of us all that there is a generation of leaders coming who will say no more – no more violence, no more war.

A celebration of this magnitude - 150 years since Polish settlers first came to Aotearoa New Zealand - is something of which the Polish community can be very proud.

You have truly made your mark.

I loved the fact that we were able to celebrate the market gardening tradition that transformed the peat marshes of Marshlands to the food basket of our city, with the naming of Polish Settlers Place and the commemorative plaque we unveiled five years ago.

I loved joining you that year in Akaroa at the Church of Saint Patrick built in 1865 just seven years before the first Polish settlers arrived in Lyttelton.

When we think back to what it must have been like to arrive here with no knowledge of English, and the success that we celebrate today, it is clear that they were a determined and driven group.

And this is very much reinforced by the numbers of people who live here who are descendants of the original group.

Your Polish heritage and cultural and national identity have survived through times where it wasn’t as easy to maintain unique identities, culture, language or faith. The social pressures that drive assimilation were high back then and, in some respects, remain so for many migrants and refugees the world over.

I would like to commend the ‘Between the Rivers Trust’ and the Polish Association for keeping this connection between Christchurch and Poland alive and active.

And thank you to Winsome Dormer for your incredible leadership as the Honorary Consul for Poland. You have been enormously generous in promoting the special relationship we can all feel today.

And thank you for allowing me to share in so many occasions with the Polish community of Ōtautahi Christchurch. It has been an honour and a privilege.

​Congratulations on your anniversary, as we look forward to the future with a wish for the peaceful resolution of the conflict that I know troubles us all from the part of the world from where your community’s journey commenced 150 years ago. 

President Prue Kapua and may I also acknowledge my dear friend and former Parliamentary colleague, Louisa Wall.

Past presidents, Dame Aroha Reriti-Crofts, Dame Areta Koopu, who I travelled to China with in 1995, Kitty Bennett and Druis Barrett
Members of the Māori Womens League Te Rōpū Wahine Māori Toko i te Ora

I wanted to formally welcome you here today, because this is the last opportunity I have to do so in my role as Mayor.

I have spoken at your annual conference twice before in my former role as the Minister for Women Affairs, the 54th and 55th conferences in 2006 & 2007 respectively, so it feels right that I can share the value I have always placed on my relationships with the League at this the 68th National Conference, as my time in public office comes to an end.
For 70 years you have been the independent voice for Māori women and children.

Although independence does not come with a secure and steady stream of funds, your independence has enabled you to be the authentic voice of Māori women, nationally and internationally.

Your independence is your strength.

Thank you for coming to Te Waiponamu, thank you for coming to Ōtautahi. We value greatly our contribution to the success of the League with outstanding leaders such as Past Presidents Dame Aroha Reriti-Crofts, and the late Linda Grennell.

I had managed to write only this much of my speech when I sent a text to Louisa to see what she and Prue were doing. A phone call later and I was on my way to Wigram to watch the extraordinary film, Whina.

This disrupted my speech writing, which had to continue when I got home, but the emotions of what I experienced in the theatre last night, with tears running down my cheeks, washed over my thoughts about what I would say today.

This is a story that is needed now. A story that offers a bridge between two world views.

A story that crystalises the opportunity for Aotearoa to be the nation that forges an unbreakable bond between tangata whenua and tangata te tiriti.

Both times I came to speak as Minister of Women’s Affairs, I spoke of the significance of the role of the Māori Women’s Welfare League. I talked about the continuing support of the League, which, for more than half-a-century, had worked to create a pathway of security and opportunities for future generations of Māori. I said in 2006, “You can take no small credit for the success of the current generation of Māori women, and I know you are committed to even greater progress in the future”.

When I spoke in 2007, I spoke about family violence, both because it was an issue to which I had a deep personal commitment and because it was something that the government was determined to address.
It was also a subject that was to be addressed at CEDAW that year.
Government cannot do it alone, I said back then, and that is as true today as it was then.

I commented on the practical contribution you had made for many years through things like positive parenting programmes.

I was pleased that it was clear that that this was where the interventions needed to begin – right at the start of life. Babies nurtured in warm, loving, safe and stimulating environments will grow into strong, caring adults, capable of forming strong, caring relationships.

Babies who are neglected or 'incubated in terror', as one person described the effects of violent households on babies, have little chance of achieving their true human potential. We talk about a crime when someone steals property; but what is it to rob an innocent child of its future?

Helping parents understand the importance of those early years and teaching them the skills they need to nurture their child's potential is the most valuable work that can be done. That was 2007.

What saddens me is that the film last night reminded me of the roots of the League and Dame Whina’s words, which became the driving force of the first constitution – and yet the words I have just spoken could just as easily be spoken today.

The relationship that you have entered into with police and the Strategic Partnership with Oranga Tamariki – something formerly considered the preserve of iwi – and the recognition you have in the UN, these are tangible examples of the progress you have made, and will help continue to focus our nation’s attention on these vital issues.  

As Mayor, I have the honour of presiding over citizenship ceremonies.

I have always held the first ceremony of the year on Waitangi Day at one of our Marae – and can I acknowledge the Papatipu rūnanga: Te Rūnanga o Wairewa, Te Ngai Tūāhuriri Rūnanga, Te Rūnanga o Koukourarata, Te Hapu o Ngāti Wheke, Ōnuku Rūnanga, and Te Taumutu Rūnanga.

It was sad that we could not hold a citizenship ceremony on Waitangi Day at Ōnuku with Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu this year due to Covid.

Each time I have held these ceremonies, I have reflected on the significance of gaining citizenship on Waitangi Day, as it is on that day that we reflect on our bi-cultural nationhood, the firm foundation upon which we have built a diverse multi-cultural society.

I remember soon after becoming Mayor, the City Library asked me to write about what Waitangi Day meant for me so that they could share the message with the children who were learning about the Treaty of Waitangi, our founding document.

It caused me to reflect on my own experience. I said when I was a child, we didn't learn anything about the Treaty at school. As an adult I became ashamed at how little I knew. We didn't know how to pronounce the names properly or even know the meaning of the place names we were associated with.

I went on to say that I was pleased that young people today learn about our shared history and not just the history of the European settlers and their forbears, as I did. No one should underestimate the significance of teaching history as part of our curriculum.

I always speak of the Treaty in modern times as having served as the basis for resolving grievances that arose when it was not honoured.
Every settlement begins with a statement of the facts (gleaned from a consideration of all the evidence by the Waitangi Tribunal) and an apology for the wrong that has been done.

It is easy to explain to children the importance of people owning up and saying sorry when they have done wrong.

In this case the wrong was done by the Crown, which lives on in the form of the Executive arm of government, which is why the apology is recorded in the Act of Parliament that confirms the settlement.

Just after I became Mayor, I spoke at a service to commemorate the life of Nelson Mandela and his gift to his nation of truth and reconciliation.

It was a nation's chance for restorative justice – the chance to speak the truth, acknowledge what had been done, own up and take responsibility for personal actions, whether directed or otherwise, and to express sorrow and regret – a genuine apology for the wrongs that had been committed against others.

Recording the history – laying down the truth – and apologising for wrongdoing is at the heart of our Treaty settlement process here in New Zealand.

It is a firm foundation for building enduring relationships and creating unity.

And it is here that I find a link to the kaupapa of your conference - Ki Uta ki Tai, kia matatū – From the mountains to the sea, be mindful and vigilant.

A concept developed for freshwater in 2014 – te mana o te wai – meant very little to a new Mayor struggling to cope with a massive hole in a budget left in the wake an agreement signed just four months before I took office. I didn’t know what I didn’t know, let alone have time for a National Policy Statement on Freshwater – something that was the primary preserve of our regional council.

The day I was sworn in as Mayor the Upoko of Ngāi Tūāhuriri, Rik Tau, spoke of the historic grievance that was the Ihutai Reserve and issued a challenge to our council to put right this wrong.

I did not appreciate the wero he had laid down, because I had no background or knowledge of the issues, nor was there advice within the council I could call on.

There were no Treaty relationship advisers employed at Council when I arrived. My invitation to the Chief Executive of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu was the first she had received to meet in the Mayor’s Lounge even though she had been in the role for over 12 months.

I have focussed my role on building those relationships and I am grateful for the support I have received, because relationships are not one way, they are based on reciprocity; it takes both sides to form enduring partnerships. But I tell you this, not to take credit for anything. It is simply to say from a pakeha point of view that it takes time to build the knowledge and understanding that is needed to build that bridge between two worlds.

Now that I know the history of Ihutai Reserve, and the scale of the challenge it will take to right that wrong, and now that I have listened to hapū from around the country who have told their stories of land confiscated under the Public Works Act and the trampling of wāhi tapu and mahinga kai for the sake of development, I fear public debates often lead us away from developing a shared understanding of the solutions.

When we add the significance of the future that climate change and sea level rise will bring to our low-lying coastal city and peninsula, I am worried about the scale of the challenge I am leaving to the next generation of city leaders.

But when I watched Whina last night, I felt the strength of the voice of Māori women speaking for their children and their children after that. The answer lies in te mana o te wai – ki uta ki tai. Kia matatū asks us to be vigilant and we must be.

And that’s why and how we work together – when my world view sees a mountain or a river or the sea and your world view sees your ancestors – your whakapapa. Surely that is the foundation upon which we build. Truth and reconciliation.

I read a description of Kaitiakitanga, one that has always remained with me - it is more than stewardship, guardianship, preservation and protection and yet it is all of them. It recognises the relationship between everything and everybody in the natural world – with no distinction between people and their environment. 

It is completely independent of ‘ownership’ in a European sense. It is seamless and all-encompassing – making no distinction between moana and whenua - the sea and the land. It ensures any use is sustainable, because it is an intergenerational responsibility - past, present and future - a duty of care owed as much to our ancestors as to our children's grandchildren.

And I feel that this is the challenge before us.

You have come to the right place to speak of such challenges. Ōtautahi has been through a decade that has tested us all.

​It is the place where we can build a bridge and the place where we can find solutions together.