Kāhu ki Rotorua: He pukepuke moana e ekengia e te waka - Building a beneficial community through Diving

Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air

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Kua hipa ngā tau e rua tekau te kāinga e karangangia ana tana uri ki a hoki mai ki tōna ūkaipo – ka roa e taringa kōwhatu ana, kua karia te kāpia e Renee Tapsell i ōna taringa, ā, kua ū te ihu o tōna waka ki uta.

Kua whakaarangia e ia tētehi kura ruku moana me tētehi toa i Rotorua.

I whānau mai a Renee i Maketu, whoi anō kotahi tekau mā toru noa ngā tau ka neke tana whānau ki Piripane.

I ngā tau e toru kua pahemo kātahi a Renee me tōna rangatira ka hoki mai ki te ūkaipō. Ko Adrian "BEV" Bebbington tōna ingoa.

Nō Ngāti Whakaue ōtia a Ngai Te Arawa a Renee. E toru tekau mā rua ngā tau kua tata ki te kotahi tekau tau a ia e noho atu ana ki Piripane hai pou-whakahaere manaakitanga, ka rua hai wahine ruku moana.

He kaha nōna ki te hakoke me tana mahi me te tini hoki o āna momo mahi puta noa i te ao whānui nei kua oti i a ia te rāweke. Ūrupi, Āhia, Āhitereiria me te moana nui a Kiwa, e hoa e, kua pā ōna waewae ki ēnei whenua katoa.

Nō Īngarangi a BEV, whoi anō kua mana tana whakapapa Āhitereiria engari kua tahuri ia ināianei ki tana taha Kiwi. He rangatira whakahaere rāua i Aotearoa Dive. Kua kaha manaakingia hoki rāua e tētehi ngeru i kītea i ngā huarahi o te pō i Ākarana.

Ko Tīare tōna ingoa. Kotahi tekau mā rima ngā tau a Renee e ruku moana ana. Kua kotahi tekau o ngā tau a ia e ruku ana e taea ai te taitara mōna, he mātanga ruku moana.

"Ko te moana tōku ngakau , he mōhio nōku e itiiti ai ka riro tōku wairua i a ia (te moana)".

"Ko te ruku moana taku whakaputanga i ngā pōauau o te wā". Nō tana hokitanga mai ki te kāinga kai te whakatupu ia i ōna kāwai whakapapa ki tōna ngākau kia ū ai ōna ringaringa ki tōna ao Māori me tōna whānau.

"He akonga ahau nō te reo kai te whakakaha i taku mōhiohio ki tōku ao taketake – kua rua tau ahau e tauira ana i Te Whare Wānanga o Aotearoa".

"Taku tau tuatahi ka whakawhiwhia ki taku pōkairua pākihi Māori, he tauira hoki ia nō te kaupapa, He papa tikanga. Ko te pae tawhiti kia maringi kau te reo i tōku waha".

"Kua hipa te kotahi tekau tau kātahi nei ahau ka riro i te tohu SSI Master Instructor – he ahakoa tēnā ka tini kē ngā mātauranga kua taka iho ki ahau. E titiro ana ahau ki te nui o te nama me ngā wāhi kua tae atu ai ahau – kāore he ritenga.

He ahakoa nui te nama ko te wairua o te moana ka mau roa ki taku ngakau. He kamupene rangatira a SSI me te mea hoki kua puta te hau toa o tō mātou kaha ki te motu.

Nā māua ko taku hoa rangatira tēnei mahi i whakatū – ka nui hoki ngā mātauranga i tae mai ki a māua nō māua e hakoke ana i te ao, ko aua mātauranga katoa, kua kāpuia kia kotahi mai ki tō tāua toa e mana ai te hunga hiahia ruku moana, kūare mai, rangatira mai rānei.

Waihoki e kaha whakapono nei māua ōtīa mātou kia noho Māori ai ngā wai. Ngā roto moana, me te moana nui. Ka hia kē ngā kaupapa ruku moana, whakapai moana kua arahina e mātou".

Renee and the team at Aotearoa Dive are huge advocates for wahine and rangatahi in scuba. Photo / Aotearoa Dive

"Anei te aroha ki te moana. Kua whakaritea he kaupapa pēnei tonu a te Mei e whakatata mai ana ki Tikitapu, ehara ko mātou anake engari a BOPRC, Te Arawa Lakes Trust, Ghost Diving me Aotearoa Lakes.

"Kātahi te kaupapa rangatira ko tēnei, nau mai e ngā iwi katoa, ngā kura me ngā tamariki hoki. Kai te hiahia whakatu toa anō hoki a Dive Aotearoa, kai te pae tawhiti tēnei moemoeā.

Ka nui ngā kupu aroha ki ngā hoa tata me ngā whānaunga i tāhuri mai ki te tautoko me te amo i a rāua me tēnei kaupapa rangatira. Nā reira te pirangi kia tahuri mai rātou ki te hāpori hai māngai manaaki i te wairua o te moana.

Ko ngā taputapu hangarau o nāianei hai akoako tangata, hai rēhita tangata mōhio ki te ruku me te mahi a ringaringa nei me te mahi a karaehe nei, koina tā māua whāinga kia rangatira ai ngā mahi.

"Ka nui te tautoko i ngā wāhine pirangi ki te ako ruku me te kaupapa rangatahi ruku, kāore i tua atu i te whakapakari me te whāngai mātauranga ki ngā māngai o te hiakai, ōtīa ko te whakamana tangata. Ko ā rātou kupu akiaki ki te hunga pirangi ki te uru atu ki te aō pākihi:

"Pai tu, pai hinga nā reira e mārō ai te taikākā o te toa hai akoako māu otīa kia ū ki te pae e matapoporengia ai e koe".

After nearly 20 years the call of home was too strong to resist, and Renee Tapsell has set up a dive school and shop in Rotorua.

Born and raised at Maketu, Renee was 13 when her whanau relocated to Brisbane.

She returned to Rotorua three years ago and with her partner, Adrian "BEV" Bebbington, they set up Dive Aotearoa.

Her credentials are excellent for such a venture.

Of Ngati Whakaue and Te Arawa descent, Renee, 32, lived in Australia for 10 years working as a hospitality manager before moving into the dive industry, travelling and working in multiple locations around the world.

From Europe to Asia, Australasia and the Pacific and lots of places in between.

She and BEV, who is originally from the UK but became an Aussie citizen and is now a converted Kiwi, manage Aotearoa Dive together and have been adopted by a cat called Charlie who hails from the alleys of Auckland.

Renee has been diving for more than 15 years, and has been a professional for 10 years

"I have always been drawn to the ocean so I guess I knew from a young age I would be on this pathway.

"I use diving as an escape mechanism, a way of dealing with trauma and stress in a positive way."

Since her return home Renee is building connections to te āo Māori as she had little interaction with her whanau pa.

"I am on my reo journey now and learning more about myself and culture.

Ka nui te tautoko i ngā wāhine pirangi ki te ako ruku. Whakaahua / Aotearoa Dive

"I have been studying with the Te Wānanga ō Aotearoa for the last two years.

"The first year I graduated with a diploma in Māori business and have been studying He papa tikanga for the last year hoping to eventually be able to speak fluent reo."

Obtaining the necessary credentials to operate the scuba diving school and business has taken a decade.

"It's taken 10 years to get to SSI Master Instructor rating and I have gained so much experience during that time.

"The cost has been minimal compared to some of the amazing experiences I have had with marine life and the sense of freedom you can harness from the sea.

"We are a SSI award winning dive centre and are well respected in our industry.

"My partner and I set up Aotearoa Dive, we have worked in various dive shops around the world and decided to put everything good we have seen into an inclusive dive facility for
all types of divers

"We are huge advocates in keeping our oceans and lakes clean, we have conducted many dive clean ups over the years,

"It's our way of giving back to the moana, we have one coming up in May at Tikitapu (Blue Lake) partnering with BOPRC (Bay of Plenty Regional Council—, Te Arawa Lakes Trust, Ghost Diving and Aotearoa Lakes.

"It's a great community event for all to get involved in not just divers but local schools and tamariki conducting shore clean ups."

Dive Aotearoa is looking to set up a sister company because the future looks bright and hopeful.

On their journey they have been supported by some very cool people who have supported our kaupapa from the start and continue to, our whanau and friends.

So now they are looking to working with their community and keeping them active and creating advocates and voices for the moana.

Digital materials for training and registration of divers followed by practical and classroom work.

"We are advocates for wahine in scuba and rangatahi in scuba. We look to educating, inspiring and empowering our people."

Their advice for anybody wanting to break into business is:

"It's the failures that make you stronger, learn from them and stay focussed on the goal."