In 2019, New Zealand will acknowledge 250 years since the first sustained onshore meetings between Māori and Europeans with a national commemoration called Tuia – Encounters 250.
Tuia 250 is about the people and place of Aotearoa New Zealand - what brought us together, the challenges we face and how we weave our cultures and values into a future we will be proud to leave for our grandchildren.
Tuia 250 will recognise the extraordinary voyaging traditions and cultures of Te Moana Nui a Kiwa (the Pacific), the exceptional feats of Pacific voyagers, their mātauranga (knowledge), innovation and non-instrument navigation prowess and their decision to settle in Aotearoa many generations ago.
Tuia 250 will also acknowledge the feats of European explorers, the technology they developed and their first encounters with the people of this place when James Cook, Tupaia and others on the Endeavour arrived in 1769.
Throughout 2019 Tuia 250 Taitokerau is hosting a series of community events, experiences and korero across Northland.
These will commemorate, celebrate, and explore the multiple histories of our region and the place we call home.
What's on
'Tuia Toi Whakaata' exhibition by the Toi Whakaata Māori Printmakers Collective exhibition until March 24 Te Whare Taonga o Kororāreka, Russell Museum, Bay of Islands