Using te reo Māori and embracing Māori culture in the workplace - part one

November 2021

In September, we asked for your questions about using te reo Māori and embracing Māori culture in the workplace. We received some brave, thoughtful questions from our members – thank you so much to everyone who responded.

Two things were very clear:

  1. You’re not alone! Many of us are wondering about the same things, or experiencing some of the same uncertainties.
  2. We’re all coming from a good place – we really want to do the right thing, be respectful, avoid offending people, learn, and grow.

Our fantastic ambassador, Shelly Davies, has given us all some great advice and encouragement in her video responses below.

However, because you asked so many great questions, we've decided to turn this into a short series. We've covered the first few themes from your questions in our November 2021 newsletter, and we’ll cover the rest in an upcoming newsletter.

Are you keen to hear what everyone asked? Check out these videos, listen out for your questions, and share them with your workmates. Let’s get those positive cultural competency conversations flowing!

We hope you enjoy part one.

A little bit about Shelly and the intention behind these videos

I’m not Māori - is it OK for me to...?

Balancing reo support with reader understanding

Giving it a go and encouraging others

Pronunciation

In this video, Shelly mentions pronunciation tools we’re planning to share. We’ve linked a couple here to start with, and we’ll continue to share more with you in future newsletters.

Māori Dictionary

Pūrārangi Māori The Māori Alphabet (Te Wānanga o Aotearoa)

In this video, Shelly also shares a beautiful phrase we can use to let people know we’re giving it a go and learning te reo. We’ve written it for you here.

Kei te puāwai noa tōku reo (my language is just blossoming).

Ngā mihi nui, Shelly!

Thank you so much, Shelly, for the time, effort and compassion you’ve put into these responses. You continue to inspire us and we value your knowledge and experience.

Want more Shelly?

For professional writing, speaking and training services, inspiration, sassy gifts and more:

www.shellydavies.com