Kia hiwa ra! Kia hiwa ra! Be watchful! Be alert!

Kia hiwa ra ki tēnei tuku! Be watchful at this terrace.

Kia hiwa ra ki tēna tuku, be alert at that terrace

Kia Tu! Stand up

Kia Oho! Be awake

Kia Mataara! Be Alert 

Kia Mau! Hold!

Kia Ita! Be steadfast 

Tuturu whakamaua kia tina, we honour the past the present and the future.

Tina!

Haumi E, Hui E, Taiki E. Join, gather unite. 

This chant was not simply an opening. It was the foundation - the living context - for why Te Pā joined Social Value Aotearoa and committed to this journey.

In 2024, we were on alert. New Zealand's public sector was contracting sharply: 7,000 PSA job losses, funding cuts to health, funding cuts to the NGO sector. The future looked uncertain, and for an organisation like Te Pā, uncertainty is not abstract - it reaches the people we serve.

We were facing unprecedented pressure, socially, culturally, economically, and politically. We knew we had to do something differently if we were going to prove our impact and protect our ability to keep doing this work.

Kia Tū - Stand up.

We were hearing a clear message from the government: organisations that could demonstrate their social return on investment would be positioned to hold contracts and secure new ones. Those who couldn't, wouldn't. That was my real fear as a CE — not that our work wasn't making a difference, but that I couldn't prove it in the language being demanded of us.

We had plenty of evidence in the ways that mattered most to us: whānau voice, case studies, outcome data, videos, stories of change. What we lacked was a recognised framework that could translate that evidence into an SROI that would hold up to scrutiny.

Kia Oho - Be awake. Be ready.

We knew we had to act. Te Pā had fought too hard for te pani me te rawa kore - the vulnerable, the dispossessed - to stand still in the face of this. So we began searching for the right partner, someone we could trust to help us demonstrate our worth to the government, to funders, to taxpayers, and above all, to the whānau we serve.

Kia Mataara - Stay alert. Don't rest.

Reputation alone will not protect you. Goodwill alone will not protect you. Overnight, through the stroke of a pen, you can find yourself defenceless. We understood that.

Kia Mau - Hold the line.

There was pressure to find a quick fix. The noise around us was loud, and fast solutions were tempting. But we held our position and chose the long journey over the shortcut. That decision mattered.

We pivoted twice along the way - our contracting environment shifted, and we had to respond -  but we never lost sight of what we were trying to prove. What made that possible was Social Value Aotearoa's willingness to move with us, both times. That kind of flexibility is not a given, and we did not take it for granted.

Kia Ita -  Be steadfast. We are only as strong as our weakest link.

If we are not all on the same waka -  working collaboratively, pulling toward collective impact, toward transformed outcomes for Māori and all the whānau we serve - then who are we actually serving?

If there are breaches in the line, if even one strand has unravelled from the whariki, we become vulnerable.

Tuturu whakamaua kia tina. Tina. Haumi E, Hui E, Taiki E.

Join. Gather. Unite. And as Nike would say - just do it.

Tui Ah Loo (Ngāti Porou, Te Aitanga-a-Hauiti, Rongowhakaata, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairoa, Tūhoe) is the Chief Executive Officer of Te Pā, where she leads a kaupapa grounded in restoring and strengthening physical, mental, spiritual, and whānau wellbeing. Her work is focused on supporting individuals and whānau to successfully transition back into their communities with dignity and support. With extensive experience across strategic relationships, justice sector leadership, and Māori development, Tui brings a strong, values-driven approach to her mahi. Centred on whānau ora, equity, and long-term impact for our communities.