Tapuwae Tairāwhiti Trails has today increased accessibility to its website with half its trails now described in te reo Māori.
The trails have been translated with help from funds from Trust Tairāwhiti and Lottery Bay of Plenty/Gisborne Community. Gaylene Taitapanui, the reo Māori translator for Pipiwharauroa, has translated the trail pages. Soon this project will see all the website more accessible for those who prefer to speak and read te reo Māori.
The Tairāwhiti Trails website was created to help encourage residents of Gisborne, coastal and inland towns, and rural areas to use the region’s pathways, tracks and trails. It brings together information from a wide range of sources including the paths’ history, getting there, maps and elevations, photos, and any alerts. Links are embedded for readers to learn more. It now has a tab at the top to select either English or te reo Māori.
Tapuwae Tairāwhiti Trails trustee Gillian Ward said inland pathways and travel along rivers and coastlines were traditional ways of moving from place to place.
“Nowadays, there is enjoyment and satisfaction in being able to travel in this low impact way, learning about the places of significance as we travel,” she said.
“Trust Tairāwhiti’s Wellbeing Survey (from its first two years) notes that te reo Māori proficiency is significantly higher in this region than the national average.
“The Tapuwae Tairāwhiti Trails Trust honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and acknowledges the original language of tāngata whenua, along with the tikanga of the language of Te Tairāwhiti. We want to contribute to revitalising te reo Māori by making the language accessible and visible in our website.
“We see the Tairāwhiti Trails website as supporting learners and providing a resource for learning and teaching te reo Māori, with readers being able to switch easily between English and te reo Māori versions.”
