Tui Tuia Learning Circle designs and delivers evidence-rich learning solutions that strengthen educators’ capability and resilience. Our brief was to create a brand story and video that would inspire educators to partner with them on professional development.

Tui Tuia Learning Circle is inspired by the principle “Poipoia te pā harakeke he puāwaitanga anamata,” which means “Through nurturing learners, educators, leaders and communities, our future will flourish.” Our inspiration was to create a cultural narrative centred on the pā harakeke within the context of inspired educators working closely with learners.

Throughout the brand story, we have woven culturally authentic expressions of this principle as educators nurture and inspire learners and as we show the application of this to language, art, culture, science and other learning experiences.

Tui Tuia Learning Circle has a strong team of cultural experts, called Te Whānau Maioha. They were instrumental in working with our team to develop the narrative and play important roles in the delivery of the video. From guidance on harakeke harvesting from an expert weaver, to the appropriate application of te reo Māori and cultural concepts.

The brand story reveals a group of learners, guided by inspired educators, as they engage in a wide variety of learning experiences with the pā harakeke. They learn to harvest the harakeke in accordance with tikanga Māori. They study cultural narratives about the harakeke through language, art and song. Together they study the science of an indigenous plant, how it can be used for creating woven resources.

The story captures the core essence of Tui Tuia’s vision, purpose, values and aspirations for Aotearoa, woven through the story of the pā harakeke as a symbol of Aotearoa.

It was a pleasure to film this on a beautiful autumn morning. Seeing how joyful the children were to have the rich learning experience validated the skills and expertise of the Tui Tuia Learning Circle team. All we had to do was capture the magic that authentically unfolded.