Speech Professor Sir Mason Durie - a Tribute

Maori Academic Achievement Dinner acknowledging significant contribution to Maori academic achievement Wharerata, Massey University, Palmerston North

Vice-Chancellor, Hon Steve Maharey; Tuwharetoa paramount chief; Sir Tumu te Heuheu; Dr Turoa Royal; distinguished guests; graduates; whanau and friends.

It was William Shakespeare that immortalised the words ‘there was a star danced and under that I was born’.

That line came from the play, Much Ado about Nothing, set on the island of Sicily.

But it could just as easily have come from Aorangi Marae, in the heart of Ngati Kauwhata land in downtown Feilding.

We come tonight, to honour Professor Sir Mason Durie, a legend born under the dancing starlight of Ngati Kauwhata, Ngati Raukawa, and Rangitane.

If we were to ask Mason about the significance of his contribution to academic achievement across the nation, he would no doubt tell us it was ‘much ado about nothing’.

But if you were to do a search on Mason Durie, it would bring up 22,400 results in less than 25 seconds; such is the enormous extent of his influence.

And indeed, if I could carry the star metaphor for just a bit longer, I would suggest that one of the most profound influences of all, has been the galaxy of stars that Mason has inspired.

It is absolutely fitting that while tonight we honour Mason, we also honour all those fledging stars who are enrolled in the Doctoral Programme; and the amazing achievements and success enjoyed by the Maori Doctoral Graduates between 2000 and 2010.

Such is the wonder of stars that they uplift the spirit within us.

And so it is through the mentorship and guiding role established by Mason, that we now have over fifty Maori doctoral students to have graduated at Massey – as a direct result of his Decade One plan; Te Rau Puawai.

The original plan was for there to be 25 Maori doctoral graduates by 2010 but such has been the drive and determination that follows in Mason’s path, that twice as many have graduated.

And that is what we are here to celebrate tonight – the amazing leadership and legacy that is associated with Mason.

Two years ago, in August 2008, Otago University capped Mason as a Honorary Doctor of Laws, fifty years after he first enrolled at Otago University in zoology, physics, chemistry and botany.

The ceremony at Otago followed just three months after the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists in Melbourne honoured Mason for his lifelong commitment to psychiatry and indigenous mental health.

Mason became the first New Zealander to be awarded the college's Mark Sheldon Prize for meritorious work in service provision and research.

It was a very significant award which for the first time, recognised the vital role of Maori health perspectives alongside care and treatment pathways, at a time when culture was often overlooked as irrelevant to clinical progress.

These two awards, along with his recognition as a Public Health Champion in 2003, demonstrate some of the most distinctive attributes of Sir Mason’s contribution.

For while Mason has been honoured with many, many awards over the years, there is a universal theme of academic excellence; of indigenous knowledge; and of cutting edge approaches to the fields of public health and mental health which are synonymous with his name.

After Mason graduated from Otago University in 1963 with a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, he had a two year internship at Palmerston North Hospital before he headed for Canada, where he completed a postgraduate diploma in psychiatry at McGill University.

He then returned to Palmerston North Hospital, where he took up the role as Director of Psychiatry from 1970 to 1988.

It was in the last two years here, 1986-1988, that Mason was appointed to the Royal Commission on Social Policy – an experience that would have a lasting impact on him.

During the extensive research process employed by the Commission, Professor Durie recalled two particular highlights: the recognition that Te Tiriti o Waitangi was as relevant to social policy as it was to economic progress; and the effort the Commission made to hear from Maori communities. These two approaches would underpin Mason’s unique contribution to social policy across the decades, and throughout the motu.

And I want to return to the star imagery for just a moment.

The model that Mason is probably best known for is his description of te whare tapa wha- the seamless connections of spiritual, mental and emotional, physical and social well-being. All four dimensions are necessary for strength and symmetry.

Today I was witness to the most powerful example of whare tapa wha when I met a formidable team that had cycled from Hastings to Parliament, for the cause of health. They were not equipped with the classic cyclist frame – most of them weighed in at more than 100 kg – but they had a champion attitude.

Their physical prowess was incredible – some 300km in three days, through strong headwinds and rain. Their social camaraderie was essential to keeping them in strong spirits to push through the hard days. And there was plenty of time on the ride to remember both those who have passed before them – and those yet to be born – reminding them of the aspiration to live long enough to see their grandchildren grow up.

And perhaps most of all – the sense of whanaungatanga was the motivator that kept them together, that inspired them all to be the change they needed to be. It was a truly wonderful testimony to the fundamental basis of our models of health as Maori. But it is another of Mason’s models which I have always really loved, and that is Te Pae Mahutonga: a model for Mäori health promotion. And I think what I really love about this model is that it not only draws upon our own indigenous leaders – specifically the five point health promotional plan pioneered by Sir Maui Pomare, our first Maori medical practitioner – but it also draws on the integrity of our own indigenous concepts.

Te Pae Mahutonga is the name for the constellation of stars popularly referred to as the Southern Cross. It is a key navigational aid which has been used over the centuries to help guide our direction, distinguished by the four central stars arranged in the form of a cross, and two stars as pointers.

In Mason’s model the four central stars reflect particular goats of health promotion: Mauriora, Waiora, Toiora, Te Oranga while the two pointers are Nga Manukura and Te Mana Whakahaere.

And so I return to this model, when I think of the enormous breadth of the vision Mason has shared with us all.

He has written extensively, lectured prodigiously, and shared insights in areas as varied as constitutional change; Maori education; and futures planning.

He has served on the Boards of Te Papa Tongarewa and the Foundation for Research Science and Technology, he has been Chair of the Guardians Group for the Secondary Futures project, and a Commissioner for the New Zealand Families Commission. His guidance has also been invaluable in the Mental Health Foundation, the Alcohol Advisory Council, and the National Health Committee, to name a few.

In his position as Professor of Maori Research and Development and Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Massey University Mason has urged us to consider that education should be relevant and useful, not only to today but also to the realities of tomorrow. He has lobbied successive Governments to ensure that Maori leaders have both access to quality education and a right to excellence of outcomes.

Over the years, Mason has also been Chair of Te Runanga ö Raukawa, Secretary of the National Mäori Congress, and Deputy Chair of Te Wänanga ö Raukawa.

He has played a major role in building the Māori health workforce including the establishment of Te Rau Matatini, a national Mäori health workforce programme. In 1993 he established Te Pumanawa Hauora, a Mäori Health Research Centre and in the same year launched Te Hoe Nuku Roa, a longitudinal study of Mäori households that is still in progress.

And believe me …..I could go on all night – such is the extent of his leadership that the extensive history I have shared barely touches the surface of his influence.

I do feel extremely lucky to have had the privilege, over these last two years, of learning from his distinctive leadership as the Chairperson of the Whanau Ora Taskforce, and I am pleased that his profound influence on Whanau Ora continues to be felt in his role in the Governance Group overseeing the implementation of this approach.

Mason has been a towering strength of inspiration, of support, and of example in the ideas he has shared around Whanau Ora – and tonight is a great opportunity to thank him for his outstanding guidance in this regard.

Mason brought to Whanau Ora what he has brought to every single sphere of influence with which he has been associated: a rigorous scholarship; a methodology grounded in Maori community experience; a meticulous love of detail; and a visionary philosophical framework which will stand the test of time.

Our nation is so much richer for the efforts and intellect of this remarkable man; our future is ripe for transformation because of his commitment.

And I want to acknowledge tonight that this commitment is even more impressive because of the investment of the greater Durie whanau particularly his wife, Lady Arohia, his two sons and two daughters – all of them also proud Massey graduates; and our rangatira mo apopo – the mokopuna of the Durie legacy.

And I cannot help but reflect again on the influence of the constellations as they settled over Aorangi marae. Mason has said that his involvement in the marae committee is some of his most significant work – and I believe it. There’s nothing like the dynamics of marae politics to get your focus right!

At the end of last year, Aorangi Marae put on a special awards evening of their own – acknowledging some of the amazing achievements within their hapu and whanau.

There was their aunty Kahu Durie, who received the Queen's Service Medal for services to Maori and the community. There was the other Knight in the whanau to honour : Judge Taihakurei Eddie Durie, for services to the Maori Land Court, Waitangi Tribunal and High Court.

There was the next generation- Meihana and Pere Durie who jointly wrote, directed and acted in a short film, Warbrick, which received the Aotearoa Short Film Audience Award for 2009. And there were the outstanding younger leaders of Ngati Kauwhata – like Lauretta Rooney-Cribb; Areti Metuamate; Stephen Johnson.

I couldn’t help but think that the collective investment in celebrating achievement provides a sure foundation for success. I think there is a lesson there from the example of Ngati Kauwhata - that encourages us to anticipate greatness from all of our whanau, and to ensure their greatness is supported and celebrated.

Mason Durie is truly a star talent that this nation must hold in the utmost respect. He lives a life of great integrity; he has shared his wisdom so generously with us all, and it is absolutely evident that in the radiance of his vision, there will be many others to follow.

Whether as an inspirational koro; a committed husband and father; an outstanding academic, a brilliant mentor; or as a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, Mason has created a place in our hearts and minds forever.

We thank you for the endless gift of your leadership, Mason, and we are eternally blessed by the sacrifice and commitment your whanau have made to advance the collective wellbeing of the people of this land.

Tena tatou katoa

ends

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