Step two: learn and contextualise.
After familiarising yourself with the journey of the rearea, consider how its message relates to rainbow inclusion from an organisational perspective. As you learn about the purpose of each essential growth pathway within this framework, begin to consider their practical applications.
Five Essential Growth Pathways
The Miro Berry - Mātauranga | Knowledge
The bird that consumes the miro berry owns the forest, but the bird that consumes knowledge owns the world. In the same way, knowledge strengthens our ability to build inclusive organizations—fostering approaches where diverse perspectives are included and valued.
The Kahikatea Tree - Tikanga | Structure
Like the towering kahikatea rises above the ngahere, providing strength and structure to its ecosystem, we too must establish inclusive infrastructure, effective systems, and provide sufficient resources to support and sustain thriving, equitable environments.
Ōhanga | The Nest - Whanaungatanga | Community
Just as the rearea work together to build their nest by gathering and weaving elements from their environment, building strong connections and fostering community is essential for supporting our takatāpui and rainbow communities.
The Clutch - Whakapapa | Health & Sustainability
As the rearea nurtures its eggs with care and dedication, prioritizing diverse health and wellbeing needs is essential to creating environments where our takatāpui and rainbow communities are supported, cared for, and sustained.
The Rearea - Whakamanatanga | Empowerment
Although the rearea is small, it has the strength to ascend to the lofty heights of the kahikatea. It teaches us that with empowerment and support, all of our people are able to achieve greatness. The rearea represents the ambitions of the Ōhanga Rearea framework fully realised.
The Miro Berry
Mātauranga | Knowledge
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The miro tree’s berries are rich, fragrant bright, and are craved by the rearea and many forest dwellers alike. Its scarlet flesh offers dense nutrition and vitality, but it does not give itself freely. It is seasonal, fleeting, and often hidden among thick foliage out of sight when viewed from the ground below. To find it requires a hunger bound by patience and curiousity.
The miro berry is often associated with mātauranga and knowledge within te ao Māori, and this is in line with the rearea of our story. It is the miro which gifts the bird a fruit that, upon devouring, looks up at the great kahikatea with purpose and ambition. The rearea is settled: this is the direction in which I will fly, and I will ascend the lofty heights of the kahikatea tree.
Themiro’s gift of mātauranga, represents the knowledge and understanding required for the rearea to succeed. Yet identifying the correct time and place to partake in its gift is a challenge in itself. The rearea tosses aside husks of unfilled berries, and is surrounded only by the fruit still green and hard. It is too early in the season, and the berries have not yet ripened. And then somehow, a single berry falls directly upon the bird. At the right time and the right place, the rearea gobbles down the fruit, and feels both its mind and belly growing wider.
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Mātauranga and knowledge are essential to organisational development. The design and delivery of takatāpui and rainbow inclusion initiatives requires careful planning, intent, and an understanding of intersectionality, diversity, gender and sexual identity, and a strong grasp over the social and political circumstances that impact marginalised communities.
As Ōhanga Rearea’s first essential growth pathway, the miro berry represents the most vital and powerful aspect of this framework. Mātauranga is knowledge that is researched, lived, inherited, and practiced. It provides enlightenment, and gives rise to purpose.
Whether your organisation is working toward takatāpui and rainbow inclusion as a team, or has delegated much of this reponsibility to key individuals, professional learning and development opportunities are critical to the success of your objectives. As the addage goes ‘we don’t know what we don’t know’, and all members (even queer-identifying staff or experienced diversity and inclusion practitioners) need to be acknowledge and participate in the breadth of diverse learning opportunities relevant to takatāpui and rainbow inclusion.
Not all miro berries are the same, however. Some fruit may be green and inedible, brought down to the ground too early. Identifying the right forms of knowledge for your organisation, and the right time to partake in their delivery requires careful planning and consideration of the needs of your team. The miro tree knows this – and it waits until it has had its full of sunlight and water before sharing its berries. It reminds us to go where the energy is, and to act in accordance with the natural ebb and flow of our ecosystem.
As you continue to invest in mātauranga, your organisation will develop its ability to clearly identify barriers and challenges experienced by takatāpui and rainbow people. Further, you will ignite passion, and create buy-in within your team. The miro berry provides the nourishment and awareness for the rearea to begin its journey, just as knowledge and education provides direction for us.
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Opportunities to learn and develop in takatāpui and rainbow inclusion are rich and fruitful. Aotearoa has a number of organisations and resources available to help you move toward your learning objectives. This learning should be layered - beginning with foundational topics before moving into deeper, more context-specific topics.
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Organising Rainbow 101 (or sex, sexuality, gender 101) awareness workshops that cover takatāpui and rainbow identity are a critical first step to prioritise.
Prioritising learning opportunities that specialise in gender minority experiences (e.g. pronouns, gender inclusive language, transitioning at work).
Reviewing sector-specific guidance on takatāpui and rainbow inclusion (e.g. healthcare, education, public sector plans and strategies).
Attending Te Tiriti o Waitangi trainings that explore its present-day applications and relevance to takatāpui.
Seeking diverse learning opportunities exploring a range of cultural and individual identities (e.g. MVPFAFF+ identities in the Pacific).
Providing a range of digital physical learning resources to your teams as applicable (see: InsideOUT, Gender Minorities Aotearoa, Mental Health Foundation NZ).
Engaging with learning opportunities that arise both online and in your local community - such as pride panels, wānanga, public lectures, and seminars.
Attending rainbow+ conferences and events alongside organisations in similar fields.
The Kahikatea Tree
Tikanga | Structure
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The kahikatea, as the tallest great tree within the forests of Aotearoa, is colossal in size when compared to the tiny rearea bird. Its roots, bark, branches, leaves, and berries, all provide strength, support and nourishment to its neighbours, and its presence is vital to the establishment of strong, resilient ecologies.
In the story of Ōhanga Rearea, the kahikatea represents both tikanga and structure: the systems that guide and determine the way in which we do things. The kahikatea provides scaffolding, resource, and strength, enabling other beings to thrive.
Think back upon the flight of the rearea, and its journey to climb the kahikatea and obtain sustenance at its very top. The bird, although passionate, was held back by fierce winds, the taunts of other birds, and exhaustion. The kahikatea responded to this by providing branches to rest on, leaves to save the bird from a fall, and the richness of its berries warmed by the midday sun.
The kahikatea may also be viewed in another light: as a fierce and imposing obstacle. For while the kahikatea in our story kindly provided branches and moved its might in order to catch the bird when it fell, others might not be so welcoming. Some might hold their branches too high, and extend to points of the sky inaccessible to the smallest birds of the forest. The success of the rearea is therefore determined not only by its own ambition, but by the structure, design, accessibility, and attitude of its kahikatea host.
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Tikanga and organisational structure are the backbone of an organisation. From strategies to facilities, decision-making processes to policies, each element or an organisation’s design either enables or inhibits inclusion.
As the second essential growth pathway of this framework, the kahikatea’s role is central to achieving takatāpui and rainbow inclusion outcomes - however many organisations fail to contend with their own workforce and systems, and instead race forward to, for example, celebrate pride, feature queer-identifying staff or clients within marketing campaigns, or release statements of inclusion that when investigated fall short of what is being practiced within.
While pride, queer visibility, and reinforcing the mana of takatāpui and rainbow communities is a worthwhile organisational ambition, without introspection (and change) iof structure and practice at an internal level, an organisation is at risk of inadvertently or unintentionally tokenising marginalised communities. Further, such organisations are often viewed as externally inclusive, yet internally oppressive, cementing public opinion of the organisation as artificial in its support - a term referred to as pinkwashing.
Good diversity and inclusion planning prioritises the internal structure of an organisation above external outputs. The rearea feeds upon the miro berry, then climbs the tree in search of nourishment, before finally building its nest and raising its chicks. It understands that there is a particular order and way of doing things. Without the miro, it lacks awareness. Without the tree, it lacks the support and guidance needed to pursue the intergenerational ambitions of takatāpui and rainbow inclusion. And while it may fly, for a short time, it is only a matter of time before it becomes exhausted in a flight with no end in sight.
As Ōhanga Rearea’s first essential growth pathway, the miro berry represents the most vital and powerful aspect of this framework. Mātauranga is knowledge that is researched, lived, inherited, and practiced. It provides enlightenment, and gives rise to purpose.
Whether your organisation is working toward takatāpui and rainbow inclusion as a team, or has delegated much of this reponsibility to key individuals, professional learning and development opportunities are critical to the success of your objectives. As the addage goes ‘we don’t know what we don’t know’, and all members (even queer-identifying staff or experienced diversity and inclusion practitioners) need to be acknowledge and participate in the breadth of diverse learning opportunities relevant to takatāpui and rainbow inclusion.
Not all miro berries are the same, however. Some fruit may be green and inedible, brought down to the ground too early. Identifying the right forms of knowledge for your organisation, and the right time to partake in their delivery requires careful planning and consideration of the needs of your team. The miro tree knows this – and it waits until it has had its full of sunlight and water before sharing its berries. It reminds us to go where the energy is, and to act in accordance with the natural ebb and flow of our ecosystem.
As you continue to invest in mātauranga, your organisation will develop its ability to clearly identify barriers and challenges experienced by takatāpui and rainbow people. Further, you will ignite passion, and create buy-in within your team. The miro berry provides the nourishment and awareness for the rearea to begin its journey, just as knowledge and education provides direction for us.
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Tikanga and structure look different for every organisation. Yours may be large and complex, with various action plans, multiple departments, and competing priorities. Or it may be small, intimate, with limited resources available. No matter the size of your organisation however, looking internally at your organisational practice is a great initial step in your takatāpui and rainbow inclusion journey.
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Explicitly acknowledging takatāpui and rainbow inclusion as a priority within your organisational strategy or its associated action plans etc.
Allocating annual funding and FTE for staff members to achieve some of your organisation’s takatāpui and rainbow inclusion ambitions, rather than relying on good will and voluntary action.
Establishing decision-making processes that incorporate takatāpui and rainbow voices on issues that impact them.
Reviewing relevant policy and procedures from a rainbow perspective - particularly in regards to their impacts on gender minorities.
Reviewing Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Māori inclusion policy and practices from a takatāpui perspective. Promoting the understanding that when we commit to Te Tiriti, we commit to Māori and this means all Māori.
Developing an approach to takatāpui and rainbow inclusion with buy-in from your organisation’s members whether that is guided by Ōhanga Rearea, another framework, or a version that incorporates knowledge from a range of areas.
Ōhanga | The Nest
Whanaungatanga | Community
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The ōhanga, or nest, is built by the rearea as a place of safety and rest. The small bird may feel alone at first - gathering twigs, leaves, and using her own softest feathers for a vision only she holds. It may be a lonely experience at first, and an exhausting one. However the rearea is wise and she knows that there is a larger goal in sight. Soon, her nest is completed and is built exactly to her needs.
The rearea then partners and raises her chicksin the nest. What was once a cold empty branch is now a warm sanctuary allowing for whanaungatanga, connection, and the beginning of community.
The rearea, as a collective, have built a place to gather, connect, and eventually pass on knowledge to their young so that they too may one day ascend the kahikatea tree. The rearea cannot climb every kahikatea by herself, or feed on every berry in the ngahere. Her ambitions are not for her alone.
The ōhanga is more than just a structure to the rearea. It is a statement to the world: I belong to this forest. I am natural to this world; I have always been here, and always will be. And as a centre of connection, the nest is a site where the work of whanaungatanga, and a sense of belonging, can first be established.
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As the third essential growth pathway, the ōhanga represents whanaungatanga, connection, belonging, and community. Providing time and space for takatāpui and rainbow people to forge relationships within an organisation is critically impactful. These relationships create bonds and effectively change the culture of an organisation from the ground up.
Whanaungatanga is culture-building in action. In terms of takatāpui and rainbow inclusion, it is also a vital part of caring for the diversity and safety of a team. Being from a non-dominant group as a visible takatāpui and/or rainbow person can be an exhausting and intimidating experience at times. Allowing for people to identify and connect with their teams as more than colleagues but as supportive allies, or even friends, provides a a safety net of support, and lets people know that they are not alone.
While integrating and developing tikanga, organisations need to understand that culture truly eats strategy for breakfast: and that even the best-written diversity and inclusion policies will fail without allowing people to experience a sense of connection and belonging to one another, and their wider community.
Whanaungatanga, as a pathway of growth, is also an area where teams may begin to build relationships with external organisations and agencies. When the rearea builds her nest, she is supported by her mate and the work is shared between them. She is supported by the kānuka branch which she has built upon, and the tree is supported by the fallen nourishment of the family of birds. The relationship is reciprocal, as should the development of whanaungatanga initiatives. Reach out to the community for support, but also invite them in and provide support back when possible.
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Whanaungatanga is an engaging inclusion practice that evolves and grows in scope over time. It is also inconstant, and ebbs and flows over time. There is no such thing as perfection when it comes to community development, but there is value in intentional, and responsive practices that meet the needs of your organisation.
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Providing induction and orientation opportunities for new members to connect with takatāpui and rainbow communities.
Engaging with external pride celebrations, and encouraging staff to take part.
Organising regular social opportunities for your members to connect.
Volunteering for rainbow organisations, or working to fundraise for relevant kaupapa.
Creating an internal takatāpui and rainbow employee-led network or mentorship opportunities.
Developing a calendar of events that the organisation will officially recognise and participate in (e.g. Trans Day of Visibility, Pink Shirt Day, IDAHOBIT).
Partnering with local takatāpui and rainbow organisations to host shared events.
Offering koha to community leaders, artists or volunteers who contribute to your organisation.
Actively responding to difficult moments - for example, releasing affirmative statements or organising a gathering in response to public displays of queerphobia.
The Clutch
Whakapapa | Health & Sustainability
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The rearea’s eggs are small, fragile, and beyond precious. To the bird, nothing is more important than their protection. The rearea’s clutch of eggs are the physical embodiment of whakapapa, representing both its present health, and future offspring.
The clutch represents sustainability: the rearea will not be here forever. Its wisdom must be passed on to its descendants. While it has fed upon the miro berry, flown to the top of the kahikatea and worked for weeks to build its nest, that work must be passed on eventually. The rearea does not assume individual responsibility for the wellbeing of the forest.
As for the eggs, without the warmth of their parents bodies, and later as fledglings, without the nourishment passed on to them from beak to beak, they will never become strong enough to carry on this responsibility. And while eventually the young chicks will grow into strong birds, the clutch asks for its health to be cared for until it is ready to take flight.
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At this stage of the Ōhanga Rearea framework, you should now have implemented a range of takatāpui and rainbow inclusion initiatives. Your people have learning and development opportunities, your tikanga and organisational structure has been reviewed and updated from a rainbow perspective, and your takatāpui and rainbow communities have found opportunities to connect and gather.
As the fourth essential growth pathway, the clutch represents the health of your takatāpui and rainbow members, the sustainability these individuals in their roles, and the succession planning of your diversity and inclusion practices. The clutch allows for the enactment of whakapapa.
It is common to have ‘champions’ who race ahead, organising workshops, social events, pride marches and the like. These individuals might challenge policy, connect with external organisations, and overall be an inspiration and a key asset. And then time passes, and this person may find themselves delivering the same talks year after year, fighting some of the same challenges each week. They may tire and eventually leave, all for a lot of that good work to be put to the side until another torch bearer arrives to take their place.
In these instances, it is vital to prioritise the health and wellbeing of our champions. Just as it is to nurture the development of others in order to support and expand their work. Health and wellbeing initiatives lead to strong succession planning: we end up with members who feel cared for and supported and are at less risk of burn out. Further, developing health and wellbeing from a whakapapa-based perspective establishes a sense of consistency within your organisation. The whiplash of feeling supported and strongly engaging with pride in some years, and completely ignoring it in others, can create unease toward your organisation both internally and externally.
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Considering takatāpui and rainbow incluion from a whakapapa-based perspective means identifying the wellbeing needs of your people. While every organisation should work with their own communities to identify some of these concerns, there are some general ways to support diversity and inclusion in general.
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Embedding takatāpui and rainbow wellbeing goals into your organisation’s annual planning.
Ensuring entitlements are experienced by queer and trans members to the same extent as their peers (e.g. parental leave, leave for accessing fertility specialists).
Designing and implementing gender affirmation policy that meets current best practices.
Providing access to cultural supervision to takatāpui and rainbow members when requested.
Disseminating resources on rainbow experiences of mental health, discrimination etc.
Ensuring your Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) providers are rainbow-competent.
Offering additional leave, payments, or flexible work arrangements to staff experiencing heightened workloads due to their takatāpui and rainbow inclusion commitments.
Celebrating and encouraging the inclusion outcomes achieved by your members.
Surveying your members’ to capture their health, wellbeing, and workload concerns from a takatāpui and rainbow inclusion perspective.
Ensuring that a code of conduct or behavioural guidelines document includes takatāpui and rainbow inclusion.
The Rearea
Whakamanatanga | Empowerment
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It sang a quick waiata ‘look at me!’, it called, and leapt into the air.
Despite its small size, the rearea is brave and glorious. It stretches its wings and overcomes all that is thrown at it. It stands in its mana - its agency. It flies empowered, and strong.
The rearea here represents whakamanatanga: a process of making by which one’s agency is both inherited and built upon.
The rearea is an agent of forest regeneration. As a key pollinator, its presence brings life and beauty to the forest. Its voice is particularly beautiful, with distinct clear melodies likened to heavenly bells of chimes. Many consider it to be the most beautiful sound to experience in the ngahere.
Yet the rearea has been under threat. Predation and habitat loss have lead to its population dropping significantly after European colonisation. But with careful projects of reindiginisation happening across Aotearoa, the smal bird is now reappearing across the country, and is often one of the first native bird species to return to restored habitats. The rearea is not only beautiful, but resilient.
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The rearea represents the final stage of the Ōhanga Rearea framework: whakamanatanga!
This is an exciting stage of the framework where you should be ready to celebrate and visibilise your work across each essential growth pathway. Not only have you prioritised the intent with which you achieve takatāpui and rainbow inclusion, but you have shown care and responsibility to your community along the way. Finally, the fifth essential growth pathway now encourages your organisation to promote work that you are doing, celebrate your community publically, and with pride.
A number organisations mistakenly tend to begin their inclusion journey at this stage, often unintentionally. They develop rainbow branded products, release pride-themed advertisements, or promote themselves as a queer-friendly employer. Yet this can ring hollow to takatāpui and rainbow communities as some of their key areas of concern remain unaddressed. Our communities are generally less impacted by visibility and pride than they are the directness of discrimination, isolation, and health and wellbeing disparities. These areas must be prioritised first. And if they are not, your people will notice.
There is enormous potential to whakamana, or empower takatāpui and rainbow communities at an organisational leve, and this is the end goal of this framework. Through visibilising and recognising your takatāpui and rainbow communities, you are directly addressing your organisation’s stance on inclusion, and acting as a rolemodel for external groups and organisations.
Engaging in pride is valuable. Creating takatāpui or rainbow-centred products can be too. This visibility can go a long way to create a sense of inclusion within our communities. The trick here is ensuring that this is being done genuinely, with intent, and backed up by internal inclusion practiices. This is what sustains the rearea. This is what allows its next generation to take flight.
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There are a number of ways to whakamana, or empower takatāpui and rainbow communities. Think about what you are proud of within your organisation, or identify external opportunities to participate in.
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Creating rainbow or takatāpui-centred products or services that reflect your organisation’s values.
Participating in pride, and involving your entire organisation.
Sponsoring or supporting events or programmes centred around takatāpui and rainbow communities.
Sharing stories from your organisation - such as highlighting rainbow champions, or promoting internal events and initiatives.
Auditing your communications and branding materials to ensure takatāpui and rainbow people are reflected within your organisation.
Updating your recruitment procedures to declare that your organisation promotes takatāpui and rainbow equity and inclusion.
Commissioning takatāpui and rainbow creatives, artists, or consultants to design and lead branding and merchandise initiatives - for internal and external usage.
Reaching out to organisations at earlier stages of their journey, and offering support and advice.
Reflecting on the Five Essential Growth Pathways
The miro berry, kahikatea tree, ōhanga, clutch, and rearea each represent the five essential growth pathways of Ōhanga Rearea. Each presents areas to develop and nurture. You may like to return to the story of Ōhanga Rearea at this stage, to review it with fresh eyes. Or if you feel ready, move on ahead to planning how to implement this framework into your own organisational challenge.
Remember, it does not happen all at once. The aim of this framework is not to overwhelm you with the sheer amount of work that there is to achieve. This work is unending. It is just about stepping forward in the right direction, and doing so with intent. Begin with the miro berry, and move your way through the essential growth pathways. Whether it takes you weeks, months, or years, know that you are following the guidance designed by the aspirations of countless takatāpui and rainbow individuals.
Contextualising the Five Essential Growth Pathways
Which of the five growth pathways feels most developed within your organisation? Which feels least developed?
Does this framework speak to the needs of your organisation? If yes, what sticks out? If not, what would you change or amend?
What’s in your organisation’s way of reaching stage five (the rearea) of this framework? How can this be addressed?