May 06, 2013
Struggles of past pave way for awards
The Māori Business Leader of the Year has paid tribute to those who kept the flame of Māoritanga alive.
The Kaeo-born and Raupunga-raised businessman got the supreme prize at the University of Auckland Business School’s Māori business awards for his work with Animation Research Ltd.
The Dunedin company has revolutionised the way animated graphics are used in television coverage of sports like yachting and golf.
The former musician and children’s television host says growing up in the 1950s and 60s, many Māori parents felt they had to make a choice between educating their children for success in the Māori world or trying to hang on to language and culture.
“It was a combination of both. I wouldn’t have been there on Friday if it hadn’t been for my mother’s decision. We would not have been honouring Māori businesses at the Auckland Business School if it wasn’t for Joe Hawke and people like him. There’s alot of history and alot of people who shoulders we stand on,” he says.
Ian Taylor says on his way home to Dunedin airport staff ruled his award, a greenstone mere, was a martial arts weapon that had to be stored in the cargo hold.
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