Te Mana o te Moana - Spirit of the Sea

Te Mana o te Moana or ‘Spirit of the Sea’, is an ambitious project which aims to educate in the best practices of love and respect for our oceans, using the methods handed down by Polynesian voyagers.

Seven hand-crafted waka, combining the best of traditional and modern practice, have come together after a period of months spent at sea, island hopping from Aotearoa to Hawaii. Spectrum’s Deborah Nation joins the fleet at the Marine Education Centre in Honolulu where they have gathered to attend the Kava Bowl Ocean Summit 2011.

Sailing overnight to Kauai on one of the two Māori waka, ‘Te Matau a Maui’, Māori navigators and crew revel in the experience which challenges them in ways they never expected. From as young as 18, to those whose sailing knowledge is already extensive, the journey offers a shared experience and a growing sense of mutual respect, camaraderie and aroha. There’s music, feasting and storytelling alongside the practical navigation. Most are sailing on to San Francisco and plan to winter over in San Diego.