28 Nov Finding our way: Growing the Puna with Eilensia Williams-Ransfield
Ko Pūtauaki te maunga
Ko Ōhinemataroa te awa
Ko Mātaatua te waka
Ko Ngāti Awa te iwi|
Ko Eilensia tōku ingoa
I was born and raised in Whakatāne. Living in Whakatāne, much of my childhood was spent at the beaches and waterholes, such as Braemar and Waimana. Some of the sweetest memories I have are either at these places or going to or from these places with my cousins.
When I was 14, I accepted a scholarship to finish highschool in Costa Rica. Here, alongside our academic commitments, we were encouraged to engage in social and environmental issues in meaningful ways. While I knew I wanted to ‘help people’ I still wasn’t sure how I was best placed to do so. At 19 I felt that I could help people better kanohi ki te kanohi, so I enrolled into a Bachelor of Social Work. While I enjoyed what I was learning, I realised pretty quickly that working in this type of institution, I was at risk of feeling like I wasn’t helping at all.
I followed my gut, left the degree and sat myself down one night to write out everything that I was truly passionate about. Everything that I’d written was related to either people, music or food. So, for the next few years I started on what I’d written and became a Pastry Chef, Bartender, Venue Manager and had gotten my DJ career as far as organising my spotify into a few playlists. Pastry was by far my favourite job to date, I loved using my hands and creating community through kai.
Despite having a special connection to hospitality, I knew the changes I wanted to make weren’t ones I was going to create in those roles. Reflecting on my journey so far, I thought about what I didn’t like about my social work degree and how I could collaborate towards systems that are better designed by and for Māori. I took these ambitions into a Bachelor of Policy and Development and circled back to what I knew in a different way, developing a keen interest in indigenous food sovereignty.
I think kai sovereignty is a really special way for us as Māori to practise who we are, who our tūpuna were and particularly, where we want to go. This is something I have recently expanded into a research project that aims to share mana whenua stories of kai Māori from across the motu. The ways we consume, buy, access and grow food are towards the end of long stories about land, power, and hauora. This project intends to serve as a centralised platform that presents mana whenua connection and disconnection to kai, what processes were involved and what resilience has looked like across the motu.
The kai sovereignty scene is still growing in Aotearoa so it wasn’t too long before I came across Toi Tangata. I’ve followed Toi Tangata’s kai mahi for the past year now and am incredibly fortunate to participate in this summer’s Kai Māori internship. It’s a really special opportunity for me to engage my existing interests to develop meaningful resources.
Eilensia Williams-Ransfield
Eilensia Williams-Ransfield is a Growing the Puna Kai Māori 2024 intern. Eilensia is pursuing research and initiatives that empower Māori through connections to kai, culture, and community.