Cheri van Schravendijk-Goodman
I can’t see a separation between human and nature – I find it really difficult – and the other thing that really gets my goat is, you know, this kind of lazy approach to, oh, it’s in decline, it’s dead, it’s degraded. I think those statements – apart from dead – degraded and declining are correct, but I think when you keep bashing those at people for too long, their subconscious kicks in, and they start just being negative about it in return, so they kind of give up.
And the thing for me, I want to be able to show them that, despite all those labels, there’s still all this amazing life that still exists out there. And although we’ve got these pest plants, our animals and our birds and our insects have adapted to them, not perfectly, but they’ve adapted to them so they’re still there.
And the interaction of the people with the river, you know, Waikato-Tainui have a long-standing tradition of, you know, waka ama, going to the regattas down at the point in Ngāruawāhia, waka peke, which was canoe hurdles – cracked me up – chasing the bride and, you know, going out and fishing, collecting their harakeke as whānau units.
All those things, that’s life, you know, and it’s worth fighting for. And I have three children, and I want to make sure there’s a good place for them to grow up and that their connections with the environment are not going to be compromised because of a really bad decision I might have made as someone in the role that I do. So yeah, I’m very passionate about the environment, I love this river to death, and I love the people that have, you know, that affiliate to her, they’re amazing people.
Acknowledgement:
The Waikato Tainui College for Research and Development acknowledges the financial support given by the Waikato River Cleanup Trust Fund which is administered by the Waikato River Authority.
The Waikato River Cleanup Trust does not necessarily endorse or support the content of the publication in any way.