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Boba M. Baluchova

Tāmaki Makaurau • Auckland

Dr. Boba Markovic Baluchova invests her time and energy into the ‘Media about Development’ website – dedicated to responsible global journalism. She’s been providing global education, as well as media and information literacy (MIL) trainings for adult learners at several nonprofits and universities across Europe and in Aotearoa. Her research is focused on community development programs, international volunteering, as well as media coverage of global challenges.

Boba's completed challenges:

Te Wā Tuku Reo Māori 2020
#MyMihi - Waitangi day 2021
Te Wā Tuku Reo Māori 2021
Matariki 2023
Te Wā Tuku Reo Māori 2023

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Activities

I took my daugher Tove Tui to Ngā Kete Wānanga Marae (as a part of my postgraduate study place: Manukau Institute of Technology – Te Pūkenga) to celebrate Te Wiki o te Reo Māori together with other students / ākonga and MIT staff / kaimahi. We really enjoyed all the Māori related games, competitions, performances, slam poetry and shared food / kai. Kia kaha te reo Māori!

We baked colorful muffins and brought them to our favourite ECE centre in the heart of Tāmaki Makaurau. Our daughter enjoyed meeting and playing with her former mates there. They were singing karakia, learning new te reo Māori words, listening to the stories about Matariki stars and riding a special Taniwha train.

During the school holidays we attended several events at local galleries, libraries and community centers across Tāmaki Makaurau – dedicated to Matariki celebration. My daughter learnt how to make a pair of poi and how to create her own star decoration. We also read a few new books about Matariki and Māori New Year.

As a guest speaker on a night radio show at Slovak national broadcasting (in our distant home country: Horowākia) I talked about Te Wiki o te Reo Māori and Aotearoa's current challenges. I also mentioned how my daughter Tove Tui learns about Māori culture at her ECE centre in Tāmaki Makaurau. I also introduced myself in Māori language Live on air.

Celebrating Māori culture and Te wiki o te reo Māori / Māori language moment by listening to Māori songs / waiata, learning new words / kupu, dancing and enjoying poi spinning together with my daughter / tamāhine Tove Tui.

Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tatou katoa. Ko Boba Markovic Baluchova tōku ingoa. He tāne tāku, ko Palo te ingoa. He tamāhine iti ano tāku, ko Tove Tui te ingoa. Nō Horowākia ōku tīpuna. Kei te noho au ki Horotiu, Tāmaki-makau-rau. #MyMihi

I have been writing short stories from our 2nd home: Aotearoa, called 'Corona-diaries from the MiddleEarth' since the 1st lockdown. There are 110 corona-diaries on my Facebook account so far and keep going. . . The aim is to inform our relatives and friends back home in Europe about Kiwi life, Kiwi people with their art, culture, traditions. Yesterday I wrote a post – dedicated to Māori language week (Te Wiki o te Reo Māori) how I finally understood what the famous voyager's (Kupe) wife meant when she cried: 'He Ao! He Aotea! He Aotearoa! (Cloud! White cloud! Long white cloud! )'. It's even more visible during the summer period. The best place where to raise a child. We're learning Māori songs, waiatas (including lullabies – oriori) together with my daughter Tove Tui. I'm happy that she'll learn Māori language at school. Because that's the only way – how to be aware of the history of our ancestors, how to build our identity and keep the stories (whakapapa) alive. So for me as a story-teller, journalist and mom the most important word (kupu) will always be: 'whakapapa'. And the most important saying (kiwaha) of these tough covid days could be: 'Never waste a good crisis. (Kaua e maumauria he raru pai). ' All these lockdowns are really good opportunity for all of us to pause, think and make a positive social change in our community. . . Let's give it a try.