‘We are small but we are mighty’: Otago Polyfest celebrates 30 years

​Otago Polyfest celebrated its thirty year anniversary, as one of Aotearoa’s longest standing cultural festivals.

The festival brings together more than 140 education providers from early childhood centers through to high schools, for a week-long celebration of Pacific culture.

Festival director Tanya Muagatuti'a says for the region, Polyfest is a special time to come together as one.

“I’m full of admiration for the communities here, when they want to honor their community by celebrating and joining everyone together, they really make a mark of that," she says.

“It’s really important for the legacy of the work these communities have been working towards, which is really for the protection and nourishment of culture for our young ones.”

Pacific peoples make up less than two per cent of the population around Otago, and the festival has been one of the few spaces to celebrate the community's unique identity.

Otago Polyfest General Manager Pip Laufiso says the event has been anchored by long standing families.

“One thing we know about our families, when people need help, we come to support them and that’s what this has been built on. The opportunity to support and help was the motivator I suppose because we’re all hard wired to contribute to do our bit."

“So I want to acknowledge our families, because those are the first people we ask to help and certainly the first to put their hand up to help.​

“That’s what it means with this type of event is that, decades later the families are still helping so they become a strong part of the festival.”

Laufiso says there are now third and fourth generation families who have come through the event, adding that it's also been a time to reflect on who's been involved over the last three decades.

“I’ve been going through our archives, old photos, old programmes, just looking at our Maumahara list, people who have passed away in that time and have made a significant contribution to the festival.

“In saying that, the new elements we’ve been able to build are really coming together and that’s been exciting and uplifting.”

Festival Director Tanya Muagatuti’a says the festival is a “beautiful” reminder to honor your language and culture, especially in the South Island.

“To hold up those values that are really strong in this organization, they’ve really carried it forward and thirty years is a long time. We’ve got people in our time involved in Polyfest for their whole lives.

“It’s kinda beautiful! And I admire that, I didn’t have that growing up and they do, here they are strong and leading.”