Rarely do you find people outside of New Zealand exploring Māori culture.
Koos Wabeke, a Dutch life and leadership coach, has taken that to the next level by immersing himself in tikanga Māori.
Wabekeis one of the kaitiaki for 'Te Hono ki Aotearoa,' which is the 27th waka built by the late Sir Hector Busby. The waka resides at the Netherlands Ethnology Museum in Leiden, and is the only waka taua in the northern hemisphere.
Koos spoke to Te Ao Tapatahi about what similarities Māori and the Dutch had. "We both have a good sense of humour [laughs]. We're pretty straightforward."
He also says that the Dutch can learn from Māori as well. "I think we are a mixed nation, we are many different cultures, so our ability most of the time is to connect with others and to adjust ourselves. I think we can learn from Māori to be more 'in this moment' and to know ourselves and know where we're going."