Waitangi Day 2026 - Mō tātou, mā tātou / by all of us for all of us

This week on the 6 February we have an opportunity to acknowledge Waitangi Day and what this means for us.

No matter your role at Fire and Emergency, it is important that we are all familiar with Te Tiriti o Waitangi – The Treaty of Waitangi and what it means for us as a nation and an organisation. 

Honouring this commitment by the crown also means honouring our values| Auahatanga – We strive to improve, Whanaungatanga – We are better together, Manaakitanga – We serve and support and Kia Tika – We do the right thing.

We recognise the pivotal role Māori plays in building community resilience. Their local knowledge, support and influence in our communities have a far greater reach into places where we need it the most such as isolated and vulnerable communities, therefore we recognise Iwi and Hapu as key stakeholders to the success of our mahi. 

This year’s theme is Mō tātou, mā tātou / by all of us for all of us.

We will share pictures and information from the day. In the meantime, have a read through this page where we have compiled resources and information to help you understand the importance of Waitangi Day and how it connects to the mahi you do at Fire and Emergency. 

Why you should learn more about Waitangi Day in your role 

At Fire and Emergency, the mahi that you do will always have an impact on the communities we serve. 

Iwi and Māori as community leaders are key stakeholders across our organisation’s operations. They are significant owners of forest and land as well as influential in building community resilience and informing risk reduction and response. Māori are also at a substantially higher risk of being harmed by unwanted fires and are three times more likely to die in a fire than non-Māori, and this needs to change. 

We are committed to working with Māori as tangata whenua, people of the land. This means we each have a responsibility to better serve and connect with Māori in our communities.  

Rauemi Ipurangi | Learning resources