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 Actions which follow from a way of seeing the precinct.
1) Every person seeking to make any change within the Kohukohu Heritage Precinct first needs to resolve to sustain the wairua of this unique place and to protect the life of the planet. In making this commitment every individual would be resolving to do no harm to the stories, traditions, memories, culture, geology, ecology, and history of Kohukohu.
2) Every person seeking to make any change within the Kohukohu Heritage Precinct then needs to take personal responsibility for this commitment. Each doctor, in the same way, takes personal responsibility for upholding the sanctity of life. Responsibility for the commitment needs to rest with the individual.
3) The application of this ethical principle needs to take precedence over any activities which may be otherwise permitted by law. In life, or in a Heritage Precinct, personal freedom is found only within duties and obligations towards whanau and the community as a whole..
4) This ethical principle becomes binding on organisations, such as local government, through the individual agents of those organisations.
5) This ethical principle should be seen as one aspect of fulfilling the purpose of local government which is stated in the Local Government Act 2002 Part 2, Subpart 1, Clause 10 as being (a) to enable democratic local decision-making and action by, and on behalf of, communities; and (b) to promote the social, economic, environmental, and cultural well-being of communities, in the present and for the future.
6) This ethical position implies that everyone making decisions will have reasonable opportunities to be informed about the stories, traditions, memories, culture, geology, ecology and history of Kohukohu, and will take advantage of those opportunities to be informed.
7) The primary repository of this accumulated understanding of the ancestors is the Heritage Precinct itself, but that Precinct will constantly need to be reinterpreted through art, photographs, music, the telling of stories, celebrations and ritual. Whakapapa needs not only to be protected but also to be enriched.
8) The Kohukohu library is critical as a first point of reference. The Heritage archives should be preserved here, and stories made available through both books and moving images.
9) Schools need to ensure that an emphasis is placed on local history, local stories, local ways of seeing and local ways of doing.
10) It is in the coming together of the community that self-awareness becomes possible. At tangi or hui, at ceilidhs or fairs, a growth of understanding takes place. Community celebrations are more important than planning controls.
11) Uniqueness needs to be seen as normal within any Heritage Precinct. Diversity and complexity are the foundations of sustainability. Growth takes place at the edges of our understanding. Solutions which may be reasonable and appropriate in another context cannot be justified on that account in Kohukohu. Unity is important in a Heritage Precinct rather than uniformity.
12) Every decision must gain a positive answer to one question “Does this action enhance and enrich the wairua of Kohukohu?”
Unity within diversity can be achieved by a common ethical position.
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