Te Wao Nui

Kauri are dying. A traditional Māori healer has one last chance to save an entire forest, one tree at a time.

A devastating disease threatens to destroy Aotearoa’s last remaining Kauri trees. Standing in the way of losing these prehistoric giants forever is a Māori healer. Tohe Ashby is looking for answers held within the ancient knowledge of the first nations of Aotearoa – mātauranga Māori. Discover the roots of indigenous medicine in a final bid to save the last of these great trees. E ara! Ka tangi te Kauri.

"Māori knowledge and Western science, they are not the same. They are not on the same path." - Tohe Ashby

Director: Ngāriki Ngatae | Producer: Karen Sidney

Te Whanuagatanga a Tohora me Kauri - Matua Tohe Ashby 

Meet Tohe Ashby - A Rongoa practitioner in Northland. Tohe is an expert on kauri trees and understanding the tikanga Māori around treating the disease. He has developed a treatment using whalebone to treat kauri dieback.

Kauri Protection Programme, Biosecurity NZ

Healthy forest, healthy people - Matua Kevin Prime

Meet Matua Kevin Prime, an environmental commissioner. He has been a beef farmer, forester and conservationist. He maintains that it's up to all of us to not just protect kauri, but the environment that it thrives in.

Kauri Protection Programme, Biosecurity NZ