Members of South Taranaki's Ngaa Rauru tribe are fired up by a project to develop businesses in a different way - where people and nature matter.
The Social Ecological Entrepreneurship Pilot Project (SEE) was launched at the iwi's Waitotara Awa Hikoi in January.
It's funded by Te Puni Kokiri (Ministry of Maori Development) and the Department of Internal Affairs.
It gives the tribe half the working hours of Massey University ecological economist Dr Marjan van den Belt for a year.
Joining her in it is Ngaa Rauru's kaiwhakahaere (CEO) Anne-Marie Broughton, and independent contractor Turama Hawira brings cultural knowledge.
Since January the project has put together a team of 15 and held several wananga (workshops).
It has inspired young people and hooked in "others that didn't think they were interested".
"We now have passion, drive and forward focus," Ms Broughton said.
With its productive land, temperate climate and plentiful water, producing food is one of the business options for Ngaa Rauru.
The project team toured Auckland food businesses last weekend and went to the Good Food Forum conference on Monday to get ideas.
Ms Broughton said the trip was inspiring. It proved people wanted to know where their food came from and how it was produced - and Nga Rauru's values aligned well with consumer ideals.
The group also found out about new food preparation technology, and all the Government help available to them.
People in the project have been set a series of challenges. The current one is "kai kakariki".
"Everyone is tasked with taking a green vegetable and using it as a base ingredient and creating something." No secrets were revealed, but Mr Hawira said dehydrators and blenders were being used.
One of the early activities was to see what resources were available to the project. One is people who want jobs. Three fit, strong middle-aged men came into the tribe's Waverley office two weeks ago, asking for work.
"We don't have any, but we want to. That's why we're doing this," Ms Broughton said.
Another resource is the 5.6ha site of the former Waverley High School in Fookes St. The Parininihi ki Waitotara Incorporation (PKW) may use it for grazing.
The Waitotara Conservation Area forest is the "jewel in the crown". It's been neglected, but is the source of clean water. The fertile soils of the lowlands are another asset, currently under pressure from the dairy industry.
A huge range of crops have been grown in the area. Lucerne, asparagus, corn, peas, apricots, kiwifruit, pears, squash, potatoes, avocados, passionfruit and berries are all possibilities for using the land.
Further back in time Maori people got more of their food from water - koura, watercress and tuna (eels) from rivers and streams, and fish from the sea. Water quality is poor in the lowland, and restoring it is one of the aims of the project. Mr Hawira's Kai Iwi marae has started work with Horizons Regional Council to improve the Kai Iwi Stream.
He's also thinking about traditional food crops for the area - karaka kernels that need treatment to make them edible, and a variety of ti kouka (cabbage tree) grown for its food and medicinal value.
"One of the claims is that the Aotea tribes, Ngaa Rauru being one, brought the karaka to New Zealand," Mr Hawira said.
The iwi could be an "ecosystem cluster of businesses".
The goal is sustainability and fair distribution, and putting a value on "ecosystem services" such as the value of trees, to prevent erosion and the value of wetlands to purify water.
Dr van den Belt is finding her views sit well with the iwi.
"I think for a lot of our people they really instinctively clicked with some of the principles that underlie this project," Ms Broughton said.