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Waitati, from the
Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
Waitete, is a small seaside settlement in
Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...
, New Zealand, within the city limits of
Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...
. It is located close to the tidal mudflats of
Blueskin Bay Blueskin Bay is an estuary in coastal Otago, about 25 km north of Dunedin, New Zealand. The name also unofficially describes the rural district which includes the northern slopes of Mount Cargill, the southern slopes of the Kilmog, and the ...
, 19 kilometres north of the Dunedin city centre. The small Waitati River flows through the bay to the sea. The Dunedin–Waitati Highway section of
State Highway 1 The following highways are numbered 1. For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads. For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads. For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads. For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads. For roads numbered S ...
, formerly and colloquially called ''Dunedin Northern Motorway'', ends at Waitati; the highway continues north from here at a slightly lower grade of construction with more frequent intersections and accesses. Three km to the north, the highway ascends the notorious
Kilmog The Kilmog, occasionally called Kilmog Hill and known in Māori as Kirimoko,Place names'' on Kāti Huirapa Runaka ki Puketeraki website, viewed 2012-01-04 is a hilly area approximately 20 kilometres north of Dunedin, New Zealand, on State Highwa ...
hill. The
Main South Line The Main South Line, sometimes referred to as part of the South Island Main Trunk Railway, is a railway line that runs north and south from Lyttelton, New Zealand, Lyttelton in New Zealand through Christchurch and along the east coast of the ...
railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
curves from east to north through Waitati. The old station yard remains as a train crossing loop and parts of the old station building are used by rail maintenance workers. Waitati is home to a branch of the Dunedin Public Libraries, Blueskin Nurseries
a local school
a cafe and general store, and several holiday homes.


Demographics

Waitati-Doctors Point is described by Statistics New Zealand as a rural settlement. It covers , and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. It is part of the much larger Mount Cargill statistical area. Waitati had a population of 573 at the
2018 New Zealand census The 2018 New Zealand census, which took place on Tuesday 6 March 2018, was the thirty-fourth national census in New Zealand. The population of New Zealand was counted as 4,699,755 – an increase of 457,707 (10.79%) over the 2013 census. Resu ...
, an increase of 60 people (11.7%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 72 people (14.4%) since the 2006 census. There were 231 households, comprising 276 males and 297 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.93 males per female, with 120 people (20.9%) aged under 15 years, 51 (8.9%) aged 15 to 29, 327 (57.1%) aged 30 to 64, and 72 (12.6%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 90.1% European/
Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...
, 12.6%
Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
, 1.6% Pasifika, 2.6% Asian, and 5.8% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 61.3% had no religion, 24.1% were
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
, 1.6% had
Māori religious beliefs Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
, 0.5% were
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
, 1.0% were
Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
and 4.7% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 201 (44.4%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 45 (9.9%) people had no formal qualifications. 93 people (20.5%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 225 (49.7%) people were employed full-time, 78 (17.2%) were part-time, and 18 (4.0%) were unemployed.


Alternative lifestylers and activism

For many years Waitati has been known for its appeal to those who pursue an
alternative lifestyle An alternative lifestyle or unconventional lifestyle is a lifestyle (sociology), lifestyle perceived to be outside the social norm, norm for a given culture. The term ''alternative lifestyle'' is often used pejoratively. Description of a related ...
. The Waitati Militia, a
mock combat Mock combat involves the execution of combative actions without intent to harm. Participants can engage in such sparring for ritual, training, recreational or performance reasons. The nature of mock combat can vary from Realism (arts), realistic ...
group, was founded here, and the village featured in the history of the
Values Party The Values Party was a New Zealand political party. It is considered the world's first national-level environmentalist party, pre-dating the use of "Green" as a political label. It was established in May 1972 at Victoria University of Wellingto ...
, ''
Mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing Sporocarp (fungi), fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or another food source. ''Toadstool'' generally refers to a poisonous mushroom. The standard for the n ...
'' magazine and anti
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
and
Aramoana Aramoana is a small coastal settlement north of Dunedin on the South Island of New Zealand. The settlement's permanent population in the 2001 Census was 261. Supplementing this are seasonal visitors from the city who occupy Bach (New Zealand), ...
aluminium Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...
smelter Smelting is a process of applying heat and a chemical reducing agent to an ore to extract a desired base metal product. It is a form of extractive metallurgy that is used to obtain many metals such as iron, copper, silver, tin, lead and zin ...
protests,Ian Church ''Blueskin Days ''Waitati 2007 as well as the development in New Zealand of
environmental education Environmental education (EE) refers to organized efforts to teach how natural environments function, and particularly, how human beings can manage behavior and ecosystems to live sustainably. It is a multi-disciplinary field integrating discipli ...
.'Sustainable Waitati' in '' The Star '', Dunedin, 27 September 2007 Waitati has no
sewerage Sewerage (or sewage system) is the infrastructure that conveys sewage or surface runoff ( stormwater, meltwater, rainwater) using sewers. It encompasses components such as receiving drains, manholes, pumping stations, storm overflows, and scr ...
system, and has become a centre in New Zealand for the development of
composting toilet A composting toilet is a type of dry toilet that treats human waste by a biological process called composting. This process leads to the decomposition of organic matter and turns human waste into compost-like material. Composting is carried out b ...
s and other alternative
sewage disposal Sewage treatment is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants from sewage to produce an effluent that is suitable to discharge to the surrounding environment or an intended reuse application, thereby preventing water p ...
systems. Some villagers are edible garden and
alternative energy Renewable energy (also called green energy) is energy made from renewable resource, renewable natural resources that are replenished on a human lifetime, human timescale. The most widely used renewable energy types are solar energy, wind pow ...
enthusiasts. Waitati has become an arrival point for German immigrants to New Zealand and has a high proportion of Germans and
German New Zealanders German New Zealanders ( ) are New Zealand residents of ethnic German ancestry. They comprise a very large amount of New Zealanders in terms of heritage, with some 200,000 people from the country having at least partial German ancestry (approxim ...
. The
Orokonui Ecosanctuary thumb Orokonui Ecosanctuary, called Te Korowai o Mihiwaka in Māori, is an ecological island wildlife reserve developed by the Otago Natural History Trust in the Orokonui Valley between Waitati and Pūrākaunui, New Zealand, to the north of cen ...
wildlife sanctuary is set in an area of native bush here. Doctors Point Beach is a sandy southern beach that is home to a breed of
blue penguins The little penguin (''Eudyptula minor'') is the smallest species of penguin. It originates from New Zealand. It is commonly known as the fairy penguin, little blue penguin, or blue penguin, owing to its slate-blue plumage and is also known by ...
and other wildlife. Waitati Film Society screens films every second Tuesday night during most of the year (every Tuesday night in the middle of winter). Waitati is part of New Zealand's "Transition Towns initiatives", initiative, using some
Transition Towns The terms transition town, transition initiative and transition model refer to grassroot community projects that aim to increase self-sufficiency to reduce the potential effects of peak oil, climate destruction, and economic instability through ...
techniques and patterns for energy descent.


Education

Waitati School is a full primary school serving years 1 to 8, with a roll of students as at The school's history dates back to 1864. Te Whare Wānanga is a
marae A ' (in Māori language, New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian language, Tahitian), ' (in Tongan language, Tongan), ' (in Marquesan language, Marquesan) or ' (in Samoan language, Samoan) is a communal or sacred place that serves reli ...
in Waitati managed by Te Whānau o Arohanui Trust where (as well as many other community activities) courses in
social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...
are taught in association with
Otago Polytechnic Otago Polytechnic is a public Education in New Zealand#Tertiary education, New Zealand tertiary education institute, centred in Dunedin with additional campuses in Cromwell, New Zealand, Cromwell and Auckland. Otago Polytechnic provides career-f ...
.


Notable residents

Former
Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...
co-leader
Metiria Turei Metiria Leanne Agnes Stanton Turei (born 1970) is a New Zealand academic and former politician. She was a Member of Parliament from 2002 to 2017 and the female co-leader of the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand from 2009 to 2017. Turei resig ...
lives in Waitati.


References

{{Dunedin suburbs Localities in the Dunedin City territory German-New Zealand culture