Special Event on 16 September: Māori Ocean Culture in Venice

Māori culture meets UNESCO-IOC and Associazione Giochi Antichi in Venice to celebrate the ocean as a bridge between cultures

Venice, Verona, 16 September 2025 – An international event celebrating the encounter between the ancient Māori culture of Aotearoa-New Zealand and the Venice lagoon will take place on the island of San Servolo, Venice, with a focus on the ocean as a universal, spiritual and identity-forming cultural space: Māori Ocean Culture. The initiative stems from collaboration between Associazione Giochi Antichi (AGA) and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (UNESCO-IOC), and precedes the XXIII edition of the Tocatì – International Festival of Street Games in Verona, where the Māori delegation will be guests of honour.

The project forms part of the international cooperation pathway promoted by Tocatì, a Programme for the Safeguarding of Traditional Games and Sports, inscribed since 2022 in the UNESCO Register of Good Practices for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage and of which AGA is the lead organizatio, with the support of the Italian Ministry of Culture and the respective Ministries of Culture of France, Belgium, Cyprus and Croatia.

The 16 September Event

The day will open with a visit to the SEA BEYOND Ocean Literacy Centre, where Māori delegates, UNESCO representatives, AGA and participating institutions will be welcomed by a traditional Māori dance performance in the island's park.

View the full event agenda here

Book your place for the afternoon workshops here

Note: the workshops will be held with Italian interpretation available

The SEA BEYOND Ocean Literacy Centre is the first and only centre in Italy dedicated to ocean education. Co-designed by CRA-Carlo Ratti Associati and UNESCO-IOC, the initiative is promoted by the Prada Group and UNESCO-IOC within the framework of the SEA BEYOND project, active since 2019 to raise awareness about ocean sustainability and preservation among younger generations.

The heart of the initiative will consist of afternoon workshops, open to the public, that explore the profound connection between Māori culture and the ocean: "Tangaroa, god of the ocean", a journey into Māori cosmogony, discovering marine deities and the relationship between humanity and the sea; "Waka, the ancestral vessel", focusing on the traditional construction of Māori canoes, symbols of identity and instruments of migration and memory. Ocean music will further enrich the implementation of the two workshops with the presentation and participatory construction of ancestral instruments such as the Pūtātara, a ceremonial shell of profound cultural and environmental significance.

The island of San Servolo, a bridge between land and sea, will be transformed into a meeting place between cultures united by the centrality of the ocean in the vision of the relationship between humanity and nature. Through this initiative, UNESCO and AGA strengthen their commitment to promoting inclusive ocean education and safeguarding intangible cultural heritage.

"This meeting with Māori culture is an example of how the ocean serves as humanity's great unifier," states Francesca Santoro, Senior Programme Officer for Ocean Literacy at UNESCO-IOC. "Despite the distance separating Venice from Aotearoa-New Zealand, our profound relationship with the sea unites us in remarkable ways. The Venetian maritime tradition and Māori oceanic culture communicate through the same ancestral language of respect, knowledge and interdependence with the marine environment. This cultural dialogue reminds us that the ocean knows no boundaries and that only through international collaboration and the exchange of traditional knowledge can we preserve this common heritage for future generations."

The reflections arising from the event will continue several days later at the International Festival of Street Games, which, in its XXIII edition, will host traditional games and sports, music and dances of Māori culture in the streets of Verona from 19 to 22 September. Games of reflexes, ropes, sticks and traditional ceremonies will complement Italian games, alongside performances, conferences and educational sessions. The complete programme is available at tocati.it.

Associazione Giochi Antichi (Association for Ancient Games) – Communication Office
mediamk@associazionegiochiantichi.it  
www.associazionegiochiantichi.it  

UNESCO-IOC Ocean Literacy project office
j.coulton@unesco.org
oceanliteracy.unesco.org  

Event organized with the support of the UNESCO Regional Office for Science and Culture in Europe, the SEA BEYOND Ocean Literacy Centre, San Servolo Servizi, Venezia da Vivere and under the patronage of the Italian Ministry of Culture.

UNESCO-IOC

The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (UNESCO-IOC) promotes international cooperation in marine sciences to improve management of the ocean, coasts, and marine resources. The IOC enables its 152 Member States to work together by coordinating programmes in capacity development, ocean observations and services, ocean science, tsunami warning, and ocean literacy. The work of the IOC contributes to the mission of UNESCO to promote the advancement of science and its applications to develop knowledge and capacity, key to economic and social progress and the basis of peace and sustainable development. The UNESCO-IOC is the entity in charge of coordinating the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development 2021-2030 (The Ocean Decade).

Associazione Giochi Antichi (AGA)

Founded in Verona in 2002, Associazione Giochi Antichi (AGA), a member of AEJeST, a unique entity in the Traditional Games and Sports landscape, serving as a cultural mediator between gaming communities, institutions and national, European and international organizations. The Association's main mission is the safeguarding of Traditional Games and Sports heritage, through the recognition and support of gaming communities that transmit this intangible cultural heritage. In practicing their gaming traditions, these communities of players contribute to keeping alive the diversity of Traditional Games and Sports, an expression of living heritage, of their territory and of all humanity.