For Isla, volunteering in China became a deeply personal journey of cultural discovery. While she travelled with the intention of supporting classrooms and engaging with local communities, she quickly found herself recognising familiar values and practices that echoed her own Māori heritage. What unfolded was not a one-way experience of teaching or learning, but a genuine cultural exchange grounded in respect, curiosity, and shared ways of seeing the world.
Throughout her placement, Isla was encouraged to share her Māori culture openly. Whether through kōrero, waiata, or conversations about tikanga, she found that many Chinese students and teachers were eager to learn about Māori traditions and the values that sit behind them. In turn, Isla began to notice striking similarities between Māori cultural practices and those she encountered in China.
“What really surprised me was how familiar some things felt,” Isla reflected. “The respect shown to elders, the importance of family, and the way traditions are passed down – those ideas are very strong in Māori culture, and I saw the same respect reflected in Chinese culture.”
As she spent more time in her host community, Isla observed how cultural identity in China is closely tied to history, place, and collective memory. These observations resonated strongly with her own upbringing, where whakapapa, connection to whenua, and the role of community are central. Conversations with students and teachers often moved beyond surface-level curiosity and into deeper discussions about identity, belonging, and responsibility to future generations.
“Sharing my culture didn’t feel like performing,” Isla said. “It felt like opening a door. Once that door was open, people shared their own stories and traditions with me as well.”
Learning about China through this lens helped Isla gain a more nuanced understanding of the country. Rather than viewing culture as something static or distant, she experienced it as something lived and evolving, shaped by daily practice and shared values. At the same time, explaining Māori concepts in an international setting gave her new insight into her own culture and strengthened her confidence in expressing who she is.
The Hongi Volunteer Programme encourages this kind of exchange by creating space for volunteers to bring their whole selves into the experience. Volunteers are not asked to leave their identities at home; instead, they are supported to share them respectfully while learning from the cultures they are immersed in. For Isla, this approach transformed her placement into a meaningful dialogue between cultures.
“I went to China thinking I’d be learning about a completely different way of life,” she said. “I did learn so much, but I also learned that there are many shared values that connect us. That made the experience feel very human.”
Stories like Isla’s highlight the unique role that cultural exchange plays within the volunteer programme. By connecting people at a values level, volunteers are able to build understanding that goes beyond language and geography, creating relationships that are genuine and lasting.
For future volunteers, Isla’s experience shows that the programme is not only an opportunity to explore China, but also a chance to deepen one’s understanding of their own culture, and to share it in a way that is meaningful and respected.
