About 50 physical education students will participate in the three-day programme organised by the Te Taitimu Trust in collaboration with Water Safety New Zealand (WSNZ) and the University of Otago.
Students will learn about water safety through workshops, presentations and activities based around the Puketeraki marae from Friday.
The wananga, established in Hawkes Bay, had a Maori focus and was being trialled outside the North Island for the first time.
It coincided with this week's International Water Safety Day and aimed to reduce New Zealand's average of 105 drowning deaths each year.
Participants were encouraged to share water safety advice and skills with other young people in the community.
WSNZ chief executive Matt Claridge said it was an effective way to educate young New Zealan-ders, as it gave mentors the opportunity to be leaders within their communities and inspire fellow youth.
''The wananga was an existing programme which we have been involved in for three years now. We share a common view with regards to the outcome, the audience and the approach,'' Mr Claridge said.
It was also part of the Kia Maanu, Kia Ora initiative - a partnership between ActivePost (New Zealand Post) and WSNZ aimed at raising water safety awareness among Maori.
Te Taitimu Trust founder Zack Makoare, of Flaxmere, developed the programme after his son died and beaches near their home became a haven for his grieving family.
He wanted youth to learn respect for the water in a traditional Maori sense and to understand its power.
''It's more than just getting kids to put a life jacket on,'' he said.
Otago physical education lecturer Anne-Marie Jackson was involved in the Hawkes Bay wananga and helped bring it to Dunedin as a pilot programme for implementation throughout New Zealand.
Students would be able to share knowledge from the programme through their involvement with schools and in their future professional capacities, she said.
''We thought it would be good to bring together the different groups and the hapu from down here to work collectively around Maori water safety.''
