Te Pā Auroa nā Te Awa Tupua: the new (but old) consciousness needed to implement Indigenous frameworks in non-Indigenous organisations

Abstract

The Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Act 2017 formalised a new way to view, use and understand Te Awa Tupua—the Whanganui River. While giving legal personhood to a river is relatively recent, the paradigm shift towards a new consciousness of natural phenomena having physical and spiritual identities originates from Indigenous knowledge, values and practices. The framework that will implement this new change, Te Pā Auroa nā Te Awa Tupua, is values-based, appoints positions and governance groups, includes a whole-of-river strategy, is supported with funding and applies legal recognition to the Whanganui River and its intrinsic values. This article seeks to build a bridge of understanding to facilitate non-Indigenous engagement with implementing Te Pā Auroa nā Te Awa Tupua as an organising framework for human action and relations with human and nonhuman entities.

Experiments with the Extension of Legal Personality to Ecosystems and Beyond-Human Organisms: Challenges and Opportunities for Company Law

“…52 These values include the proverb 'Ko au te Awa, ko te Awa ko au', or 'I am the River and the River is me', which expresses the inalienable connection that local iwi and hapū5 3 have with the Whanganui River, and the responsibilities that these peoples owe to maintain the health and well-being of the river. 54…”

Los ríos como territorio en disputa: hacia un enfoque relacional del agua en Chile / Rivers as Disputed Territory: Towards a Relational Approach to Water in Chile

“…El caso de Aotearoa (Nueva Zelanda), con el modelo de Ley Te Awa Tupua 2017 sobre el río Whanganui como sujeto de derechos, es probablemente uno de los ejemplos más emblemáticos de una legislación con un enfoque relacional (Macpherson & Weber Salazar, 2020). La legislación y los espacios de toma de decisiones se configuran de tal manera que reconocen la relación entre los iwi whanganui (tribus de Whanganui) y Te Awa Tupua, los principios que orientan la acción y mātauranga (sistemas de conocimiento maorí) en su relación con el río como un todo indivisible (Cribb et al, 2022).…”

Legal Mechanisms for Protecting Indigenous Knowledge

“…Moreover, indigenous knowledge contributes significantly to cultural diversity, offering perspectives that enrich our understanding of human-nature relationships. It embodies complex social and cultural practices, languages, rituals, and arts, all of which are crucial for the cultural identity and continuity of indigenous communities (Cribb et al, 2022). The protection and revitalization of indigenous languages, for instance, are essential not only for the preservation of cultural heritage but also for the survival of the knowledge embedded in these languages.…”

“…One crucial insight is the importance of involving indigenous communities in the design and implementation of legal frameworks. This participatory approach ensures that laws and policies are culturally sensitive and aligned with the needs and values of indigenous peoples (Cribb et al, 2022).…”

“…The global landscape of intellectual property rights often fails to accommodate the collective and intergenerational nature of indigenous knowledge, leading to gaps in protection and instances of biopiracy (Bhaduri, 2023). Furthermore, the integration of indigenous knowledge into mainstream legal systems raises complex issues of ownership, control, and access, necessitating a nuanced and culturally sensitive approach (Callison et al, 2021;Cribb et al, 2022). Recognizing these challenges, scholars and policymakers have advocated for a holistic, principle-based approach that respects the rights and traditions of indigenous peoples while ensuring their knowledge contributes to sustainable development and cultural preservation (Hossain & Ballardini, 2021;Leonard, 2021).…”