‘The past is always in front of us’: Locating Historical Māori Waterscapes at the Centre of Discussions of Current and Future Freshwater Management

Abstract

This chapter examines the historical waterscapes of Indigenous Māori iwi (tribes) and hapū (sub-tribes) in the Waipā River (Aotearoa New Zealand). We highlight some of the principles of Te Ao Māori (the Māori world) that shaped Māori understandings and engagements with their ancestral waters and lands prior to colonisation. We explore how the arrival of Europeans resulted in Māori embracing new technologies, ideas, and biota, but always situating and adapting these new imports to fit within their Indigenous ontologies and epistemologies. In contrast, British colonial officials were unwilling to embrace such cross-cultural learnings nor allow Te Ao Māori to peacefully co-existent with their own world (Te Ao Pākehā). Military invasion, war, and the confiscation of Māori land occurred, which laid the foundations for environmental injustices.

Decolonising Flooding and Risk Management: Indigenous Peoples, Settler Colonialism, and Memories of Environmental Injustices

“…Sustainability 2022, 14, x FOR PEER REVIEW 7 of 32 intergenerational duties and responsibilities that local iwi, hapū and whānau possess for caring for their rohe and its more-than-human beings (their kin), based on the principle of kaitiakitanga (environmental guardianship) [49][50][51]. Rather than thinking about adopting a short-term (days, months, or years) view of environmental management and the material security of homes and livelihoods, Māori (paralleling many Indigenous groups) adopted a longer-term framing [16,46,52,53].…”

“…Accordingly, flooding was situated as part of normal functioning within social-ecological systems, which were premised on reciprocal and enduring kin-based relationships between Māori and more-than-human-beings (rivers, lands, seas, plants, animals, supernatural beings, gods) within their taiao (for more details about Māori worldviews, values and knowledge systems see the recent article by Parsons and Fisher 2020) [48]. A key part of Te Ao Māori relates to the ongoing intergenerational duties and responsibilities that local iwi, hap ū and whānau possess for caring for their rohe and its more-than-human beings (their kin), based on the principle of kaitiakitanga (environmental guardianship) [49][50][51]. Rather than thinking about adopting a short-term (days, months, or years) view of environmental management and the material security of homes and livelihoods, Māori (paralleling many Indigenous groups) adopted a longer-term framing [16,46,52,53].…”

Building a Monitoring Toolkit to Give Effect to Ngaa Rauru Freshwater Values

“…Even in the mid to late 1900s, when environmental degradation became prominent in public discourse, we still focused on aesthetic values and the use of the environment, rather than our relationship with it (Beattie & Star, 2010). Parsons et al (2021) discuss this divergence between Maaori and Paakehaa environmental values from an environmental justice perspective. The authors highlight how we perceive environmental injustice across worldviews: a Western perspective tied to individualistic and material rights, and a…”

“…Likewise, Smith (2012) talks about the politics of truth, the importance of owning up to limitations, and where compromises are made. There is potential to forge a path forward by building of Parsons et al (2021) and Smith (2012) to establish reflective, ontologically constructive, and self-aware relationships. Only then can be Maaori environmental values be adequately considered in their own right, rather than through the lens of Eurocentric environmental value sets, which are implicitly adopted by management bodies like Regional Councils.…”