The rohe moana space of Tīkapa Moana and Te Moananui-ā-Toi is the ancestral being that is at the heart of this research plan from which our transformative marine reforms extend.
Ngā Pōito o Te Kūpenga o Taramainuku is the worldview in which our ancestors comprehended and interacted with this vast space for over 600-800 years. These waterways are located near the largest city in Aotearoa and its once pristine seas full of rich biodiversity are frequently flushed with raw sewage, toxic waste and stormwater runoff. The subsequent detrimental impacts on the mauri of the rohe moana have currently reached a point of functional extinction of key taonga species.
Hence this project seeks to address the ecological collapse in the moana by reviewing, recalibrating, restoring, reconnecting and reigniting the mauri of the marine environment by using a mātauranga taiao Māori approach. Before the completion of the research programme is reached, Te teretere pumahara and the research team will meet, review and assess whether or not Pou Rāhui had achieved its primary objective, to reignite the mauri o te moana.
What are the localised environmental knowledge, taonga tuku iho and spaces at place?
The five iwi of the project (Ngāti Tamaterā, Ngāti Pāoa, Ngāti Hei, Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki and Ngāti Rehua Ngātiwai ki Aotea) are working with our mātanga taiao practitioners and Māori scientists to revitalise and review their environmental narratives regarding maramataka (lunar environmental calendar), the rising of stars and constellations associated with the marine environment, localised environmental indicators, and seasonal migration of marine mammals, fish, and birds. Elevating their collective environmental understanding of the moana embedded with each of their respective worldviews to marine ecosystem wellbeing, unlocks the potential of marine management reform
Research Aim 1 investigates relevant bodies of knowledge within mātauranga Māori including:
Tātai, whakapapa
Lunar calendar which guides, among other things, resource harvesting
Knowledge pertaining to the night sky
Weather patterns, climatic conditions
We will also study traditional concepts such as hauora, hau, mana, tapu and mauri as essential traditional indicators of oranga. The purpose of this part of the research is to evaluate existing traditional knowledge pertaining to environmental health of the moana. Recognising that the state of the Tīkapa Moana/Te Moananui-ā-Toi is radically different now (and in a state of decline), the research will turn to explore kaitiakitanga as an approach to environmental management in this radically changed environment.
This means creating an entirely new model of environmental action research that is scientifically robust, informed by mātauranga Māori, will be led by 5 iwi and be used as an evidentiary base to empower kaitiakitanga and rāhui going forward.
What will we need to do to revive the moana?
Research Aim 2 is in two parts.
Part One will work with cultural practitioners and kaumātua across the five iwi and identify traditional methods and materials including biowaste to assist in-water restoration methods, supported by marine science methods and tools, of identified species at priority sites in each rāhui area. We are collecting empirical information of localised mātauranga and ecological data to better understand the distribution and movement of nutrients (food), sediments, shellfish larvae and the role of local tidal patterns and maramataka as regulating food and larval supply to assist optimal habitat locations and variables important for shellfish recovery, survival, growth and recruitment. We are also investigating the co-production of mātauranga tools using localised natural materials (e.g. plant bio-waste to assist mid-water spat settlement, promote shellfish recovery, enhance a bio-circular economy and reduce plastic pollution in the moana). The findings from this work will be combined to co-develop pragmatic in-water restoration solutions for identified taonga shellfish species currently under rāhui, with iwi partners. The restoration solutions will prioritise mātauranga Māori innovation supported by relevant science methods in the field.
Part Two will train taiohi as the next generation kaitiaki to conduct in-water Marine Cultural Monitoring (MCM) and maintenance of identified restoration species and sites. A series of hands on wānanga are in progress to ensure that the uptake is embedded. Taiohi will complete a formal freedive qualification (safety and competency); to assist in-water biodiversity surveys and restoration monitoring efforts. Co-developed actions may include: marine cultural monitoring capability and capacity building; restorative aquaculture; bio-waste alternatives to reduce plastic pollution and increase biodiversity; technological tools for iwi practitioners to better monitor their rāhui and climate change impacts; and a moana toolkit to assist knowledge dissemination, replication and normalisation of mātauranga Māori science innovation, contribution and solutions for the benefit of Māori, our moana, our wider communities and Aotearoa as a whole.
How can the practice of kaitiakitanga and rāhui remain “fit for purpose” in today’s changing world?
Research Aim 3 will co-develop a moana toolkit to assist knowledge dissemination, access, replication and normalisation of mātauranga Māori science innovation, contribution and solutions for the benefit of Māori, our moana, our wider communities and Aotearoa New Zealand as a whole.
Currently, there is a lack of local, regional and national data on the degradation of coastal marine habitats and ecosystems in Aotearoa New Zealand. Marine monitoring programs require better, more complete data sets which are accessible to decision-makers. This includes varied data sets from a range of sources and social, cultural perspectives to assist coastal and marine management into the future.