HE KETE HAUORA TAIAO A BICULTURAL ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORK By SARA MELISSA BELCHER A thesis submitted to the Victoria University of Wellington in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Victoria University of Wellington 2020 Tuhinga whakarāpopoto: Abstract Ka mau tonu ngā taonga tapu o ngā matua tupuna Koinei ngā taonga i tuku iho, na te ātua Hold fast to the treasures of the ancestors For they are the treasures that have been handed down to us by God’ (Dymond, 2013, p. 274) Ecologists, resource managers, landowners and iwi generally strive to manage biodiversity on their whenua as obliged by legislation. This may include restoration, protection, the mitigation of negative human impacts, or the prevention of further habitat loss. Mainstream ecological science and resource management (ERM) usually guides management decisions and provides evidence of management effectiveness. However, ecological science can struggle with stochastic and complex biological systems. Māori have hundreds of years of environmental knowledge and understanding that could be utilised by mainstream resource managers to enhance society's combined knowledge. An assessment tool that places mātauranga at its core can introduce a Māori perspective, privilege Māori knowledge, enable holistic co-management, re/introduce social values and create a common ground on which the two paradigms can connect. He Kete Hauora Taiao is an environmental assessment framework for terrestrial habitats constructed on Māori ecological health indicators by applying them to quantitative ecological scientific data. He Kete Hauora Taiao is built on the Driver – Pressure – State/Condition – Indicator – Response framework (K. F. D. Hughey, Cullen, Kerr, & Cook, 2004). Māori ecological perspectives or ariā (indicators, perspectives or concepts) are placed at the ‘condition’ level. Ariā include concepts such as mauri, whakapapa, tapu, wairua and mahinga kai which are linked to environmental structures, processes, functions and services. These ecological indicators can then be assessed with recognised qualitative scientific tools, metrics and targets. ESAT, Ecological State Assessment Tool, is a database that accompanies He Kete i Hauora Taiao and enables quantitative ecological data to be viewed through a Māori perspective and weighted according to its relevance to management objectives. Creating a new bicultural environmental assessment framework required the exploration of the intersection between Māori ecological knowledge (MEK) and ERM. To my knowledge this is the first MEK based ecological assessment framework created specifically for terrestrial habitats and the first one to attempt to quantify MEK ecological indicators, relate them to ecology and resource management metrics and develop an interface between the two epistemologies. He Kete Hauora Taiao and ESAT (Ecological Statement Assessment Tool) are valuable resource management tools. Together they can create resource management programmes informed by a Māori value framework and are tailored to specific whenua, iwi agendas and political reporting and management requirements. He Kete Hauora Taiao spans the intersection between ERM and MEK, enabling communication and translation. MEK may provide context to scientific data and the scientific data may help augment understanding of MEK. Combined, MEK and ERM may create a powerful force that could vastly improve our resource management and conservation efforts. He Kete Hauora Taiao is a framework that could be engaged with by territorial authorities, iwi kaitiaki and landowners nationwide to automatically build te ao Māori into our management practices. ii Acknowledgements This work has been fulfilling, intense, all-consuming, stressful and at times seemed like an endless endeavour. As with most undertakings of this size, I could not have accomplished it without help. I would like to acknowledge all the people who enabled and influenced this work. Firstly, I would like to thank my supervisors Ocean Mercier and Julie Deslippe. These two inspirational wahine toa (warrior woman) provided me with the encouragement, guidance, understanding and support I needed to mould this beast into something I hope will be valuable to resource managers over the motu. I would like to thank my management team at Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC). They ensured that the organisation provided me financial, physical and emotional support. I will be forever grateful that GWRC gave me this opportunity. Thanks to Graham Sevick-Jones who planted the seed that put me on this journey, provided the vision, supplied the subject and inspiration for this thesis and secured the funding from GWRC. Thank you Lucy Baker for continuing the support that Graham started and Philippa Crisp my long-suffering and endlessly patient team leader for letting me finish this thing. I would also like to shout out to my colleagues who put up with my absence over the last four years. A heartfelt thank you to my research assistant and Uncle, Jeff Foley. Your labour brought my ecological assessment tool to life. I am eternally indebted to you. Your dedication to this cause was awe-inspiring. Love you so much – we did it! Thank you to my interviewees for letting me in and giving me the taonga of your knowledge. You gave me a special view of the world. A special thank you to my funding providers. Without your investment and belief in me I would not have been able to undertake this task. Every bit you contributed was vital. Lisa Langer at Scion, thank you for your friendship and confidence in me. Garth Harmsworth at Landcare Research, your wisdom is remarkable. Thank you to Environment Southland and Horizons Regional Council. I hope you find this research and ESAT valuable. I appreciate your commitment to improving your iwi partnerships. Thank you to the Lakes Trust for your iii support. Lastly, thank you Victoria University of Wellington for the scholarships you bestowed on me. I was privileged to receive them. I want to thank my heart sister Belinda Watson for putting up with my distractedness and the cooking and cleaning you did that kept me alive. Special thanks to the best study buddy in the world Katy Cat. I don’t know if you helped or hindered but you were always a comfort in the dark times. Thanks to my MAI ki Pōneke whanau. You guys kept me sane and it has been a privilege to meet you all. Keep it real you amazing bunch. Aroha Nui Sara Belcher Tihei Mauri ora, Ki te wheiao, ki te ao marama We share the breath of life as fellow seekers of enlightenment (Henry & Pene, 2001, p. 234). iv Contents Tuhinga whakarāpopoto: Abstract .......................................................................................................... i Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................ iii Contents .................................................................................................................................................. v Glossary of Māori words ........................................................................................................................... Acronym List ........................................................................................................................................... ii Ūpoko Tahi – Te pea Chapter One – The potential ............................................. 1 Two-eyed seeing - Bridging the conceptual gap ..................................................................... 4 My positionality ....................................................................................................................... 6 Investigating the intersection between Māori ecological knowledge and Western ecology and resource management. .................................................................................................... 9 Decolonising knowledge ........................................................................................................ 10 Kaupapa Māori research ....................................................................................................... 14 Co-management .................................................................................................................... 18 Case Study – the co-management of Tītī ( Ardenna griesus ) ............................... 22 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 23 Ūpoko Rua – Mātai tuarangi Chapter Two – Cosmology ............................................... 26 Mainstream Western science ................................................................................................ 28 A short history of modern science ...................................................................... 30 Traditional ecological knowledge .......................................................................................... 32 Māori cosmology ................................................................................................................... 35 Ngā kete e toru - The baskets of knowledge ....................................................... 36 Kaitiakitanga and Whakapapa ............................................................................. 37 Indigenous ecological knowledge and mainstream science ................................................. 41 Sacred ecology - When ecology becomes spiritual and sacred ..........................