Kaupapa Māori concept modelling for the creation of Māori IT Artefacts

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper introduces a kaupapa Māori model for the creation of Māori Information Technology (IT) artefacts, an alternative Artificial Intelligence (AI) related development to the exciting colonial dominated AI biased systems. In Aotearoa, Māori are over-represented in underachievement in education, poor health, welfare dependency and incarceration rates (New Zealand Department of Corrections. 2007. Over-representation of Māori in the criminal justice system: an exploratory report. Department of Corrections [updated January 2022; accessed]. https://www.corrections.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0014/10715/Over-representation-of-Maori-in-the-criminal-justice-system.pdf.; Maclaurin J, Liddicoat J, Gavighan C, Knott A, Zerilli J. 2019. Government use of artificial intelligence in New Zealand. Wellington, New Zealand: The New Zealand Law Foundation). These disparities are now surfacing in imperial algorithms and exacerbating biased stereotypes in AI systems. We theorise that Kaupapa Māori theory is the foundation for the action of a Kaupapa Māori Modelling IT Artefact that provides solutions to solve whānau, hapū and iwi problems. We reflected on a critical review of selected literature on historical and contemporary Māori leadership and governance to identify elements of mātauranga and tikanga Māori that could enshrine the IT Artefacts. Investigations then took place to seek ways to transfer these elements of mātauranga and tikanga Māori into framed IT Artefacts during the problem initiation stage of the artefact. This paper presents a kaupapa Māori model for the creation of Māori IT artefacts. Whilst no discrete testing was undertaken, the Kaupapa Māori model provides an avenue to pursue an ontological paradigm using cause and effect theory for future research. Glossary of Māori terms: Aotearoa: Māori name for New Zealand; Hapū: Subtribe; Iwi: Tribe; Kai: Food; Kākahu: Garments, cloths, cloak, apparel, clothing, costume; Kapahaka: Concert party, haka group, Māori performing group; Kaupapa Māori: Māori principles and ideas which act as a base for action; Kōhanga Reo: Preschool language nests establishments; Kura Kaupapa Māori: Māori language immersion schools; Manaakitanga: Caring and sharing; Māori: Indigenous people of Aotearoa; Mana: Power, authority, ownership or, status; Marae: A sacred and communal place that serves religious and social purposes in Māori societies; Mātauranga Māori: Māori epistemology/knowledge; Niho taniwha: ‘Teeth of the taniwha’, the saw-edged pattern so often seen on tukutuku panels; Pākehā: New Zealander of European descent; Pōwhiri: To welcome, invite, beckon, wave; Raranga: Weaving; Te ao Mārama: Concept relating to wisdom and understanding, and the natural world of life and light; Tā moko: Tattoo; Tāniko: Finger weave, embroider; Te Pō: Night, darkness or place of departed spirits; Te reo Māori: Māori language; Tikanga Māori: Māori ontology/practices or Māori governance and intellectual protocols; Tino rangatiratanga: Self-determination, sovereignty, autonomy, self-government, domination, rule, control, power; Tukutuku: Lattice-work on panels; Wānanga: Māori tertiary institute; Whakapapa: Genealogy; Whakawhanaungatanga: Relationship, kinship, sense of family connection; Whakairo: Carving; Whānau: Family; Whenua: Land; Whiri / whiriwhiri: To deliberate, to consider or to bind together; Whakataukī: Proverb, significant saying, formulaic saying, cryptic saying, aphorism; Kei roto i a koe tōu ake mana: The seed of potential lies within each of us; He waka eke noa: We are all in this canoe together; Nāu te rourou, nāku te rourou, ka ora ai te iwi: With your food basket and my food basket, our people will thrive; Mauri tū, mauri ora: An active soul is a healthy soul; Pinetohu: Labels; Tātai hono: Connections – Make connections; Te anga taunekeneke: Framing – Interactions framework; Ngā piringa: Relationships; Ki te toro: Engagement – To engage.