Severed at the head: towards revitalising the mauri of Te Awa o te Atua

Abstract

ABSTRACT Te Awa o te Atua, known today as the Tarawera River, lies in the Bay of Plenty, North Island, New Zealand. Despite its immense importance to iwi, it has been subject to intense anthropogenic pressures and modification over the past century. Ngāti Rangitihi, one iwi kaitiaki of the river, wanted to understand how the mauri of Te Awa o te Atua has been impacted, with the ultimate aim of revitalising the mauri. Drawing from mātauranga Māori and science the analysis undertaken provides insights for a recovery plan that Ngāti Rangitihi can champion. Critically this approach has identified solutions that neither body of knowledge could have reached in isolation. Using the Mauri Model, the mauri of the Te Awa o te Atua was determined to be significantly depleted, with the re-routing of the Tarawera River severing the head of the river and stranding the lagoon having had the most negative impact. Glossary of Māori words: Iwi: kinship group; Kāinga: home, village, settlement; Kaitiaki: guardian; Kaitiakitanga: guardianship; Kaupapa: values and principles; Kōrero: accounts; Mahinga kai: food-gathering practice; Mamae: deeply felt intergenerational hurt; Mana whenua: territorial authority; Mātauranga Māori: māori knowledge, culture, values and world view; Mauri: life force (see also section in text); Pūrākau: codified maori narrative; Taonga: treasure (noun), to be treasured (verb); Te Awa o te Atua River of the Gods; Tikanga: cultural practices; Tino rangatiratanga: chiefly autonomy; Tuna: eel; Urupā: burial ground; Waka: canoe; Wānanga: discuss and deliberate; Whakaoranga te iwi: revitalise health for the people; Whakapapa: drawing identity from; Wheke: octopus