Abstract
At Te Papa Atawhai/Department of Conservation in Aotearoa New Zealand, ‘cultural differences’ account for some of the difficulties that department staff experience in their interaction with Indigenous Māori in conservation work. To meet the need for better ‘cultural awareness’ of Māori conservation principles, the department has facilitated the development of Te Pūkenga Atawhai, which is an introductory course to Māori views of conservation offered to all department staff. For Māori, the course is also a part of a broader revitalisation process for Māori culture and society and a recognition of their bicultural Treaty partnership with the Crown. The paper investigates how the Te Pūkenga Atawhai course addresses the perceived difficulties with cultural differences between DOC and Māori in conservation work, and how Pou Kura Taiao and participants perceive its usefulness for teaching staff about Māori views of conservation. Some department staff argue that the course has contributed to a better understanding of Māori culture and conservation principles; others that it is too politicised and engages in cultural ‘tokenism’ of little relevance for conservation work.
Highlights
Te Pūkenga Atawhai (‘the source of learning’) is a cultural awareness course organised by Te Papa Atawhai/Department of Conservation (DOC) in Aotearoa New Zealand and offered to its staff to acknowledge the bicultural Treaty partnership between IndigenousMāori and the Crown, learn about Māori views of conservation and ‘enable staff to build and maintain effective working relationships’ with Māori [1] (Foreword)
This paper focuses on how the Māori cultural revitalisation processes and the Treaty partnership between Māori and the Crown in Aotearoa New Zealand are expressed in the conservation work carried out by DOC
This paper investigates how the Te Pūkenga Atawhai course contributes to overcoming perceived difficulties with cultural differences between DOC and Māori in conservation work, and how Pou Kura Taiao and participants perceive its usefulness for teaching staff about Māori views of conservation
Summary
Te Pūkenga Atawhai (‘the source of learning’) is a cultural awareness course organised by Te Papa Atawhai/Department of Conservation (DOC) in Aotearoa New Zealand and offered to its staff to acknowledge the bicultural Treaty partnership between IndigenousMāori and the Crown, learn about Māori views of conservation and ‘enable staff to build and maintain effective working relationships’ with Māori [1] (Foreword). Te Pūkenga Atawhai (‘the source of learning’) is a cultural awareness course organised by Te Papa Atawhai/Department of Conservation (DOC) in Aotearoa New Zealand and offered to its staff to acknowledge the bicultural Treaty partnership between Indigenous. Taiao (Māori conservation ethics and relations managers in the conservancies, who work as Te Pūkenga Atawhai course teachers) were tasked with developing a cultural awareness programme to address these issues. The Te Pūkenga Atawhai course was developed in response to the increasing need for DOC to ‘improve the performance of the DOC in terms of meeting its statutory obligations’ with Māori as Treaty partners in conservation [1] (Foreword), and since 1999, the course has been offered several times per year at different locations. Between 1999 and 2016, over 6000 DOC employees took the course at least once and the goal for 2018 was to enrol
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
