Whai Rawa - Māori Economies

In this platform research, our focus makes the distinction between ‘kai’ as a culturally defined Māori notion and western interpretations of ‘food’.

The overarching research platform questions include:

What current methods do Māori (particularly those on low incomes and/or living in conditions of poverty) use to manage money?

What financial products and services are likely to be effective for Māori and how might these be successfully implemented?

This project explores the role that enterprise plays in indigenous self-determination. In New Zealand, we have chosen to examine Māori business networks (MBNs), which we argue are a manifestation of this struggle, but suffer from the absence of a sustainable business model.

How can 21st century Māori self-determination and self-governance jurisdiction aspirations best be supported in law to assist with meeting strategic Māori community economic objectives of wealth and well-being?

The purpose of this internship project is to further the operationalising of Indigenous Data Sovereignty principles by identifying tikanga that could inform practical data governance mechanisms.