Theatre Marae is a contemporary theatre practice unique to Aotearoa New Zealand, and this article outlines its application as an Indigenous-informed creative framework for qualitative research. As a research methodology, Theatre Marae is based in a conceptual partnership between traditional and contemporary Māori performing arts, applied theatre and the therapeutic encounter. As a form of theatre pedagogy, Theatre Marae has been applied as a decolonising strategy in ensemble work, and to craft evocative theatre that honours Māori expressions of colonisation, trauma and social justice.

In a 2009 speech, prominent Māori lawyer Moana Jackson said that the novel Once Were Warriors (Duff, 1990) could have been more appropriately named Once Were Gardeners (New Zealand Drug Foundation, 2009). By doing so he argued against the notion that Māori possess a “warrior gene” predisposing them to violence. Instead, Jackson maintained, Māori were more likely to have a predisposition for gardening. Gardening, or mahi māra, has been practised by Māori for centuries in Aotearoa New Zealand. Although motivations may have changed, mahi māra remains an important expression of what it means to be Māori.

In New Zealand, speech-language therapists work through both the health and the education systems. In common with many Indigenous peoples, Māori have faced inequities in both health and education for decades. Kaupapa Māori education systems have been developed to support educational success and the survival of kaupapa Māori knowledge and te reo Māori. However, disparities between Māori and non-Māori still exist in the delivery of speech-language therapy services. The study reported in this article explored Māori experiences of speech-language therapy in kaupapa Māori education using Kaupapa Māori methodology, an Indigenous research approach that privileges Māori culture and knowledge.

The Māori Electoral Option is a period of 4 months, every 5 years, when Māori electors can choose whether to be on the Māori or the General Electoral Roll. The outcome of the Māori Electoral Option is a key factor in determining the number of Māori seats in the New Zealand Parliament. The Electoral Commission estimates that approximately 6,000 Māori voters each year request to change electoral roll, but in 2017 over 19,000 voters applied to change. Why were so many more Māori wanting to change and why did they not know they could only change during the Māori Electoral Option held every 5 years?

This article explores the Indigenous principle of kaitiakitanga as it relates to Māori agrifood practices. Our discussion is based on interviews with a small cross-section of Māori in the agrifood sector whose practices are informed by a long-standing appreciation of the interconnected realities of lands, food, people and waterways. We consider how the shared Kaupapa Māori principles underpinning these food practices form part of a wider Kaupapa Māori land, water and food systems approach which we call “Kai Ora”. As is evident in the stories that follow, Kaupapa Māori values are practised in diverse ways by different kaitiaki food producers.

What role can marae communities play in a post-COVID-19 lockdown “reset”? This situation report looks at the opportunity of unlocking innovation within marae kin communities through developing food system enterprises. It considers the idea of regenerating gardens and associated initiatives. It argues that gardens that once fed local kin communities may not only provide kai for locally resident members but also be developed at new scales and so provide for kin members wherever they live.

As the government shifts its focus from COVID-19 elimination to addressing the longer-term social and economic repercussions of the pandemic, it is critical that Māori are able to partner and lead in decision-making. In the new normal of a post-COVID Aotearoa, the transformational vision of just

In this situation report I highlight how Te Tiriti o Waitangi is relevant to state and Māori regulation related to the COVID-19 pandemic, suggesting also that it was somewhat ignored by Aotearoa New Zealand’s state institutions during the country’s initial response. Focusing on the te reo text of Te Tiriti

as the constitutionally and legally primary text of the Treaty of Waitangi, I argue, first, that Te Tiriti requires joint Māori and state regulation over the territories and peoples of Aotearoa New Zealand, including with respect to the COVID-19 pandemic. Second, Te Tiriti requires state government to

Gout is a health condition that can be managed to prevent morbidity and premature mortality. Māori have a higher prevalence of gout yet are less likely to receive appropriate care than non-Māori. There is scant literature presenting the patient/whānau voice relating to the health system response to gout. The study reported in this article aimed to highlight barriers and enablers in achieving best practice management of gout as defined by patients in order to inform the development of appropriate pathways and services. Using a Kaupapa Māori approach, interviews were undertaken with 23 participants as part of a multi-layered intervention to improve the management of gout for Māori.

This article is written as a provocation. By re-examining the practice of discouraging children from speaking te reo Māori in schools, we challenge our students and other researchers to be alert to the ways in which Māori are often positioned in critical research. Many otherwise radical accounts that focus on Māori assimilation into a Western social order unwittingly take a coloniser-centric approach, inevitably representing Māori as passive non-agents.