Māori values in geothermal management and development

Abstract

When Māori arrived at Aotearoa (New Zealand), they enjoyed an exclusive relationship with their country’s geothermal resources, which they valued spiritually and physically. After European settlement, this relationship was no longer exclusive, and Māori thereafter held spiritual, physical, and additionally, political values towards geothermal resources in their attempt to remain relevant in Aotearoa’s geothermal industry. In recent history, these values have been overlooked and forgotten by many, including some Māori, due to a certain ignorance displayed by those who practised modern and more invasive forms of geothermal management and development. The presented study involved a series of wānanga (Māori-based workshops), first to discuss the history regarding these values and thereby recognising where they originated from, and second to reinterpret these values as indicators of cultural sustainability, such that they may be more practically accounted for when considering the management and development of geothermal resources in Aotearoa.