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Indigenous Knowledge Revitalisation: Indigenous Māori Gardening and its Wider Implications for the People of Tūhoe

Indigenous Knowledge Revitalisation: Indigenous Māori Gardening and its Wider Implications for the People of Tūhoe

ABSTRACT. The revitalisation of Indigenous knowledges is vital to the emancipation of Indigenous peoples worldwide, as well as an increasingly essential component of environmental sustainability. The re-establishment of traditional communal gardening practices and their associated rituals is part of such revitalisation efforts in Aotearoa|New Zealand. We document recent efforts to re-establish the knowledge and practice of communal gardens and the related ritual of māra tautāne in an Indigenous Māori community – Te Māhurehure – in the Rūātoki Valley, Bay of Plenty, Aotearoa|New Zealand. We discuss that, beyond food provision, such revitalisation has a concentric influence of revitalising a range of other Indigenous knowledges for this community.

Keywords: Indigenous knowledges; communal gardening; māra kai; māra tautāne; Ngai Tūhoe; Rūātoki; Te Māhurehure; land confiscation; cultural revival

How to cite: Tassell-Matamua, N., Boasa-Dean, T., and McEntee, M. (2023). Indigenous Knowledge Revitalisation: Indigenous Māori Gardening and its Wider Implications for the People of Tūhoe. Knowledge Cultures, 11(1), 98–114. https://doi.org/10.22381/kc11120236

Received 1 December 2022 • Received in revised form 1 February 2023
Accepted 24 February 2023 • Available online 1 April 2023

open access

Natasha Tassell-Matamua
n.a.tassell-matamua@massey.ac.nz
Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa|Massey University
Aotearoa|New Zealand
Teina Boasa-Dean
indigenouspsychologies@massey.ac.nz
Ngāi Tūhoe Te Māhurehure
Aotearoa|New Zealand
Marie McEntee
m.mcentee@auckland.ac.nz
School of Environment,
Waipapa Taumata Rau|University of Auckland
Aotearoa|New Zealand