25 Sep Healthy Families Manukau, Manurewa-Papakura: Disrupting mainstream discourses with a wairua centered approach

South Auckland has the largest Māori population in the world. Imagine if Māori:
-Mobilised a collective voice for change
-Lead discussions at decision making tables, at all levels across the system
Pioneered indigenous leadership for social change, locally, nationally and globally

In this presentation Mason Ngawhika, Nikki Timu and Anaru Ah Kew from Healthy Families Manukau, Manurewa-Papakura, will demonstrate how they have provided the tools in support of localised Māori systems, which leverage ancestral practices to inform community-led solutions. They look to shift the focus from a human centred approach to a wairua centred approach that places the environment at the heart as an alternative to mainstream ideologies.

Through Māori systems the team aims to empower communities to return to a place of understanding, being observant and using Te Taiao (the natural environment) as well as Te Taiao Tangata (the built environment) to restore the natural balance and reciprocal relationship between manaaki whenua and manaaki tangata. This supports the notion that when the whenua is cared for, people are naturally ‘well’. “Ko te awa ko au, ko au ko te awa”

The aim of this webinar is to:
-Challenge dominant mainstream discourses which rely solely on Western science or Western health approaches to alleviate the burden of disease and degradation of our natural environment.
-Encourage ways for Māori to move from being victims of change, to drivers of change through crafting solutions which enable Māori to adapt and thrive in a constantly changing climate and social system.
-Showcase design thinking practices which reframe the paradigm of thinking to a wairua centered approach, which has an emphasis on the ecosystem rather than an ego-system.