ABSTRACT

Mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) is grounded in place-based, multi-generational knowledge and the connection of that knowledge with the environments from which it is derived. It takes for granted that all elements of the natural world are related, and it is upon those relationships that survival depends. A Māori worldview advocates for the responsibility of each generation to pass onto their descendants at least as good a supply of resources as they, themselves, had inherited. For Māori, the wellness of the environment is a direct reflection on the wellness of the people. This article provides an overview of a practical mātauranga Māori-led marine restoration project in Ōhiwa harbour. The transdisciplinary project worked with a traditional Māori master weaver and kaumātua (tribal elders) to develop biodegradable taura kuku (green-lipped mussel spat settlement lines, hereafter taura kuku) made from traditional Māori plant biowaste and other natural materials. The taura kuku proved a successful tool for the recruitment and settlement of wild mussel spat assisting shellfish restoration and increasing marine biodiversity in the culturally and ecologically important mahinga kai (traditional food basket) of Ōhiwa harbour.

摘要

Mātauranga Māori（毛利知识）以基于地方的多代知识以及该知识与其衍生环境的联系为基础。理所当然地认为自然界的所有元素都是相关的，而生存所依赖的正是这些关系。毛利人的世界观主张每一代人都有责任将至少与他们自己继承的资源一样好的资源传递给他们的后代。对于毛利人来说，环境的健康直接反映了人们的健康。本文概述了在 Ōhiwa 港由 mātauranga Māori 领导的实际海洋恢复项目。这个跨学科项目与一位传统的毛利织工大师和 kaumātua（部落长老）合作，开发了由传统毛利植物生物废料和其他天然材料制成的可生物降解 taura kuku（绿唇贻贝卵定居线，以下简称 taura kuku）。taura kuku 被证明是招募和安置野生贻贝幼崽的成功工具，有助于在 Ōhiwa 港具有重要文化和生态意义的 mahinga kai（传统食物篮）中恢复贝类并增加海洋生物多样性。