Some economists argue for diversity in the way collective resources are managed rather than one having an unquestioning faith in leaving things to the market. Our team supports this thinking and look at how ethics and Māori knowledge can be used equally alongside economics in managing collective Māori assets. We argue that simple measures of collective well-being used alongside mainstream economics are robust enough to help us make collective decisions. The team is developing a Māori knowledge and ethics based decision-making framework for collective assets. This framework is being tested and refined using three case studies with our iwi/hapū partners.

Shaun Awatere (Ngāti Porou) is a resource economist for Landcare Research in Hamilton. He has been working to improve the incorporation of Mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge and values) into local government planning by developing the systems and processes that will enable Māori values to be integrated into urban design and development.