Māui Rau: Aspiration to execution

(2019) Over the last 10-15 years, there has been renewed interest in Matariki and the holding of events in celebration of this milestone. We are exploring options for Māori leaders to strengthen their organisations as they try to provide for their people (consumption), invest for the future (planting new seeds), and all the while face pressure from many other parties to do more while resources can grow increasingly scarce.

In the inaugural 2016 issue of Māui Rau, we looked at the possibilities for Māori, where we were headed, what stood in our way and how we might overcome those barriers in order to accelerate the pace at which we realise the wellbeing of our people and environment. In 2017, we picked up on two levers from 2016 – leadership and entrepreneurship – that could be pulled in our efforts to significantly change the trajectory of our path to mana Motuhake.

Both of those reports were based on discussions with approximately 250 people from a broad cross section of people with a strong interest in Māori economic development. They included small business owners, government employees, and consultants; along with employees and governors from many Māori organisations.

This year we have changed the approach for this third report in the Māui Rau series. We have taken this opportunity to share our observations from our work and/or involvement with collectively[1]owned Māori entities such as iwi organisations, trusts and incorporations. Individually and collectively, these entities have scale and the commercial and political influence to effect significant change.