“Most of the policies and resource management that we have in place for the ocean and freshwater restrict the rights of iwi. So what we need to do is promote and strengthen tino rangatiratanga for our iwi, hapu and whānau within policy and resource management.”
Te Aomihia Huriwhenua Walker (Ngāti Porou) is a policy analyst at Te Ohu Kaimoana (the Māori Fisheries Trust). She’s part of a six-month residency run by UNESCO in Iceland, learning about fisheries systems.
“The aim is to strengthen each fellows’ professional capacity within fisheries so they can implement what they’ve learnt into the systems of their home country,” she says.
“I think we have to closely look at our knowledge and customs to help solve the issues our environments are facing, issues like pollution and overfishing.”
This is part of our reo Māori series, Ohinga, created by Mahi Tahi Media, with funding from Te Māngai Pāho.
Stay tuned for a new episode every week.