In my recent Master’s thesis for a degree in Degrowth: Ecology, Economics and Policy at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, I explored how kaupapa Māori enterprises contribute to achieving Māori aspirations.
In settler colonial countries, Indigenous nations have faced systemic destruction through dispossession and de-culturalisation, eliminating traditional modes of production and value creation. Modern Indigenous enterprises can contribute to rebuilding Indigenous identity, wellbeing and freedom. They embed economy into the socio-cultural space – not the other way round, as Westerners typically see it.
Through in-depth interviews with individuals deeply involved in kaupapa Māori enterprises, my research uncovered factors of aspiration and enterprise and how they relate. Results suggest four primary ways these enterprises advance Māori aspirations:
- Developing Collective Capacity to Aspire: Kaupapa Māori enterprises harness various forms of capital—social, cultural and economic—to build a collective capacity among Māori to envision their aspirations.
- Generating Necessary Capabilities and Freedoms: These enterprises create the essential capabilities (e.g. resources and skills) that enable Māori to achieve their aspirations, fostering self-determination.
- Sustaining te ao Māori: These enterprises play a crucial role in reproducing te ao Māori (the Māori worldview), providing spaces where Māori can be themselves.
- Navigating Western Paradigms: These enterprises navigate and mitigate the tensions between Indigenous and Western paradigms, ensuring that Māori aspirations are not sidelined by dominant Western economic and cultural practices.
Kaupapa Māori enterprises are more than just economic entities, they are vital to the cultural and social fabric of Māori communities. They support the overall wellbeing and freedom of Māori people and the sustainability of their environment by operating within a framework that prioritises Māori values and aspirations.
While these research findings are specific to the Māori context, they highlight the potential of culturally embedded economic practices to support the aspirations of communities. By conducting similar research, we can discover how other forms of enterprise might also advance the collective aspirations of different groups.
As a non-Māori researcher, I recognise that my positionality imposed limitations on this study. I conducted the research in accordance with kaupapa Māori methodology as far as possible, under the guidance of a Māori academic supervisor, aiming to maintain cultural integrity and respect throughout the process.
Image by Eduardo Soares on Unsplash
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