Moving On From the Developmental View of Humanity

For many Indigenous people's questions relating to development and how development should occur are commonplace. In particular, which types of institutions Indigenous peoples should privilege and establish in order to manage resources and maintain cultural and political institutions is of paramount concern. While different models of development are mooted, the notion of a developmental view of humanity is less often unpicked. The aspects of Hindess' work which I would like to explore in this article are those that illuminate the cultural and political biases and bases which underpin the notion of a developmental view of humanity and the consignment of Indigenous peoples, while in the "present," to the "past" less-advanced stage of this continuum. I use Maori corporations as an illustration to argue that they are part of a diverse economy, the existence of which challenges the developmental view of humanity. © 2011 The Author(s).