Ko Wai Mātou
Landscapes are an integral component for the identity of people. The Māori people express an interconnectedness between land and people that form one's identity. Mātauranga Māori; the traditional indigenous knowledge of the Maori people originates from the natural world (Te Taiao), where mountains, rivers, lakes, forests and place are essential within Māori identity (Turangawaewae).
Since the first British ships arrived at Aotearoa/New Zealand, traditional Māori knowledge has degraded in both theory and practice due to the ongoing dominance of western society. Western development continuously degrades the health of the natural environment. Forests and waterways to this day are cleared and buried for the urban expansion of modern cities. This constant alteration of the natural landscape diminishes the cultural connection Māori once had with the natural landscape and is only becoming scarcer with time.
Mātauranga Māori is slowly growing within the landscape architecture field as a progressive way forward to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Throughout this research Māori knowledge is used to facilitate an innovative approach in representing Māori values within landscape architecture design. Māori focused frameworks and methods are investigated to provide a strong connection between Māori principles and the natural landscape. It is with intention that the design framework within this study can be replicated and aid designers with clarity regarding Māori representation.
Running its course below the urban infrastructure of Wellington City, Waimapihi Stream was once rich in resources for the local lwi (Tribe) of Te Whanganui a Tara (Wellington) before being buried over a century ago due to the demand of settler development. The Waimapihi stream still holds a significant amount of cultural value to the local lwi of Te Whanganui a Tara and this research will look at opportunities to represent this cultural significance through landscape design and Mātauranga Māori led frameworks to increase the awareness and importance of this buried waterway.
This design-led research investigates Mātauranga Māori design principles and multifunctional green and blue spaces to reclaim Waimapihi as an important part of Wellington's dense urban landscape. It does that by approaching the waterway with a case study research and investigation of the pre-colonial past and bi-cultural relationship of Aotearoa {New Zealand). It finds that by reinstating Wellington's pre-colonial past within a colonial urban environment will provide cultural connection to the natural landscape within an otherwise unrepresented urban sprawl while providing the wider Wellington communities with the health and well-being benefits derived from green and blue infrastructure.
