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The National Development Act 1979 : a critical analysis : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the degree of Master of Arts in Sociology at Massey University
(Massey University, 1986) Boyle, Andrew Dorrington
This thesis analyses the National Development Act 1979. The theories of Claus Offe and Jurgen Habermas are used to analyse the Act as a capitalist state planning process. Two major theoretical distinctions provide a framework for the thesis. These are: (1) the distinction between technical rationalisation and practical rationalisation and (2) the contradiction between accumulation and legitimation. A clarification is made in the concept of legitimation to distinguish between actual or deserved legitimation and nominal or unfounded legitimation. An analysis of legislation, Tribunal reports, Cabinet papers and other documents shows the Act to be a dual planning process: one process occurring in secret and relating to accumulation; the other in public and relating to legitimation. Thus the Act is analysed as a technical planning process through which the state attempts to reconcile accumulation and legitimation.
Participation through communication : an investigation of communication tools used by stakeholders when participating in local democracry : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Studies in Communication Management at Massey University
(Massey University, 2004) Jordan, Ashleigh
In the face of declining interest in democratic matters, calls for greater participation have resulted in the global implementation of varying degrees of teledemocracy. The changing face of telecommunications, a tool of teledemocracy, has also resulted in a hope that participation will be encouraged among groups, such as youth, who traditionally have not participated in democratic matters. A total of 383 stakeholders from four lower North Island districts, who had made submissions to their local council regarding its 2004 Long Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP), participated in a survey. Additionally, three prominent community members fron Palmerston North, three Palmerston North City Councillors, one Horizons Regional Councillor, and four council staff from Auckland City Council, Tararua District Council, Rangitikei District Council, and Wanganui District Council participated in qualitative in-depth interviews. The Auckland City Council also piloted a project for receiving text message submissions. This was later abandoned because of public and political pressure. The purpose of this research is to investigate which communication tools are considered the most convenient and effective to use when participating in the submission process. Opinions regarding the communication tools currently offered by councils were gathered and compared. Key informants also commented on their attitude to consultation and the effectiveness of communication tools used in making submissions. Further, public and political opinions towards the possible introduction of text messaging to the submission process were also explored. The results indicate that the communication methods used to make submissions can influence how the submissions arc judged, with some tools being regarded by most participants in the research as being more effective. Submitters who were surveyed were positive regarding the current communication tools provided by councils for making submissions. However, the majority also showed high levels of prejudice against the use of text messaging, which is often considered a 'young' communication tool. Submission receivers interviewed showed a clear preference for formally written and oral submissions, demonstrating that some submissions are automatically attributed more value than others according to how they are presented. Consistent with previous research, political participants who took part in the survey were not representative of the wider community. This research showed current participants were more likely to be older, have had tertiary education, and to be either in full-time employment or retired. Despite the widespread call by researchers and academics for greater participation in local democracy, it appeared that the majority of current political participants, as represented by those taking part in the research, are not willing to relinquish their perceived power in the consultation and decision-making process to 'minority' participants, particularly young people The findings of this research indicate although each communication tool or method has its own inherent access barriers, the variety of tools available for use allows current stakeholders to choose one or more that best suits their needs. However, the bias in favour or written submissions supported by an oral presentation means that some submissions are automatically given more weight in the decision-making process than others. One conclusion that may be drawn from this finding is that it is not the communication tools themselves that act as a barrier to wider participation. It is, however, the attitudes of existing stakeholders and politicians, as revealed in the research, that form a barrier to wider participation by discouraging the involvement of younger citizens and those less able or willing to write formal submissions and present them orally in the traditional manner.
Visitor impact on the environment : perceptions and misconceptions : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Studies in Management at Massey University
(Massey University, 1997) Logie, Mary June
Ever since the Brundtland Report there has been strong focus on the need for effective environmental management to achieve sustainability and this has intensified since Agenda 21. Changes caused by increasing visitor numbers and easier access are causing concern in traditional recreational areas such as the chosen case study. Piha is easily accessible to almost one million people in the Auckland metropolitan area. In this fragile coastal environment there are many different perceptions of visitor impact. Conflict amongst user groups and residents is unavoidable unless the issues concerning environmental impacts are clarified. The key issue is the necessity for baseline environmental assessment that takes into account the perceptions of all stakeholders. Once any conflict of interest has been identified there is a better chance that conservation and development will be balanced and visitor impacts controlled. A method rarely used in the context of environmental planning is Trochim's Concept Mapping System. This project shows how the system can be applied to clarify environmental perceptions using stakeholder focus groups to clarify and rank important environmental issues. A traditional survey based on issues revealed by the concept mapping process and targeting a different population is used to test the conccpt mapping findings. The results of this study show concept mapping to be a useful resource planning tool not only for issue identification but also for providing a readily understood visual system to allow stakeholders to understand the complete picture in order to reach the understanding needed for useful involvement in a planning process. Used alone or alongside other planning techniques, it is shown to have a useful place in a planning system. Limits of Acceptable Change is a possible community-based planning framework for using the Concept Mapping system to incorporate stakeholders' perceptions. An adaptation of this framework may help achieve sustainable visitor impact management.
Planning a market : transferable planning mechanisms in New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Resource and Environmental Planning at Massey University
(Massey University, 1996) Gibson, Daryl John
New Zealand's Fourth Labour Government undertook radical reforms of the public sector during the mid 1980s. This Government implemented policy changes associated with the neo-liberal ideology, resulting in re-regulation of the national economy and an affirmation of the role of the market in decision-making. The Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) is a product of this changing political environment; it recognises market forces as legitimate methods of resource allocation and resolution of land-use conflicts. This thesis investigates the potential of using economic instruments, in the form of transferable planning mechanisms, to allocate water and land resources under the RMA. Specifically, transferable development rights and transferable water rights are examined in the context of achieving desirable environmental outcomes. The RMA promotes sustainability in the management of natural and physical resources through the concept of sustainable management. Any policy using transferable rights to achieve planning objectives is required to meet sustainable management criteria. This thesis explores issues associated with the adoption of transferable rights as planning techniques. The exploratory nature of the research reflects the limited application of such mechanisms in practice in New Zealand. Transferable planning mechanisms were conceived and first implemented in the United States, which provides a base for defining principles and evaluating practice. Commentary on the American experience is used in the thesis to gauge the potential benefits of using transferable planning mechanisms in New Zealand. Three New Zealand-based case studies were examined in the empirical phase of research. The case study analysis concluded that transferable development rights can be exercised in New Zealand's rural-urban fringe environments in the form of transferable title rights. This adjustment to the transferable development right concept is a result of New Zealand's more restrictive institutional environment (when compared to the United States) with regard to landowners' development rights. However, transferable title rights can only function effectively under certain conditions. There must be a positive demand differential between the areas of preservation and development, in favour of the designated receiving area of title rights. This is the greatest impediment to the successful implementation of transferable title rights in New Zealand. The thesis research highlights that, there is extensive scope for the effective use of transferable water rights in New Zealand; these have fewer logistical problems and greater market certainty than the application of transferable title rights. Planners should recognise the potential use of nonattenuated property rights as a means of allocating resources sustainably and reducing externalities in resource use decision-making.
The good fight : power and the indigenous struggle for the Manawatū river : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Resource and Environmental Planning at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2015) Bennett, April Leanne
Power is the central theme of this research. This thesis examines how power structures iwi contributions to freshwater planning and decision-making. Power has received little attention in literature on Māori and natural resource planning, even though it reproduces and potentially transforms existing inequalities among Māori, other actors and planning institutions. In failing to analyse power, scholars have left a significant gap in the literature. In New Zealand, the deleterious effects of agricultural expansion on water have significant implications for iwi, as water is linked to tribal identity and mana. Both past and current generations have struggled to protect water. Contemporary strategies to restore degraded water bodies and reclaim mana, as control and authority, over water include co-management arrangements. Simultaneously, Government has taken an enthusiastic, uncritical stance to promoting collaboration as an approach to freshwater planning, including iwi as one among multiple actors. In this pro-collaboration climate, however, power has been ignored. So, this research asks: How does power structure iwi contributions to freshwater planning and decision-making? To answer this question, a case study was undertaken of the Manawatū River, a highly degraded water body in the lower North Island of New Zealand. Two main methods were used to collect data: semi-structured interviews with 13 key informants and an analysis of 214 documents, including 180 newspaper articles. To interpret the data, the theoretical framework used Pierre Bourdieu’s concepts of field, capital and habitus. The research found that power structures all contributions to freshwater decisionmaking into a hierarchy, with iwi contributions typically marginalised. The hierarchy is a colonial legacy which continues to be reproduced in multiple ways. So, while collaboration, as advocated by the Crown, has some benefits for iwi, it will not help re-structure this hierarchy to enable iwi to regain control over water. Other strategies, such as Treaty of Waitangi settlements, are liable to be more effective. This finding implies that iwi must assess whether co-management or collaboration strategies will enable them to reshape power imbalance. Gaining power is critical to transform inequality, reclaim authority and restore the mauri of water for future generations.
"The sleeping giant" : the East Coast 1945-1975 : regional problems and regional responses
(Massey University, 1983) Bray, Janet Evelyn
This thesis is an attempt to show the problems which have beset the East Coast region of the North Island,1 1 Delimited for the purposes of this thesis as Matakaoa, Waiapu, Uawa, Cook and Waikohu counties. and the effect a local group of concerned citizens, in a basically rural community, had in trying to locate and accomplish solutions. The East Coasters have, of necessity, built up a high degree of self sufficiency, but for decades various problems had become very obvious. The main themes are the long-term problems of the region, making it one for true pioneers. Isolation was a major factor, bringing with it inherent difficulties in transport and communications. It was clearly too distant from other regions to support the establishment of a large metropolitan centre. With early European settlement, problems involving Maori land tenure and land usage were brought to the surface. For a brief period there was even open racial strife with agitation from the Pai Marire movement followed by the uprising which led to the "Poverty Bay Massacre". Extensive bush clearing and neglect of land led to erosion difficulties. There was no potential for large scale industrial development, and unlike other regions there were no exploitable minerals, although repeated unsuccessful bores were sunk to find oil. Sheepfarming was the basis of the regional economy from earliest European settlement - an isolated, low labour intensive occupation. Therefore, apart from jobs directly related to this primary industry, employment opportunities were limited. The population of the region, after a spectacular growth spurt from the 1890s to the 1920s2 2 These were years of prosperity for the region, following them came a period of decline, and there was no real upsurge in progress until the 1960s., consistently failed to keep pace with the national growth rate, despite a high birthrate among the sizable Maori population. This was emphasised by an obvious population drift away from the rural areas from the 1920s on.
Deliberative democracy : developing best practice in territorial local authorities : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (Social Policy) at Massey University
(Massey University, 2000) MacLennan, Barbara Jill
This thesis explores current practices used by territorial local authorities in Aotearoa/New Zealand to involve citizens in deliberation. It has been written in response to the call from other researchers into local governance and consultation, for the development of more participatory processes and a more deliberative democracy. Drawing on research data, the thesis establishes a national baseline about the deliberative processes currently used by territorial local authorities and the issues they identify. These are further examined through four case studies. The concepts emerging are presented as a draft set of best practice guidelines, as a contribution to improving democratic processes in local government and indeed throughout the public sector.
Planning for Maori land in the Bay of Plenty : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Regional Planning at Massey University
(Massey University, 1985) Vari, Peter R.
A recent publication by the New Zealand Maori Council expressed a "need" for separate planning controls for Maori land. This work sets out to determine whether legislative change to provide for separate controls is in fact justified. The relationship of the Maori people and their culture and traditions with their ancestral land, means that firstly, marae and urupa are of paramount importance to the Maori people and that their establishment and further development is energetically pursued; and secondly, that there is a strong desire to establish housing in conjunction with the marae complex in order to fulfil the traditional concept of "ahi ka". As working manifestations of the existing planning legislation, district scheme controls in the coastal Bay of Plenty are investigated and their adequacy in catering for the abovementioned relationship and its implications, determined. Marae and urupa are the subject of different special or single purpose planning provisions in the Whakatane District and Tauranga County district schemes. These provisions operate to ultimately permit the establishment and further development of marae and urupa and to permit the development of housing around the marae complex to a level that has satisfied the local communities. Maori land not associated with a marae or urupa is largely zoned for "rural" purposes, but there is no evidence to suggest that the land is used differently to general land, or that there is a desire to alter this situation. It is concluded therefore that the existing planning legislation can satisfactorily provide for the needs and desires of the Maori people. Extensive legislative change is therefore unnecessary.
Public participation in local authority annual planning : 'spectacles and acclamation' or prospects for deliberative democracy? : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Massey University
(Massey University, 1997) Cheyne, Christine Maree; Cheyne, Christine Maree
This thesis examines the statutory annual planning process that local authorities are required to undertake as a result of the 1989 reform of local government in New Zealand. It explores the relationship between the annual planning process and the goals of enhanced democracy and accountability that are, along with efficiency, claimed to be promoted by public sector reform. Through a case study of local authority annual planning (involving observation, documentary analysis and interviews) and with accompanying interviews with key actors in the development and implementation of the 1989 local government reform legislation, the implementation of the annual planning provisions and the ideas shaping this approach to democracy are examined. The 1989 reform of local government in New Zealand was ostensibly concerned with introducing new structures and processes to strengthen local government. The annual planning process embodies a particular approach to governance. This thesis explores the nature of that form of governance. In so doing it considers the nature of democracy embodied in the designs of the reformers of local government and critically reviews the features of liberal democratic political processes and policy analysis. A key finding of the research is that there are important weaknesses and limitations associated with the provisions for public participation in the annual planning process and that such provisions cannot be seen as sufficient for democracy. The thesis demonstrates that the prevailing conditions of public participation reflect a liberal pluralist strategy, in which democracy is linked with the aggregation of individual preferences, and which assumes that the ability to influence political decision-making is dispersed among individuals and interest groups. The opportunities for individuals and interest groups to make submissions on the annual plan and other significant policies of local authorities are based on the liberal assumption that people know their interests and that politics is a vehicle for the representation of those interests. The thesis concludes that, while the annual planning process has resulted in information being available to citizens, there is considerable scope for the further enhancement of democracy through strengthening the obligations of local authorities to deliberate publicly and to enter into dialogue with citizens. The reform of local government has given considerable emphasis to the goal of efficiency and has treated the requirements of democracy less comprehensively. Democratic governance, it is argued, involves more than the opportunity for citizens to make submissions to elected representatives. Instead, priority must be given to deliberative mechanisms and associated statutory supports. Attention must be given to alternative institutional arrangements and participatory and deliberative democratic procedures which are more appropriate, and indeed necessary for a more robust form of democratic governance, in a pluralistic society.

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