Mātauranga Moana: uplifting Māori and Pacific values of conceptualisation over western co-design constructs

Abstract

This paper offers a critical examination of the problematic use of western co-design methodologies when applied to indigenous and diasporic communities. By centring place-based, relational design approaches to enable cultural conventions from our position in Aotearoa New Zealand, we argue the use of co-design constructs risks overlaying neo-liberal ideologies on top of our resilient indigenous Māori and Pacific knowledge systems, values, ethics, and collective approaches towards design conceptualisation. As design researchers located in te moana-nui-a-Kiwa our discussion is underpinned by our Māori whakapapa, Sāmoan gafa, and relationship to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We present our kōrero through a case study relationship with a local healthcare service, aiming to increase access for Māori and Pacific tamariki through design actions. Our collaboration was developed within the format of a tertiary course involving Māori and Pacific tauira enrolled in Design and Fine Arts degrees at Ngā Pae Māhutonga School of Design, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa Massey University of New Zealand. Unlike traditional university design courses that aim to achieve a specific measurable outcome, we focussed on fostering whakawhānaungatanga and evidencing this through activated learning of the cultural conventions of wānanga and talanoa towards weaving together our values through critically reflective practice. Our case study relationship demonstrates the importance of relational place-based knowledge systems and their conditions for enabling reflexivity towards tino rangatiratanga and ola manuia within Māori and Pacific communities; further highlighting the systemic barriers that practices of co-design can seed when attempting to serve our communities in Aotearoa.