As the weather gets wilder, some marae have to consider relocating

For many marae, recent severe weather events have brought forward the need for urgent adaptation and managed retreat plans.

The task they face can be daunting. Besides the physical buildings, marae have deep cultural connections to the land it’s placed upon and the community it serves.

Recent Waikato University PhD graduate Dr Akuhata Bailey-Winiata studied historical examples of hapū and iwi that have relocated in response to natural hazards and said there were “gems” to be found in the past to support future decision-making.

“Knowing that our tūpuna did it before, there’s a level of, or a sense of that, OK, we can do it again into the future if we have to.

“I think that was a great way to kind of just bring it to the forefront, to say this is not new, we have done this before and if the situation is right for us we can do it again. So, kind of just making it less scary knowing that our tūpuna had done it before.”

Bailey-Winiata’s research focused on adaptation processes from a Māori perspective.

Drawing from his own iwi of Tūhourangi and their relocation following the 1886 eruption of Tarawera, the autonomy of decision-making and land gifting were important elements to the process, he said.

“We were actively making those decisions for our hapū and iwi, and I guess perspectives of land and infrastructure. Te ao Māori perspectives of land is that it’s not a commodity, it’s something that is kind of part of our process. Looking at it in that way supported that relocation process.”

He said there was also an element of reciprocity where they gifted the land back 100 years after the eruption event.

“There’s all these little things and, again, this is just one example. There would have been many [examples] out there, which will just show the diversity of adaptation and relocation process that exists historically.”

He reiterated: “This isn’t new if we had to do it again we can. We just need to be pragmatic about those discussions and not shy away from them which is easier said than done when there’s layers upon layers of mamae that you having to deal with at the same time.

“Lots of challenges at the moment, the world is a scary place there’s so much going on, how do we have those discussions in amongst all of that other stuff that’s happening is a challenge.”

Bailey-Winiata said there were discussions on managed retreat and adaptation being made across Aotearoa on multiple levels – whānau, marae, hapū, iwi and national – and at different stages.

This month, around 80 Māori adaptation professionals gathered in Tauranga to discuss climate change considerations for hapū and iwi.

“That was something that came up in this wānanga, around how do we better connect across these scales. Because there’s lots of good mahi happening and oftentimes I feel you don’t know what you don’t know.

“So sharing examples is really helpful to shed a light on what other people are up to and are there synergies, are there opportunities to actively grow?

“But it is changing and I know with all the current national legislation that’s coming out around adaptation framework out of MFE [Ministry for the Environment] I think this is just a growing space and more and more is going to come out which is really cool to see.”

As part of the wānanga, the group visited Maketū to hear from the iwi collective whose climate change adaptation plan won the New Zealand Planning Institute’s (NZPI) Best Practice Award in non-statutory planning.

Bailey-Winiata developed a framework to help councils and government partner with hapū and iwi.

The Waka Hourua model is named for the double-hulled canoe where one hull is assigned to tangata whenua, the other to tangata tiriti.

“We’ve got our own hulls but we’re heading in the same direction in terms of climate change.

“We’re all going to be impacted similarly, but we also need to work together, and it’s the in-between the two hulls is where the partnership comes in in terms of how do we work together, how do we share information, share resources, share expertise across them where appropriate.”

The framework has been adopted by the Aotearoa Society of Adaptation Professionals (ASAP) to inform their approach with working with hapū and iwi.

In January, Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka announced the Marae Emergency Response Fund.

Last week, Ngātiwai iwi leader Aperahama Kerepeti-Edwards told RNZ’s Morning Report there should be ongoing support for marae from the government.

In terms of resourcing, Bailey-Winiata said discussions need to take place, particularly given that marae are one of the first to open doors to everyone in their communities during natural hazard events.

“There’s that emergency management aspect that keeps coming into the adaptation discussion and I think it’s an important aspect that we need to consider.”

Just look how many local states of emergency we’ve had in Aotearoa in this year alone, he said.

“We’re having to plan for the future and respond at the same time. We need to kind of figure out how do we best approach that because it is going to continue to happen. So yeah, I think there needs to be a broader discussion across national, regional, local scales around how do we best support communities to be able to do that.”

But it’s tricky, he said.

“It’s very difficult because you’ve got so many priorities that are happening it’s like how do you choose which ones you have to focus on? It’s really a minefield of where do you prioritise and I don’t think there’s one way around it. I think it just comes down to having discussions on what is possible.”

In 2023, a number of marae suffered extensive damage during Cyclone Gabrielle. Two marae in Hawke’s Bay – Tāngoio and Petāne – have been announced to receive government funding to move to safer locations.

In Te Tairāwhiti, the relocations of five marae – Puketawai, Hinemaurea ki Mangatuna, Okuri, Takipū and Rangatira – are currently underway.