Indigenising the blue economy in Aotearoa: A synthesis

This report provides a synthesis of the research results for the Indigenising the blue economy project, conducted within the Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge’s blue economy research programme in partnership with five marine-based Māori organisations between September 2021 and November 2023. The first section is focused on a literature review. It first provides historical context. The next section outlines the research methodologies that underpinned the identification of the three constraints and for the project itself. The following section is focused on detailing the results from the five case studies across the three themes of whakatautika, pāhekoheko, and auahatanga. The final section is the synthesis section which firstly outlines the institutional framework, explaining the key issues that lie at the heart of it, noting that there are some constraints on drastic overhaul of the system but also noting that for a truly blue economy to emerge then this overhaul will most likely need to happen.