Working for government clients for many years, I was always confused that they made it appear difficult to make strong connections with iwi, to get timely input and answers to questions. It led me to wonder – why? What is going on that projects keep on going and a red flag of iwi consultation sometimes just sits in the too hard basket, when it shouldn’t. I know there are many reasons that this might be the case, there is a long history of distrust of government that will not so easily be mended. And so, I feel it becomes incumbent on us as individuals, as designers, to lead the way.
What I have learnt, is that Māori in advisory positions are extremely busy people, sought after for all manner of projects and initiatives, and that the formal settings of stakeholder meetings and of email process are often just not a priority. What is instead important, are those things that we all truly crave as human beings, and that which Te Ao Māori encourages when we use words such as whanaungatanga, manaakitanga etc:
Be there in person.
Go to the marae, enquire, and have the time to get to know the people. Build real relationships and connect over shared values and ideas. I have spent the last two and a half years visiting my local Marae in Waiwhetū, learning the names of the staff, seeing the work that they do, appreciating the varied visitors they cater for and taking part in the customs and community which they are supporting.
Through taking the time to understand and to learn, consultation isn’t a formal meeting over teams with an agenda set out. Rather, it is a discussion over a cup of tea, that might draw a side discussion around another aspect which we could not have foreseen, or it may invite the input of yet another person. There is a richness to conversation as there is mutual understanding and respect for the challenges that a certain topic might have. There is also consideration that the timing may not fit into the box of tight design programmes or deliverable dates, especially when a decision has wider reaching implications.
And so, while I’m no expert (can anyone really be??), I do love people, and I do love to listen, hopefully that is the first step to real consultation.