Cultural Competency Building Stronger Futures Together
By Tokaanu Thompson and Roseanne Murray
Building Stronger Futures Together: Supporting Whaanau and Honouring Te Ao Maaori
For community organisations across Aotearoa, cultural competency is not just an aspiration—it is a vital foundation for meaningful relationships and lasting outcomes. Embedding Te Ao Maaori into our everyday mahi creates spaces where whaanau feel valued, connected, and empowered to thrive. Building Stronger Futures Together: Supporting Whaanau and Honouring Te Ao Maaori challenges us to embrace tikanga-led approaches that nurture resilience, kotahitanga, and the aspirations of the whaanau we serve.
Understanding Cultural Competency within Community Organisations
Cultural competency refers to the ability to understand, engage with, and respond effectively to people from diverse backgrounds. However, for community organisations working alongside Maaori, it means more than surface-level understanding. It calls for a deep commitment to whanaungatanga, manaakitanga, and rangatiratanga—principles that honour whakapapa and uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Embedding cultural competency requires organisations to move beyond mere consultation. It demands ongoing relationships, reciprocity, and an openness to learning from te ao Maaori frameworks like Te Whare Tapa Whaa (Sir Mason Durie) or Ngaa Pou Mana (developed for the hauora sector). These models remind us that community well-being rests on the balance between physical, spiritual, mental, and social health, guided by values that uplift both individual and collective mauri.
The Significance of Honouring Te Ao Maaori in Community Mahi
Uplifting Whaanau Voices and Tino Rangatiratanga
Integrating Te Ao Maaori enables organisations to better understand the strengths, challenges, and solutions within haapori. It shifts power towards whaanau self-determination, ensuring that the design and delivery of services are led by their aspirations, not imposed from above. Models such as the Whaanau Ora approach, which places whaanau at the centre of decision-making, exemplify this commitment to rangatiratanga.
Strengthening Relationships through Whanaungatanga
Relationships are the heart of Te Ao Maaori and community mahi. Prioritising kanohi ki te kanohi engagement fosters trust, respect, and enduring partnerships. Spaces that embrace whakawhanaungatanga allow kaimahi, whaanau and the community to connect beyond roles and titles—grounding all work in aroha and mutual accountability.
Supporting Resilience through Connection to Whakapapa
Resilience emerges when whaanau feel connected—to whenua, to whakapapa, and to each other. Kaupapa Maaori approaches like the Maramataka (Maaori lunar calendar) help organisations align their mahi with natural cycles and tikanga, promoting both physical and spiritual well-being. This reinforces that community resilience is not merely about services but about the strength of collective identity.
Enhancing Equity through Manaakitanga
Manaakitanga guides us to care for the hauora and dignity of all. When organisations actively create safe, inclusive spaces, barriers to participation dissolve. This might mean adapting meeting times to suit kaumatua, providing kai during hui, or offering transport for rangatahi. It is about practical acts of care that centre the reality of whaanau lives.
Best Practices for Cultural Competency in Community Organisations
Build Relationships, Not Transactions
Authentic relationships require time and consistency. Connect with marae, hapuu, and iwi not just when you need input, but as ongoing partners in your journey. Seek guidance from kaumatua, kaupapa experts, or tohunga within your rohe to ensure your mahi reflects local tikanga and histories.
Normalise Te Reo Maaori and Tikanga
Language is whakapapa. Using te reo Maaori—even in small ways—demonstrates respect and affirms identity. Start hui with a karakia, use mihi to open spaces, and weave te reo into everyday operations. Simple steps, done consistently, signal that te reo and tikanga are valued parts of your organisation’s culture.
Adopt Kaupapa Maaori Frameworks
Shift from Western models of service delivery to kaupapa Maaori approaches that reflect the realities of whaanau. Frameworks like Te Whare Tapa Whaa, Te Wheke (Rose Pere), or Whaanau Ora offer holistic pathways that consider wairua, tinana, hinengaro, and whaanau as interconnected. These models encourage organisations to measure success not just by outputs, but by strengthened whaanau ora.
Embed Ahurutanga (Safe, Nurturing Spaces)
Organisations must foster ahurutanga—spaces where whaanau feel safe, respected, and supported. This means recognising the impact of colonisation, racism, and trauma. It requires kaimahi to listen deeply, validate lived experiences, and respond with empathy and aroha.
Commit to Tika and Pono (Integrity and Authenticity)
Cultural competency is not a tick-box exercise—it is a journey of mahi pono, mahi tika, mahi tahi. It demands humility, self-reflection, and the willingness to challenge assumptions. Encourage kaimahi to reflect regularly on their biases and seek professional development in kaupapa Maaori.
Broader Impacts for the Sector
Embedding cultural competency transforms more than individual practice—it reshapes systems. Community organisations that walk alongside Maaori can influence funders, councils, and government agencies to shift their approaches. This advocacy ensures that funding models prioritise kaupapa-led solutions and recognise the long-term value of whakapapa-based development.
Importantly, honouring Te Ao Maaori is not about replacing one worldview with another—it is about weaving together diverse ways of being for the collective good. When we centre whaanau, we build stronger futures where everyone can stand in their mana.
Supporting whaanau and honouring Te Ao Maaori requires more than good intentions—it demands action. By embracing tikanga, fostering whanaungatanga, and prioritising kaupapa Maaori solutions, community organisations can create spaces of ahurutanga where all can flourish.
Let our mahi reflect the whakataukii: “Mahia te mahi hei painga moo te iwi”—do the work for the betterment of the people.
When we walk together, grounded in whakapapa and aroha, we build not only stronger organisations but stronger futures for all.