Tauhokohoko
Tauhokohoko is a five-year research programme transforming trade policy using Indigenous knowledge and values in collaboration with Te Kotahi Research Institute and Te Taumata Advisory Board.
Research Aims
We will:
- Align Tauhokohoko with principles of Indigenous data sovereignty.
- Conduct a legal review of recent agreements to identify the features of intellectual property rights and a comparative analysis of Indigenous data sovereignty principles; in the context of the digital trade components of free trade agreements.
- Identify legal and extra-legal mechanisms that could identify and protect m膩tauranga and taonga; in focus groups with Indigenous trade experts and Indigenous data sovereignty experts.
RA 1.0 Team:
We will:
- Examine what trade policy would look like if Indigenous peoples designed it using Indigenous worldviews, knowledges, and values, using a four-stage kaupapa M膩ori research process.
- Achieve this through w膩nanga, k艒rero, document analysis, and iterative co-design workshops with M膩ori and Indigenous peoples, enterprises, and stakeholders.
- Develop theories and frameworks for Indigenous trade and policy guidelines, with a focus on trade agreements and their implementation.
- Evaluate these frameworks through engagement with trade policymakers from M膩ori, Indigenous, local and international organisations.
RA 1.1 team:
We will:
- Establish a credible way to address the absence of Indigenous trade data in economic modelling, to properly account for this activity and its mana motuhake, huanga, and waiora effects.
- Utilise computable general equilibrium (CGE) models, drawing on data from Stats NZ and the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP).
- Work with Stats NZ to improve M膩ori business and trade data.
- Use large-scale economic models based on actual economic data from Stats NZ and international sources to quantify the impact of policy changes and the evolving global economy on Indigenous trade, the welfare of Indigenous people, and the overall New Zealand economy.
RA1.2 Team:
We will:
- Evaluate approaches to Indigenous trade facilitation and enablement, for their efficacy in generating mana motuhake, huanga, and waiora effects, underpinned by te ao taketake. This will be done using the theoretical framework of Indigenous entrepreneurial ecosystems:
(1) M膩ori-led trade missions;
(2) Inter颅 Indigenous trade; and
(3) Indigenous procurement
- Assess the veracity of each of these three approaches for effecting Indigenous trade primarily in Aotearoa, and in other Indigenous economies of the Pacific islands, Alaska Native, and S谩mi peoples.
- Address the question of how best to enable Indigenous trade through principles of Indigeneity.
RA 1.3 Team:
Te Taumata M膩ori Trade Advisory Board
Te Taumata chairs the governance group, ensuring that the research is driven by M膩ori aspirations through engagement with M膩ori and Indigenous communities, and Indigenous organisations in trade policy and international trade.
Te Taumata Strategy
Te Taumata will play a direct leadership role in the co-design of Indigenous trade policy frameworks, rooted in m膩tauranga M膩ori, to shape future trade agreements both within Aotearoa and on the international stage.
We will test and refine M膩ori-led trade mechanisms, including trade missions, study tours, inter-Indigenous trade arrangements, and cultural procurement strategies, and scale up M膩ori enterprise capability, reach, and resilience.
The Tauhokohoko partnership enables us to co-develop Indigenous impact and wellbeing metrics, quantifying the relationship between Indigenous trade and waiora (wellbeing), huanga (economic return), and mana motuhake (autonomy). These tools will provide the evidence base for more equitable, inclusive policies.
Tauhokohoko will also support cultural exchange and joint Indigenous research with global networks, including those of the S谩mi, Pacific, Indigenous North American Native, and other communities, helping to elevate M膩ori leadership in Indigenous-to-Indigenous trade diplomacy.