Contemplating obstacles: Experiences of indigenising urban spaces. The case of Ōtepoti Dunedin, Aotearoa New Zealand

Conventional urban planning and development praxis in Aotearoa New Zealand has fallen short of consistently providing Indigenous Māori communities the opportunity to grow and develop their culture within urban environments. In the paper, we report on reflections from our research participants about the barriers that they deduce are continuing to hinder Indigenous visibility within urban environments. We establish a conceptual framework centred on three key Indigenous concepts relevant to this kaupapa (purpose): mana motuhake (self-determination), tuakiritanga (cultural identity), and kotahitanga (collective orientation). The investigation is primarily based on kōwetewete (a conversational method) with research collaborators comprising the urban professionals and mana whenua (local tribal group) most directly involved in Indigenous urban transformation in the city of Ōtepoti Dunedin. Our research demonstrates that participants perceive that significant barriers from historical and ongoing inattentiveness, combined with strong colonial dominance of planning practices, underpin the extensive cultural marginalisation of Māori in the built environment.