Ngāti Tūrangitukua and Taupō District Council have won Te Tohu Waka Hourua - The Buddle Findlay Award for Māori-Council Partnerships for their Mana Whakahono ā Rohe Partnership Agreement.
Te Tohu Waka Hourua - The Buddle Findlay Award for Māori-Council Partnerships recognises programmes, projects or initiatives that demonstrate outstanding results from working in partnership with Māori. Entries may come from any area of local government activity but must be able to demonstrate a commitment to partnership with Māori.
Taupō District Council and Ngāti Tūrangitukua have built on an existing Mana Whakahono to extend this into planning and decision-making under the Local Government, Reserves and the Ngāti Tūrangitukua Settlement Acts, and in the council’s co-governance structure.
The Judges said "This was a stand-out entry in this category with its focus in culture and behaviour change. This genuine desire to empower mana whenua in joint decision making across the council made this the most transformative entry in this category. We look forward to hearing more of the progress Ngāti Tūrangitukua and Taupō District Council are able to jointly make for their community."
Mana Whakahono ā Rohe is an existing tool provided for under the Resource Management Act (RMA) designed to enable tangata whenua and local authorities to discuss and record how they will work together on resource management matters. This includes joint decision making.
Last year's winner was Waikato Regional Council for its Transfer of Functions to an Iwi Authority under s33 RMA.
Buddle Findlay is one of New Zealand’s leading commercial and public law firms with a significant local government practice. This is the second year that Buddle Findlay has sponsored this category.
For further information, please see the 2022 Awards Media Pack.