Tō tātou wai māori 2026
The Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ Our Freshwater 2026 Tō Tātou Wai Māori environmental report is dedicated to the freshwater environment, with an intentional focus on groundwater. It includes the integration of te ao Māori and mātauranga Māori as well as Māori research and evidence.
Ki uta ki tai
In te ao Māori, wai māori connects the land, sky, water and people through sacred whakapapa. Some Māori describe freshwater through whakapapa and pūrākau that emphasise the relationships between different forms of water and the environments they move through. In these accounts, Wainui ātea is identified as the personification of clear, mighty waters, associated with the origins of water bodies. Narratives involving Ranginui and Papatūānuku describe the movement of water between sky, land and waterways. These perspectives highlight the long‑recognised knowledge that water is connected ki uta ki tai (from the mountains to the sea), which can work together with scientific evidence of hydrological and ecological connectivity to enhance our overall understanding.
Hurihanga wai
Te mana o te wai is central to te hurihanga wai – the connections between the land, sky, water and people.
Go to the bottom of this page at Water New Zealand to download A3 and A4 versions of this poster.
Parawhenuamea – water that springs from Papatūānuku
The journey of freshwater in Aotearoa New Zealand can begin underground. In te ao Māori, the atua wahine Parawhenuamea personifies the freshwater that springs forth from Papatūānuku. Born within the mountains, she carries waters of Papatūānuku, gathering sediment and minerals. As Parawhenuamea travels, she creates streams that merge into great rivers, depositing fertile silt along the riverbeds and plains.
These freshwater systems flow with their own mauri. The mauri of freshwater flows from ki uta ki tai and has been used by some scientists to describe the state and sustainability of a particular environment.
Te Waikoropupū Springs
Te Waikoropupū Springs are the largest cold-water springs in the southern hemisphere. Eight main vents discharge water from an aquifer beneath the Tākaka Valley. Waikoropupū is the home of Huriawa, one of the three main taniwha of Aotearoa. Te Waikoropupū Springs have been registered as wāhi tapu and are taonga.
Many groundwater sites, springs and freshwater bodies are considered sacred in te ao Māori and connect to people through deep ancestral ties across generations.
Connecting tangata with whenua
The mauri of freshwater ecosystems is connected to the mauri of people and communities. The protection of taonga species within these ecosystems contributes to protecting and maintaining te reo, tikanga and mātauranga Māori.
The state of the freshwater environment impacts the ability of Māori to access traditional kai sources and practise mahinga kai. Gathering of freshwater kai connects tangata with whenua, is intergenerational and is a holistic and integrated value.
Mahinga kai includes the ability to access food resources, food-gathering sites, the gathering and use of food and the abundance and health of species used for food. For example, repo are living taonga with mauri, embodying spiritual and ancestral significance within te ao Māori. The health of wetlands directly influences the transmission of mātauranga Māori and tikanga across generations. They are sacred spaces that connect people to the land and each other through whakapapa.
Wai Māori
Māori have a special relationship with water in all its forms – it is taonga.
Connections to Western science
The water that moves through our landscape is part of one large interconnected system. From its origins as rain or snowfall, freshwater flows through a catchment – the ground, through streams and rivers, into lakes and wetlands until it reaches the sea. Changes to one part of this system will affect the others as the water flows between them. Keeping groundwater healthy is essential for steady river base flows and reliable water supply, especially when rivers are low.
The mauri of various aspects of freshwater systems is used in the Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ Our Freshwater 2026 Tō Tātou Wai Māori report to understand the state of our freshwater and connect the impact of freshwater on people and environment. For example, the report notes that blocking waterways and altering flow patterns alters the natural resilience of rivers. The free movement of water is closely tied to the mauri of an awa, and disrupting its flow interferes with its ability to breathe and travel from the mountains to the sea. Such modifications can also affect longstanding whakapapa relationships between iwi and their awa.
Our Freshwater 2026 Tō Tātou Wai Māori highlights numerous ways in which pollution, degradation and diversion of water impacts the mauri of freshwater ecosystems. It also highlights how cultural monitoring practices are being revitalised in response to these challenges. Examples include Whakaora Te Waikēkēwai (Te Waihora Co-Governance Group), Te Kakapa Manawa o Muaūpoko (Muaūpoko Tribal Authority and Lake Horowhenua Trust) and Māori tools and practices like whakaweku.
Related content and activity ideas
Groundwater forms a key part of Our Freshwater 2026 Tō Tātou Wai Māori. Learn more about groundwater and aquifer systems in this article. The activity Constructing an aquifer model is a simple visual introduction to groundwater and aquifer systems. Use similar materials to show how contaminants enter groundwater and surface water through non-point sources and point sources.
Visit the Hub’s freshwater topic for a wealth of resources. Use the filters to narrow your search.
Navigating our freshwater environment is an interactive storymap developed as part of the Our freshwater 2023 report. It explores the state of our rivers, lakes and wetlands from the perspective of a migrating tuna (eel). This activity helps educators deepen ākonga engagement with the storymap.
The activity Te mana o te wai uses an interactive graphic organiser to explore personal views and values relating to freshwater.
Te whakamahi i ngā rauemi o Tuihonoa Te Reo o Te Repo hei whakarite ara whakaako is a collection of te reo Māori resources drawn from Te Reo o Te Repo – The Voice of the Wetland.
Explore the range of resources in our Freshwater – lakes and rivers Pinterest board.
Useful links
Stats NZ and the Ministry for the Environment report on different aspects of Aotearoa New Zealand’s environment every 6 months. Access the reports here.
Visit Stats NZ for earlier freshwater reports and many of the indicators used to inform Our Freshwater 2026 Tō Tātou Wai Māori.
Acknowledgement
This resource has been produced with the support of the Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ.
Environmental reporting series
The Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ produce New Zealand’s environmental reporting series. Every 6 months, they report on an aspect of Aotearoa New Zealand’s environment.
