Indigenous rights and managed public land: a critical treaty analysis of parks and reserves in New Zealand

This research critically examines the extent to which the Reserves Act 1977, the primary legislative framework governing many parks and reserves, especially those associated with territorial local authorities, aligns with and upholds Indigenous Māori values and rights guaranteed under Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the Treaty of Waitangi. Using Critical Tiriti Analysis (CTA), a methodological approach developed by Indigenous Māori scholars, we assess the Act’s responsiveness to Te Tiriti and explore opportunities to embed Māori perspectives in public land management. Our study highlights the colonial underpinnings of current governance and reveals how the implicit recognition of Te Tiriti in conservation law fails to honour Māori rights fully. We identify legislative gaps by analysing local government land management practices and national land database records and propose pathways for integrating Māori-led stewardship into parks and reserves governance. As Indigenous Māori researchers with lived experiences of land alienation, we position this work within broader conversations on decolonising and re-indigenising public land management. We argue that true partnership under Te Tiriti may require the uncoupling of Māori land from the Reserves Act 1977 to restore tino rangatiratanga (self-determination) of ancestral lands. Our research underscores the potential for parks and reserves to serve as sites of cultural and environmental restoration, enacting ahi kā and reinforcing the vital connection between Māori identity and whenua (land).