The Papatūānuku Paradigm: Te Ao Māori approach to gender analysis
Earlier this year we were delighted to begin collaborating with Dr. Kathie Irwin and Associates on developing our Gender Analysis with a Te Ao Māori Lens toolkit. We’re equally thrilled that Kathie has since joined CEWH as our Kaihautū, bringing her wisdom, mana and vision to this important mahi.
The tool has been designed to support and strengthen our work, as well as the efforts of others in the sector, in addressing the complex issue of women’s homelessness.
This groundbreaking tool has been named The Papatūānuku Paradigm.
In July, we had the privilege of running two wānanga to explore and test the emerging Papatūānuku Paradigm framework. The first took place with the team at Auckland City Mission – Te Tāpui Atawhai, and the second at Te Whare Tiaki Wāhine in Porirua.
In Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Helen Robinson, Manutaki at Auckland City Mission, and her dedicated kaimahi gave us an incredibly warm welcome. The room was alive with energy, insight, and aroha - a shared commitment to finding meaningful ways to support wāhine. Together, we reflected on a fundamental question: how can we turn evidence and wisdom into frontline practice that truly empowers women?
Our Auckland session took a more academic approach, beginning with the whakapapa of the framework and exploring the tool’s application. The kōrero ran deep, and the insights from participants were rich and thought-provoking.
In Porirua, we were hosted by Caroline Herewini, Kaiwhakahaere at Te Whare Tiaki Wāhine, alongside her skilled and passionate kaimahi. Here, we focused on testing the framework in practice, examining how it might guide and inform real-world mahi.
Kathie closed the session with her signature words:
“Turou Hawaiiki! May the force be with us!” - a reminder of the strength, guidance, and wairua that shape this work.
The Papatūānuku Paradigm includes:
an analysis of existing research on women’s homelessness, with a particular focus on identifying key gaps in current knowledge
conceptual frameworks that underpin the tool, ensuring it is relevant to the lived experiences of women facing homelessness.
practical insights on how it can be used to better inform policies and practices that are culturally sensitive and effective in supporting women, particularly those from Māori communities.
Critical to The Papatūānuku Paradigm are:
The Orokohanga to Aotearoatanga horizon, from creation to nation building
Te Tiriti o Waitangi | The Treaty of Waitangi, taking a dual worldview approach
Highlighting the role of the Machinery of Government (MOG) as a vehicle of colonisation and making the MOG a central feature of the tool.
The next step is the design phase. At this phase, Kathie remembered some advice from the late Dr Api Mahuika, former Chair of Te Rūnanganui o Ngāti Porou, when she did some design work for him.
“I offered to have my conceptual drawings redrawn by a ‘professional’ artist. He said ‘no’. He wanted the ‘native versions’ - the actual drawing that wairua inspired me to see and literally guided me to physically draw,” Kathie recounts.
We are looking forward to sharing The Papatūānuku Paradigm with you all. For now this is a sneak peek of Kathie’s work.
Ngā mihi nui Kathie, for your mana, your wisdom and your wairua.
