Urban ecology, tangata whenua and the colonial city

Abstract

Any discussion about urban ecology, tangata whenua and urban environments needs to be situated critically within the wider context of colonialism and the ongoing colonial project. New Zealand cities still display, cherish, nurture and even reproduce unmistakable signs of their colonial past. The stories about our cities and even their identities are constructed in such a way as to reinforce their colonial past while at the same time negating their pre-colonial Maori origins. A re-imagining, representing and retrofitting of the city needs to be processed so as to relocate our cities in Aotearoa, away from the imperial centre. Ecological restoration in the city can only be sustained if it is linked to restoration of indigenous communities and the social, cultural and environmental values of these communities.