Ormsby, Benjamin2025-02-192025-02-192024https://hdl.handle.net/10182/18137Landscape planning and assessment in Aotearoa New Zealand is an essential part of managing changes in the landscape. Te Tangi a Te Manu (Lister et al., 2022) was created to guide landscape assessment and reflects the bicultural conception of landscape in Aotearoa New Zealand, incorporating te ao Māori concepts of whakapapa, kōrero tuku iho, and hīkoi. However, the guidelines do not provide a method to translate these concepts into practice. Focussing on the hīkoi (walking) dimension, this research tested the application of ‘walking methods’ in landscape assessment. The research sought to answer the question of how can walking methods contribute to empathising with landscape when using Design Thinking. The application of Design Thinking informed by kaupapa Māori design principles integrates Māori and non-Māori values and knowledge to create a more inclusive methodology for landscape assessment. The research explored how walking methods can use the assessment of mauri as part of empathising with landscape, and support a deeper understanding and connection to whenua for the landscape architecture profession. Integrating Māori values and tikanga, including te ao Māori concepts like mauri, into landscape assessment requires guidance for non-Māori to protect the integrity of mātauranga Māori. This supports a culturally responsive practice that aligns with Māori values and community expectations around landscape management. The walking method was developed using two pilot walks in Porirua, New Zealand and then tested in Ōtautahi Christchurch, New Zealand. Physical and perceptual data was recorded, along with assessment of mauri. The research then considered how this data could be presented spatially for use in subsequent steps of landscape assessment or design. By incorporating walking methods, landscape architects can empathise with the landscape, deepening their understanding of the connection between people and place, and facilitating the creation of embodied knowledge. The walking methods expand landscape architecture practice through new knowledge creation methods, contributing to a more inclusive practice of landscape architecture within bicultural Aotearoa New Zealand. Empathising in this way, has the potential to promote a more whenua-led approach. Further testing of the walking method with diverse groups could refine key elements of bicultural landscape assessment, including how mauri can be assessed by non-Māori participants, and how to incorporate other tikanga. The research highlights the potential for further exploration of how Māori and Western knowledge systems can inform and enrich bicultural landscape architecture in Aotearoa New Zealand.enlandscape assessmentwalking methodshīkoidesign thinkingmātauranga Māoriculturally responsive practicemauribicultural planningwalking as researchDissertationANZSRC::330109 Landscape architecture