| Title | Project Whāngai – nurturing Māori in Geothermal |
|---|---|
| Authors | Brockbank, K., Fox, C., Goble, I., Pore, L., Jasmat, C., Blair, A |
| Year | 2026 |
| Conference | World Geothermal Congress |
| Keywords | |
| Abstract | Ka whangaia, ka tupu, ka puawai That which is nurtured, will blossom then grow. Māori are the indigenous people of Aotearoa New Zealand. The population of Māori in Aotearoa sits at just under 20% and has recently seen growth 3 times higher than other non-Māori populations. However, Māori are significantly under-represented in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in education and workplaces, often making up less than 5%. Project Whāngai hopes to change this narrative, identify the barriers causing inequity and ultimately whāngai (nurture) an environment where STEM education institutions and workplaces represent te mata o Aotearoa (the face of New Zealand). To provide a proof of concept, Project Whāngai will initially focus on geothermal STEM careers in the Taupō – Rotorua rohe (area), where a significant proportion of our Māori population and geothermal operators are located. A pincer approach is proposed (“Rautaki Kōpani”), to leverage the power of two different methods and create synergy, where the effect is greater than what the individual methods could achieve independently. The two methods are: 1. Growing the number of Rangatahi Māori (young people) studying STEM relevant to geothermal (Earth Science, Engineering, Environmental Science, Computer Science). 2. Creating safe work environments for Māori in Geothermal workplaces. |