Reflections from Tiriti workers: Insights into Tiriti-led organisational change

Te Tiriti o Waitangi is a foundational constitution document for Aotearoa New Zealand negotiated between hapū nations and the British Crown. This covenant has been marginalised, dismissed and consistently breached by New Zealand governments. After sustained activism by Māori in the 1970s onwards there has been a renewed passion for honouring and upholding Te Tiriti from Tangata Tiriti organisations. This has led to a flurry of Tiriti-led organisational change, unfortunately little has been published about these efforts. This paper draws on interviews with six senior Māori and Pākehā Tiriti workers conducted in April 2025. The interviewees are both participants and contributors to this article. Collectively this collection of reflections provides a synopsis of over 150 years of Tiriti work across Aotearoa New Zealand organisations (non-profit, for-profit, public institutions). The findings are framed through an iterative interview approach, and the discussion is a fusion of story-telling and collective reflection. We found that Tiriti-led organisational change is a journey not a destination, and it requires ongoing (re)commitment. Tangata Tiriti organisations need to enter into relationships with Māori, who determine the success of the endeavour and whether the benefits are realised. The most effective approaches are holistic in nature and include some education components. Alongside this, there needs to be power-sharing and collective responsibility by all staff within the organisation. Critical to Tiriti work is also disrupting monocultural practice and institutional racism. Tangata Tiriti organisations require reflective leadership, political will and an understanding that engaging with Te Tiriti benefits all New Zealanders. To move beyond performative practice requires engagement with one’s head, heart and hands. For Te Tiriti to be genuinely upheld requires the dismantling of colonial structures.