Rewriting the climate social contract: adaptation, equity, and indigenous rights in Aotearoa New Zealand

• Aotearoa New Zealand’s adaptation policy is shifting toward neoliberal, market-based logic. • This shift erodes the climate-era social contract and burdens vulnerable communities. • Māori leaders and civil society actors advocate for justice-oriented, Treaty-grounded responses. • Neoliberal policies risk violating Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi) and deepening climate injustice. • A renewed social contract is essential for equitable, effective adaptation governance. With climate change impacts escalating, robust adaptation is urgent. Yet in Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ), climate adaptation policy is shifting toward a neoliberal, market-driven approach that emphasises individual responsibility and risk transfer. This neoliberal turn raises serious climate justice concerns by eroding the social contract of collective support, particularly in a settler-colonial context where the New Zealand Government’s obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi) require protecting vulnerable Māori communities. We examine these shifts through the lenses of social contract theory and climate justice, analysing key policy documents and public discourse from 2022 to 2025. Our analysis shows that the neoliberal approach to adaptation governance undermines equity: shifting costs and risks onto individuals entrenches socio-economic disparities and marginalises Indigenous rights and knowledge. However, we also find pushback from Māori and non-Māori community organisations, local government authorities, professional bodies, and charities who advocate for justice-oriented, collective approaches grounded in partnership and solidarity. We argue that effective and just climate adaptation must remain a collective responsibility. Rather than retreating to “fend for yourself” policies, the state must uphold its duty to manage climate risks through strong leadership, public funding, and genuine Te Tiriti partnerships. This case highlights the need to resist the neoliberal individualisation of risk and to reaffirm the social contract to safeguard climate justice in adaptation.