Climate Change Minister James Shaw has today announced a new Interim Ministerial Advisory Committee to develop a framework for Te Ao Māori responses to the climate crisis.

Promised as part of the Emissions Reduction Plan, a Māori ‘climate action platform’ will help ensure whānau, hapū and iwi are at the forefront of the Government’s work to respond to climate change.

“Our Government is committed to an equitable low carbon transition that upholds the promise of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The new advisory committee we are announcing today will help ensure Te Ao Māori plays a central role guiding our transition to a climate-friendly future,” said the Minister of Climate Change, James Shaw.

“One of the core commitments that runs throughout this Government’s climate plan is to ensure an equitable transition for Māori, led by Māori.

“Māori are kaitiaki of their whenua, leaders in their communities, decision makers, and land and business owners - and it is crucial we work together as equal partners on our climate response.

“However, we know Māori are both disproportionately and uniquely affected by a warming planet. Which is why it is so critical that we apply a tikanga Māori lens to the work we are doing to transition Aotearoa to a low emissions economy.

“Through this lens we can better understand the distributional impacts of climate policies and work to balance some of the risks, the costs and benefits to Māori of the transition. Mātauranga Māori can also help us to learn and better inform our decision making.

“The highly experienced and expert committee I have announced today will engage with Māori right across Aotearoa and ensure Māori have a voice at the climate decision making table. The insights from this will provide invaluable input into the design of a new Māori Climate Platform that will ensure Māori are at the heart of our climate response.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the committee members for taking on this important work. What they achieve will have a lasting impact on the future of climate policy in Aotearoa,” James Shaw said.

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