Marae are a key feature of the cultural Infrastructure of Māori society, acting as guardians of mātauranga and taonga and connecting whānau through whakapapa. The Status of Marae in 2009 report presents some of the findings from the Marae Development Project undertaken by Te Puni Kōkiri Regional Offices in 2009.
Marae face changing patterns of use and marae community participation. The majority of marae are made up of people who share whakapapa connections. Often marae operate as community focal points. Many marae reported sufficient levels of cultural capability and are actively undertaking succession planning and training activities for key roles. Most marae operate under some form of legal structure, have a range of arrangements in place to support the operations of marae, and are largely self-funded. Marae make an ongoing investment in maintaining their buildings and taonga; however, face ongoing challenges of infrastructure, administration and succession.
The report focuses on three key areas:
- Cultural Infrastructure and Capability, which looks at marae communities, marae heritage, mātauranga Māori and marae usage;
- Physical Infrastructure and Capacity, which details physical access to the marae, buildings on the marae, utilities and capacity of marae; and
- Administrative Infrastructure and Capability, which covers legal structures, trustee roles and responsibilities, financial management, insurance, project planning, workforce and external relationships.
In conjunction with the report, Te Puni Kōkiri has also prepared two related factsheets:
The Status of Marae in 2009, which sets out key findings of the survey, and
Marae Development Initiatives, which highlights various initiatives to support marae development that have been undertaken by Te Puni Kōkiri in recent years.