By Joanne Clapcott, Kiri Dell, and Kaya Tapu

Figure 1. Pou whenua on the slopes of Mount Hikurangi (Ngāti Porou rohe) Aotearoa New Zealand. These carved posts mark ancestral presence, identity, and authority. They remind us that environmental restoration isn’t just about nature—it’s also about restoring Indigenous relationships, rights, and responsibilities to land. Credit: Dara Kelly.

This Plain Language Summary is published in advance of the paper discussed. Please check back soon for a link to the full paper.

Around the world, Indigenous Peoples have deep, long-standing relationships with their lands and waters. Yet environmental restoration projects often overlook Indigenous knowledge and leadership. In Aotearoa New Zealand, restoration is increasingly including Māori worldviews (Te Ao Māori) and consequently adding value in previously unexplored ways.

Most people see restoration as a universally good thing. But from a Māori perspective, restoration is more complex. European colonisation took much of the land and water that restoration projects now seek to heal. Because of these intertwined histories of connection, loss, and care, Māori offer important insights into how restoration might be practised differently.

We spoke with people involved in environmental restoration to understand how people talk about Māori knowledge and leadership in practice. The ways decisionmakers talk about Māori knowledge matter because the language and values people use shape what actions decisionmakers see as acceptable or possible.

We found two main ways of talking about Māori. The first recognises Māori as experts, with deep knowledge of local environments and long histories of care. The second highlights that colonisation, land loss, and exclusion wronged Māori. This creates a responsibility for decisionmakers to address past and ongoing injustices.

These two ways of thinking work together. Recognising Māori expertise shows why their knowledge matters. Acknowledging injustice explains why restoration decision-making needs to change. Together, these ways of thinking support restoration approaches that are not only environmentally effective but also fairer and more respectful.

Our message is simple: restoring ecosystems must go hand in hand with restoring justice and amplifying Indigenous knowledge. For researchers, policymakers, and institutions, this means asking hard questions about their own systems and assumptions, building stronger relationships, sharing power, and valuing Indigenous knowledge on its own terms. In Aotearoa New Zealand—and elsewhere—restoring nature also means restoring relationships.