Food Systems, Indigenous Knowledge and Systems Thinking: A Case Study in Regional New Zealand

Background The nutritional health of tamariki (children) in Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ) is poor. Nourishing Hawke’s Bay (NHB) began as an initiative to address this problem in low advantage regions of Hawke’s Bay (HB) and evolved into the evaluation of Ka Ora. Ka Ako the free, healthy school lunch programme, and the scoping of wider improvements in the regional food ecosystem. Purpose The aim of this paper is to describe how NHB co-designed and evaluated food interventions incorporating systems thinking and mātauranga Māori (traditional knowledge), as lenses through which to view the initiative. Study Sample and Research Design Cognitive mapping interviews (n = 11) with community health and education leaders identified six key co-design principles or Pou (metaphorical posts) for NHB. Data Collection Further systems methods, such as group model building and system dynamics modelling, and mātauranga Māori methods, such as wānanga (Māori learning forums), involved the community in food systems mapping and intervention co-design and prioritisation. Results Three Pou, ‘food security,’ ‘mātauranga Māori’ and ‘children’s hauora’ (wellbeing), set the research agenda for NHB. the other three Pou, ‘work with community,’ ‘cohesion and integration’ and ‘start with schools,’ determined the subsequent research processes. Along with standard population evaluation methods (including quantitative and qualitative assessments of changes in student health and wellbeing), a participatory Value for Investment (VFI) analysis assessed return on investment. Conclusions Combining systems thinking and mātauranga Māori is a novel, participatory approach co-creating pathways to improved nutrition and food security for tamariki and holds promise for wider food system changes in regional NZ.