On 13 February t2018, Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga (NPM) together with the Royal Society Te Apārangi commenced the Te Takarangi project celebrating 150 Māori non-fiction publications over almost 200 years.
This date was chosen as it marked a year since the first formal meeting between the leaders of NPM and Te Apārangi Council at Waipapa Marae, with the shared aim of strengthening the intent of Te Apārangi to connect more with Māori researchers and Māori communities.
7 months later, on 14 September and during 2018 Te Wiki o te Reo Māori - Māori Language Week this first phase of Te Takarangi draws to a close, with the 150th and final book to be announced - Linda Smith's "Decolonizing Methodologies. Research and Indigenous People".
The books we promoted over the 7 months represent only a sample of more than 200 years of Māori scholarship but provide a unique insight into the depth and breadth of Māori academic excellence and mātauranga that exists in Aotearoa New Zealand.
There is a long history of Māori scholarship in this country that is ever-growing, and Te Takarangi has provided a world first, and an outstanding opportunity to celebrate these authors and voices of Indigenous and Māori inspiration.
The 150 books we have highlighted represent an insight into some of the most important Māori leaders, thinkers and authors of our time, drawing on not only their expertise and training from a western academic paradigm, but also on traditional knowledge and systems of practice that extend back into the Pacific more than 1000 years.
Although this part of the project is drawing to a close, a new journey now begins. On 16 October the project will be celebrated with the launch of a traveling exhibition at the Parliament Buildings, after which the exhibition will travel to NPM's 8th Biennial International Indigenous Conference which is being held in Auckland from 13 - 16 November, 2018.
Te Takarangi will then continue its journey around schools and communities throughout 2019, engaging with and encouraging future generations of Māori scholar’s and academics to write about the world they live in, their past, present and future.
View the 150 Māori publications of Te Takarangi here
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