Abstract:
The Māori economy is a globally-connected, prosperous and profitable sector of the New Zealand economy. By drawing on Māori values we present a wisdom position through the ethic of kaitiakitanga or stewardship to emphasize and illustrate the interconnectedness of life in a woven universe. Through practicing kaitiakitanga organizations can build businesses where wisdom is consciously created through reciprocal relationships. In this worldview of business, humans are stewards endowed with a mandate to use the agency of their mana (spiritual power, authority, and sovereignty) to create mauri ora (conscious well-being) for humans and ecosystems – and this commitment extends to organizations. In a Māori worldview, explains Porter (2009), humans are born as kaitiaki (stewards) imbued with manifold mana (spiritual power, authority, and sovereignty). Therefore, they are stewards, endowed from birth with obligations, and empowered at the same time to care, respect, conserve, and create mauri ora (conscious well-being).