Bridging business and culture: Indigenous students’ journey connecting with the Māori people

It was a trip that a group of Indigenous students at the University of Lethbridge are calling life-changing. This past June 14, students from across the University took part in the Dhillon School of Business course Introduction to Māori Culture and Business Practises and embarked on a two-week study tour of New Zealand. They returned inspired and filled with ideas for how the future of Indigenous people and businesses in Canada might unfold.

About Introduction to Māori Culture and Business Practices

The Inaugural course was taught by Dhillon School of Business instructors Andrea Amelinckx and Rob Crow and was open to Canadian Indigenous students that are declared First Nations, Métis or Inuit. Students spent the first two weeks of the course in Canada, learning about the culture and business practices of the Indigenous people of mainland New Zealand, the Māori. Students then spent two weeks at the University of Waikato in Hamilton, New Zealand continuing their learning during a cultural exchange with the Māori people.

In New Zealand the students were joined by chaperone and Indigenous Governance and Business Management Program Coordinator Rhonda Crow as well as two Māori cultural guides from the University of Waikato. The itinerary included: a traditional welcoming ceremony, or powhiri, on arrival; a three-day Māori business student conference; educational workshops on topics like Indigenous business and Māori tourism; visits to sacred sites like a marae, a communal or sacred place that serves religious and social purposes; and participation in various cultural activities.

The program is predominately funded by Global Skills Opportunity, as well as a generous contribution from the Mastercard Foundation. Overall, the experience is designed to provide students with a deeper understanding of cultural, business and economic aspects of Indigenous governance and management.

Student learnings: What can Canada learn from the Māori?

Once back home in Canada, the students met for one final class, presenting their impressions of the trip along with recommendations of what Canada could learn from the Māori people.

Many students commented on the similarities between the Māori colonization experience and the experience of Indigenous peoples in Canada.

“Their history was very similar to ours,” noted Levitt Maguire who is in his third year of his Bachelor of Management degree, majoring in Indigenous governance and business management. “When the Native Schools Act was first passed in 1867, the Māori kids were beaten at school for speaking in Māori.”

Reforms in New Zealand were finally made, with the abolition of that act in 1969. Then, in 1972, the Māori Language Petition called for the act of recognition of their language, te reo Māori, in schools. In 1978, the first bilingual school in New Zealand opened and in 1985 the first Māori language immersive school opened. For Maguire, that type of progress was inspiring. “That really opened my eyes to language revitalization,” he says. “I always wanted to learn Blackfoot in my school, but we never had the people."

The revitalization efforts of the Māori language also hit home with fourth-year political science major Chynell Shade. "The language revitalization was amazing," Shade remarked, noting that te reo has now become the dominant language in New Zealand over English. In Canada, Shade believes that taking a unified approach to teaching the Blackfoot language and using ancient words to create new words as the Māori have done, will help connect her people back to their ancestors. “[It] would be one step to reclaiming who we are,” she says.

Kelsey Many Fingers-Healy, a fourth-year student in Indigenous studies was struck by the visible cultural empowerment throughout the streets of New Zealand. “We would see countless monuments, each one representing the culture and stories,” he recalls. “Even in our hotel in the hallways, there was Indigenous culture and pictures… it was amazing to see.”

Many Fingers-Healy says Canada can take note of the way the Māori culture is represented through artifacts, saying that Canadian Indigenous people need to have their stories told and culture showcased within Canada. “Having that cultural representation right across Canada can give indigenous people the strength that we need to preserve our ways of life and to teach our values.”

Students also took note of the way business were run by the Māori. Dan Pearson is graduating with a Bachelor of Management in general management and this September will start his Master of Science in Management (business analytics project pathway), majoring in policy and strategy. He reflected on the five Māori leadership values learned in class before the trip and how he saw them reflected in the Māori culture within a business context. The Māori leadership values translate to a certain degree as humility, altruism, others, cultural authenticity, and long-term thinking and guardianship.

One value, humility, Pearson says encourages individuals to recognize their limitations, seek guidance from others and contribute to the collective good rather than seeking personal glory or recognition. Pearson noted that he recognised this foundational aspect of leadership in the interactions with one of their cultural guides.

"He would always tell me about the great people that he worked with,” Pearson says. “He wasn't just boosting them up; he was telling me about how they help out, how they contribute and how they make the experience so great… It was impressive to see his whole team as a representation of this value wholeheartedly."

Pearson contrasted this example with his experience of Western leadership, where individuals are often celebrated for individual accomplishments like the practice of appointing an employee of the month. Pearson thinks adopting a value like humility and valuing the opinions of the team within Canadian business practices could lead to more collaborative work environments, leading to more innovative solutions and a more supportive team dynamic.

Students also discussed ways Canada might take lessons from the Māori through tourism, technology, digital sovereignty, political mobilization, sustainability and more.

The trip even inspired a couple of students to consider completing their master’s degrees. This fall, Tyra Hercina will be starting her first year in the Master of Arts in Indigenous Studies program with a research focus of Indigenous curriculum. Her goal throughout the New Zealand trip was to explore the Māori school curriculum, specifically at the high school level.

"This trip has offered me an opportunity to connect with people, resources and the community, both professionally and personally, that I never would have had access to without the scholarship," Hercina shared.

She also expressed how valuable her firsthand experiences were to her master’s. "It's one thing to Google what a curriculum is, it's a completely different thing to talk to a teacher who's in it every day, who sees the students, who knows the struggles and the benefits,” Hercina explains. “To be able to take those connections into my professional world is an amazing privilege that this opportunity and scholarship have granted me. I really cannot thank the University enough."

The significance of connection

This sentiment, that the connections made with the Māori people will have a profound impact on their lives moving forward was echoed amongst the entire class. Many expressed a wish for other Indigenous students to experience the program or something similar.

Walker English who is majoring in Kinesiology with a minor in art studio says the trip was invaluable to him, an experience that he will take forward into his life.

“I can say, without a doubt that this has inspired me to be a better member of my community and to work hard to preserve, revitalize and amplify my indigenous culture in the surrounding area, Canada and the world,” English says. He adds, “I wish that all indigenous people could have this experience of connecting with our indigenous people around the world. I feel this way because we, as indigenous people, are not alone in our struggles and our successes. We are family.”

Interested in an international perspective? Take your education out-of-country with the International Centre. Upcoming tours are listed on their website, or you can email outgoing@uleth.ca.