Māori Views on Novel Biotechnologies for Controlling Pest Wasps in Aotearoa-New Zealand

• In Event: TRANS-disciplinary Research Through STS Practice Part 2

Abstract

In Aotearoa New Zealand, research is underway into five different biotechnological controls of German and Common wasps, such as pathogen-carrying wasp mites and gene-edited wasp queens. These have the potential to eradicate introduced wasps. The National Science Challenge project that funds this research asks which are considered ‘socially acceptable’, and thus suitable to consider developing further and using? Our study as a whole explores the perceptions of different groups of people, with a focus on Māori. This presentation will focus on a group of critically engaged and informed students of Māori Resource Management, whose undergraduate assessment included reflective geo-journaling on their own interactions with wasps, and research into wasp bio-controls. Focus groups, Likert Ranking exercises and a Q-Method sorting exercise canvassed participants’ views in relation to ‘wasp biocontrols’. The study found multiple areas of consensus, and also three groups with distinct viewpoints; reflecting both the unity and diversity amongst Māori. We will present these positions and views regarding the specific biotechnologies and explore how Māori values guided these. Finally, we will situate these within discourses of mātauranga Māori (traditional ecological knowledge) related to pest control, earlier debates on Genetic Modification, and in relation to the New Zealand government’s goal to eradicate rats, stoats and possums from New Zealand by 2050. Implications for trans-disciplinary dialogue in pest management spaces will also be considered.

Author

• Ocean Mercier, Victoria University of Wellington