December 17, 2001

The Auckland Regional Council has adopted Te Rauhitanga Taiao as its official Maori name.

The name, which means “the gathering place of elements relating to the environment”, was chosen after consultation with past and present members of Te Taura Whiri I Te Reo Maori (The Maori Language Commission) and iwi.

“Te Rauhitanga Taiao, is short, evocative and most importantly reflects what the council actually does,” ARC Chairman Philip Warren says.

Cr Warren says while the council has informally been referred to by Maori as “Te Kaunihera a Rohe o Tamaki Makaurau”, that name was merely a literal translation of Auckland Regional Council and was also geographically inappropriate as it referred only to the Auckland isthmus.

“The adoption of a Maori name recognises the ARC’s powerful statutory and policy imperatives to work with Auckland’s 129,000 Maori citizens and provides an enduring foundation for our relationships and growing partnerships with Maori.”

The Resource Management Act 1991 sets out strong provisions for local government to work closely with Maori and these are reflected through the ARC’s Regional Policy Statement and Regional Plan Coastal.

“I believe that the new name reflects this organisation’s commitment to developing and consolidating our relationships with Tangata Whenua,” Cr Warren says. “I hope it will help make the ARC more relevant to Maori, especially to young Maori as they grow up learning and speaking the Maori language,” Cr Warren says.

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