MASON HAROLD DURIE
Over the last two decades Professor Mason Durie has played a major role in the reshaping of Maori research and the building of Maori research capacity. From the mid-1980s when he was appointed to Massey University, he was determined to move Maori Studies beyond the anthropologically-focussed "pre-history, culture and society" paradigm within which it was locked; hence he fostered the concept of Maori Development, focussing on issues of contemporary importance to Maori, to encourage a fresh approach.
This new approach led to a range of diverse projects in Te Reo, the role of broadcasting, Maori society, visual arts, and oral history. Professor Durie himself published a trilogy of books on Maori Development between 1994 and 2001, and the second of these volumes, Te Mana te Kawanatanga: The politics of Maori Self Determination, perhaps best represents the breadth and purpose of the concept. This research agenda, and the capacity and capability building that was part of it, brought new roles in advice to government and ministers, the development of new academic programmes, succession planning, the strategic placement of graduates, as well as advice to and through public bodies. Professor Durie subsequently became Chair of the PBRF Panel on Maori Knowledge and Development, a member of the Board of the Foundation for Research Science and Technology, of the Families Commission, and of the Auckland based Maori CORE. He is an Advisor to TEC, and a regular keynote speaker at the Maori Educational Hui organised by Tumu Te Heuheu. He was also Secretary of the Maori Congress for an extended period, a measure of his standing among Maori.
Professor Durie has not only himself contributed significantly to research over a long period, but has also made an unparalleled contribution to the building of research activity and capacity in Humanities disciplines as they relate to Maori.