Kaitiakitanga (Māori Guardianship and Active Protection) and Environmental Governance in the Age of AI: A study of AI governance in Aotearoa New Zealand
Year: 2026
Type: dissertation
Abstract: While AI can offer powerful predictive capabilities to facilitate environmental management, its rapid and often uncritical adoption risks instigating a new wave of "digital colonialism" by commodifying Indigenous environmental data and traditional knowledge. Drawing on the Governance Analytical Framework, Marxist political ecology, and decolonial theory, I examine current international and domestic AI governance and three applied AI case studies in climate adaptation and conservation in Aotearoa New Zealand. My findings highlight significant structural friction between state-mandated, individualistic data protection frameworks and the collective, sovereignty-based proposals of the Māori Data Governance Model and the CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance. To counter extractive data practices and the looming socio-economic risks of techno-feudalism, the study offers three key takeaways for future AI governance: increase wider governance participation and actors’ accountabilities; clarify actors’ responsibilities and reserve the right to protective actions; and deepen understanding of AI risks and trade-offs for continuous management.
Author: Wu, Songze
Institution: Lund University
Language: English
Subfield: Artificial Intelligence
Field: Computer Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7224146736