More than 160,000 Māori are estimated to now call Australia home, creating one of the largest Māori communities outside Aotearoa and raising questions about how whānau maintain their whakapapa, tikanga and connection to home across the Tasman.
Australia has long been a destination for Māori seeking employment, higher incomes and new opportunities for their whānau, with significant communities now established in places including Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and the Gold Coast.
The size of that community also attracts political attention during New Zealand election campaigns, particularly among expatriates who remain eligible to vote. But for community advocate Chris Barber, the conversation extends well beyond election-year politics.
Barber is among those supporting efforts to establish a marae in Western Sydney, providing Māori living in the region with a permanent cultural space for hui, tangihanga, kapa haka, te reo Māori, tikanga and other community kaupapa.
For tamariki and mokopuna growing up in Australia, supporters see a marae as a potential cultural anchor — somewhere they can strengthen their understanding of whakapapa and tikanga while maintaining connections with whānau, hapū and iwi back in Aotearoa.
The kaupapa also reflects a broader challenge facing Māori communities overseas: how to remain connected culturally while building permanent lives thousands of kilometres from their tūrangawaewae.
Barber joined Waatea to kōrero about life for Māori whānau in Western Sydney, what communities across the Tasman need, and why establishing a marae could leave an important cultural legacy for generations of Māori growing up in Australia.
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