Oceanic thinking in settler colonial societies: understanding the surf zone in Aotearoa New Zealand

Keywords: surfing; oceanic; New Zealand; Maori; indigenous knowledge ; blue space
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Friday
Session Start / End Time: 2/25/2022 05:20 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/25/2022 06:40 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 12

Abstract

The surf-zone has often been conceptualised as a space of freedom or escape from the cultural ordering of (terrestrial)life. Yet, surfer’s often express a strong sense of belonging to surf-breaks, with ‘locals’ seeing themselves as having rights to access, sometimes regulating this through physical violence (Anderson, 2014). However, understanding localised place-based analyses that recognise the socio-political contexts and histories of place. For example, in Hawaii the surf-zone is a significant space of resistance for indigenous Hawaiians, central to claims for indigenous autonomy (Walker, 2011). Moreover, indigenous Hawaiian surfers have different relationships to place and surfing than non-indigenous surfers, impacting how they connect to, and give meaning to ocean spaces (Ingersoll, 2016).

Our focus in this paper is surfer’s relationships to oceanic places in the settler colonial context of Aotearoa/New Zealand. In Aotearoa, indigenous Māori embrace different ontologies, practices and assumptions about what the ocean means and how relationships with it are made. Our empirical research involved interviews, duo-ethnography and participant observation to develop intersectional and place-based understanding of surf spaces, recognising the importance of gender, age, ethnicity, ability, craft, and the ‘local’ places in which they are embedded. We argue that understanding settler-colonial histories and indigenous ontologies and knowledge systems are vital for understanding relationships to coastal bluespaces and the politics of belonging in Aotearoa New Zealand, including in oceanic surfing spaces. Recognising conceptions of place and belonging beyond dominant European ideological traditions separating humans from ‘nature’, helps to recognise tensions inherent in settler-colonial populations including around oceanic spaces.