Nāu i whatu te kākahu, he tāniko tāku. (Mead & Grove, 2001: 319)
The above whakataukī (proverbial saying) symbolizes the joint alliance of a Welsh (that is non-Māori) materials engineer and a Māori user of cultural materials not only writing this article, but in the development of the holistic research philosophy and exemplar we are entitling Turuturu. Turuturu (methodological framework) embraces both mätauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) and Western science and engineering, and emerged as a result of changing perceptions of research methods by the authors. For many Western academics in both science and humanities, multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research projects are considered the norm. However, by considering different perspectives, discipline boundaries are challenged and can be re-negotiated as transdisciplinary research which has a similar framework to kaupapa Māori (Māori theory). A case study is provided in this article that employs Turuturu in the assessment of harakeke (Phormium tenax, New Zealand lowland flax) growing at Te Nohoaka o Tukiauau (Sinclair Wetlands) for weaving purposes. The assessments were completed from the perspectives of both a materials engineer and a Māori user of cultural materials. Conclusions are drawn regarding the interface of the two knowledge sets, especially as they merge and ameliorate as a singular method encapsulated within the korowai (cloak)1 of tikanga Māori (Māori custom, protocol). The research being Māori initiated, led and controlled, but involving Māori and non-Māori researchers, involves boundary crossing and a philosophy of open mindedness of all parties concerned.
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