Short abstract:

We present research with Māori beekeepers to understand the acceptability of RNAi (gene silencing) within the socio-cultural landscape of Aotearoa New Zealand. The Māori worldview adds to current global ethical considerations and highlights opportunity for collaboration with Western science.

Long abstract:

Western science is historically problematic and harmful to Indigenous peoples globally. In Aotearoa New Zealand, Māori (the Indigenous peoples) are active in the developing collaboration between Western science and mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge). Facilitating this is government funded research programs like Ngā Koiora Tuku Iho / New Zealand’s Biological Heritage that embed Māori partnership into projects with the aim to reverse ecological decline and realize next-generation tools to manage invasive species. Our Māori research team explores the acceptability of novel genetic tools for the potential control of invasive invertebrate Varroa destructor which damage honeybee hives. RNAi (gene silencing) may offer a solution, however, like other controversial genetic techniques, its manipulation of fertility raises ethical concerns and questions for future applications. We examine these issues, centering the voices of Māori beekeepers, drawing on Kaupapa Māori methodology and the socio-political context of the settler-colonial state to analyze interview and survey data. Results show Māori interest and concern for novel tools are considered through the Māori worldview e.g., whakapapa (genealogy), kaitiakitanga (environmental stewardship), and tikanga (protocols). Our research shows that Māori voices present critical engagement with modern science while existing at the frontier of ecological decline and technological advancements. Understanding these conditions will produce insights that enhance the broader discussion on the ethical dilemmas that genetic technologies pose to society.