Environmental Impact Study · Years 7–10
Te Arotake Taiao — Assessing Human Effects on the Environment
An environmental impact is any change to the environment — positive or negative — caused by human activities. Understanding these impacts helps us make better decisions.
An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a formal process to evaluate effects before projects begin.
NZ example: Agricultural runoff causing algae blooms in rivers
NZ example: Vehicle emissions in Auckland; agricultural methane
NZ example: Erosion in hill country; pine plantation effects
NZ example: Predators threatening native birds; marine reserves
Use this table to assess an environmental issue in your area:
| Question | Your Assessment |
|---|---|
| What is the activity/project? | |
| What environment is affected? | |
| Water impacts? | |
| Air impacts? | |
| Land impacts? | |
| Biodiversity impacts? | |
| What mitigation is possible? |
In te ao Māori, humans are not separate from nature — we are part of it. The concept of kaitiakitanga means we have a responsibility to protect the environment for future generations.
Walk around your school or neighborhood and note:
My observations:
Level 3–4: Identify and develop strategies to maintain and enhance hauora across the four dimensions of Te Whare Tapa Whā; understand how relationships, identity, and cultural connections shape wellbeing.
Level 3–4: Understand how social and cultural factors affect health equity; recognise the impact of community, whānau, and cultural identity on individual and collective wellbeing.
Reflect on your learning. What was the most important idea? What question do you still have?
Te Whare Tapa Whā reminds us that wellbeing is not a single dimension but a balance across taha tinana (physical), taha hinengaro (mental and emotional), taha wairua (spiritual), and taha whānau (family and social). Māori frameworks for health do not separate the individual from their relationships, their culture, or their place in the world. This means that supporting student wellbeing in an Aotearoa classroom means supporting the whole person — including their cultural identity, their connection to whānau, and the practices and places that nourish their wairua. Health education that ignores culture misses the most powerful determinants of wellbeing for many students in our classrooms.
This handout is designed to be used alongside other resources in the same unit. Related materials are linked in the unit planner. All content is provided — no additional preparation is required to use this handout in your classroom.
Students will engage with this resource to explore how mātauranga Māori and Western science offer complementary frameworks for understanding and responding to environmental challenges — learning to read landscapes, ecosystems, and ecological change through both indigenous and scientific lenses.
Scaffold support: Provide dual-lens analysis frameworks (mātauranga Māori lens | Western science lens) for entry-level comparison tasks. Offer extension challenges asking students to investigate a real environmental monitoring programme in Aotearoa that integrates both knowledge systems — for example, iwi-led water quality monitoring using both traditional indicators and scientific sampling.
ELL / ESOL: Environmental and scientific vocabulary (ecosystem, biodiversity, indicator species, sustainability, kaitiakitanga, taonga species) benefits from visual glossaries with images of local species and environments. Allow students to discuss environmental observations from their home countries as valid comparative contexts. Oral field observation is a powerful entry point that reduces language barriers.
Inclusion: Outdoor and field-based learning naturally supports diverse learners — sensory, kinaesthetic, and place-based engagement complements classroom tasks. Neurodiverse learners often thrive in structured outdoor inquiry. Ensure physical accessibility is considered for field components. Indigenous and Pacific students may bring family knowledge of traditional environmental practices — create space for this knowledge to be honoured, not just acknowledged.
Mātauranga Māori lens: Mātauranga Māori environmental knowledge is not folklore — it is centuries of systematic observation, classification, and adaptive management. Ngā tohu o te rangi (signs of the weather), ngā tohu o te taiao (signs of the natural world), and the detailed ecological knowledge encoded in place names all represent sophisticated environmental science. Kaitiakitanga is not simply "conservation" — it is a dynamic, relational ethic of guardianship that recognises humans as part of, not separate from, ecosystems. Marama Muru-Lanning and other contemporary mātauranga Māori researchers are demonstrating how this knowledge enriches environmental science.
Prior knowledge: Students benefit from foundational understanding of ecosystems and environmental science concepts. No specialist mātauranga Māori knowledge required — the unit builds this knowledge through inquiry.