COMMENTARY: “OUR REFLECTIONS ON IDENTITY, GENDER AND TRANSFORMING ACTION”: A lesson from place

This paper explores the cultural interplay between Indigenous women from one geographic locality being on and within the locality of the women of another locality—in this case, Whakatāne, Aotearoa. The authors consider identity, gender and place within the processes of transformation and decolonisation. They argue that women need to be involved in ways that restore their power as women and ensure their rightful place. The authors draw on the female ancestor Wairaka and her courage to argue that Indigenous women need to respond, change and adapt to the places in which they live. They argue that decolonisation needs to include action and possibilities for Māori and Indigenous Australian women.