Professional Policies.

Academic freedom is the cornerstone of a democratic and vibrant tertiary education sector. It enables kaimahi (staff) and ākonga (students) to teach, research, and engage in critical debate without fear of censorship or reprisal, and underpins the role of tertiary institutions as the critic and conscience of society. Academic freedom is also indispensable to the functioning of democracy more broadly: it provides citizens with access to independent research, nurtures diverse perspectives, and ensures that those in power can be held to account through informed public debate. Without it, democratic decision-making is weakened and society risks losing the rigorous critique necessary for transparency and accountability.

The Education and Training Act 2020 provides statutory recognition of academic freedom (see s267), but in practice it requires active protection by institutions, government, and the union movement.

Consistent with Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union’s (TEU) Equity Policy, this policy recognises the intersecting inequities experienced by women, Māori, Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other marginalised kaimahi and ākonga. Protecting academic freedom requires attention to these inequities, but detailed commitments are outlined in the Equity Policy.

We aspire to a tertiary education sector where academic freedom is lived as a daily reality rather than a theoretical right. In this vision, kaimahi and ākonga confidently pursue teaching, research, and expression of ideas across all disciplines, including those that challenge political, cultural, or commercial interests. Academic freedom is exercised responsibly and ethically, serving democracy and the wider public good in a way which foregrounds self-awareness and accountability.

In this vision, institutions embrace their role as the critic and conscience of society. They support robust and respectful debate, value intellectual diversity, and ensure that decision-making structures protect the independence of teaching and research. Academic freedom is not treated as a reputational risk but as a core democratic obligation.

Although legally protected, academic freedom in Aotearoa New Zealand is under increasing strain. Managerial and compliance cultures narrow the scope of inquiry, while funding structures create perverse incentives that discourage independent research. Kaimahi and ākonga report self-censorship in controversial areas, particularly where their work questions political priorities or institutional interests.

These pressures undermine the public good role of tertiary education and weaken democracy. They also affect some groups more acutely than others – for example, Māori scholars advancing indigenous knowledge, publishing in te reo Māori, or challenging dominant narratives on issues such as climate change and inequality.

Without a clear commitment from institutions and government, statutory protections risk becoming hollow. TEU therefore reaffirms academic freedom as central to the tertiary education sector and asserts the need for proactive action to defend it.

To achieve our aspirations, TEU will implement a range of the following actions.

• Promote academic freedom as a statutory right and a democratic necessity in relevant submissions to government
• Oppose legislative or regulatory proposals that reduce academic freedom to a compliance exercise.
• Highlight the role of academic freedom in enabling the tertiary sector to act as the critic and conscience of society in the interests of the public good.

• Raise public awareness of threats to academic freedom and their implications for democracy.
• Celebrate and amplify examples of academic freedom in action, including recognition through TEU awards and campaigns.
• Challenge institutional attempts to treat critical scholarship as a reputational or financial risk.

• Support members who experience threats to their academic freedom, providing advice, advocacy, and solidarity.
• Develop training and resources to help kaimahi and ākonga understand their rights and responsibilities under the Education and Training Act.
• Build networks across disciplines and institutions to monitor and respond to emerging challenges.

• Work with institutions to embed cultures that value, promote, and actively protect academic freedom, including kaimahi and ākonga representation in governance.
• Advocate for strong kaimahi and ākonga representation in institutional governance and decision-making structures, ensuring academic freedom is protected at the highest levels of oversight.
• Collaborate with allied organisations to strengthen sector-wide advocacy.

Decent work is central to a strong tertiary education sector. It means secure employment, fair pay, manageable workloads, and meaningful work at workplaces that enable people to flourish. Secure employment means ongoing and stable work that provides predictable income, protection from unjustified dismissal, and opportunities for progression, rather than reliance on casual or fixed-term arrangements. The concept aligns with international best practice, including the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) standards and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 8.

Consistent with Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union’s (TEU) Equity Policy, this policy recognises the intersecting inequities experienced by women, Māori, Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other marginalised kaimahi (staff) and ākonga (students). While these inequities are addressed in detail in TEU’s Equity Policy, this policy affirms that decent work cannot be realised without systemic fairness and inclusion.

We envisage a tertiary education sector where all kaimahi enjoy dignified, secure, and fair employment. Workplaces are supportive and sustainable, with conditions that enable creativity, collegiality, kaimahi voice, and professional growth. Decent work is built on trust between kaimahi and institutions, where workloads are manageable, contracts are stable, conditions are equitable, and pay enables a decent standard of living.

This vision extends beyond the individual to the collective. Institutions that provide decent work are better able to deliver high-quality teaching, research, and community engagement. Decent work ensures that tertiary education remains a public good, serving society as a whole rather than being undermined by short-term cost-cutting or instability.

Despite decades of advocacy, many tertiary workers still experience precarity, overwork, and inequity in employment which has led to ongoing psychosocial harm. Fixed-term and casual contracts are increasingly common, workloads are rising without recognition and compensation, and pay disparities persist. These pressures undermine the quality of education and research, damage wellbeing, and contribute to high kaimahi turnover.

The disestablishment of Te Pūkenga and ongoing restructuring in the university sector have deepened insecurity, with job losses and heightened workloads affecting both academic and general kaimahi. Without clear standards for decent work, these pressures are increasingly becoming entrenched features of the sector.

At the same time, international frameworks emphasise that decent work is essential for sustainable societies and economies. The ILO defines it as productive work that is fairly remunerated, secure, and undertaken in conditions of freedom, equity, and dignity. Aotearoa New Zealand has committed to these principles through the UN Sustainable Development Goals, yet they are not upheld in tertiary education.

To achieve our aspirations, TEU will implement a range of the following actions.

• Campaign for stronger employment protections in tertiary legislation and collective agreements that establish secure, ongoing employment as the default in tertiary education, with strict limits on casual and fixed-term contracts permitted only in clearly defined and exceptional circumstances.
• Advocate for tertiary funding models that prioritise secure staffing, sustainable workloads, and fair pay, with explicit recognition of decent work as a public good.
• Promote decent work standards in national policy debates, referencing international commitments such as ILO conventions and SDG 8.

• Lead national campaigns to highlight workload crises and casualisation, drawing on member experiences to expose the human and educational impacts of insecure work, including ongoing psychosocial harms.
• Mobilise public support for decent work in tertiary education, emphasising its role in safeguarding the quality of teaching, research, and community engagement.

• Support members to identify and challenge breaches of decent work, including unreasonable workloads and inequitable employment practices.
• Provide training and resources for delegates and branches to negotiate improved workload models, secure employment pathways, and pay equity.
• Strengthen member networks to ensure decent work is prioritised across the sector as a shared concern that will be raised through collective bargaining.

• Engage constructively with government, the Tertiary Education Commission, and institutions to embed decent work standards in sector planning and funding.
• Support the development of transparent, publicly available workforce data to monitor employment security, workloads, and equity outcomes.
• Build alliances with ākonga organisations and community groups to reinforce the message that decent work underpins the wider public value of tertiary education.

Equity is at the heart of Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union’s (TEU) vision for a fair and flourishing tertiary education sector. It requires more than equal treatment: it means actively addressing systemic barriers and ensuring that institutions recognise and respond to the diverse needs of kaimahi (staff) and ākonga (students).

This policy recognises the intersecting inequities experienced by women, Māori, Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other marginalised kaimahi and ākonga.

While equity is a shared foundation across all TEU policies, this policy focuses specifically on systemic fairness within the tertiary education sector. Issues of academic freedom, public funding, decent work, and democratic governance are addressed in detail in separate policies, though they remain connected to the realisation of equity.

We envisage a tertiary education system in which equity is embedded across all aspects of teaching, research, governance, and employment. In this vision, systemic barriers that limit participation, progression, or recognition are dismantled, and institutions are designed to be inclusive and fair from the outset.

Kaimahi are employed securely, paid equitably, and supported to pursue their careers in environments that are safe, respectful, and representative of Aotearoa New Zealand’s diversity. Ākonga have equitable access to pathways that reflect their aspirations and potential, with meaningful support to ensure their success. Institutional leadership and decision-making structures are inclusive, transparent, and reflective of the communities they serve. Equity is not treated as an optional or peripheral concern, but as a defining measure of institutional quality.

Inequities remain entrenched in the tertiary education sector. Māori and Pacific ākonga continue to experience lower participation and completion rates, disabled ākonga face barriers to full inclusion and participation, and refugee-background and working-class ākonga are excluded from many existing support frameworks. Marginalised groups face discrimination regarding both entry into the tertiary education workforce as well as fair and equitable conditions once employed. For kaimahi, casualisation, pay gaps, inequitable promotion processes, and excessive workloads are persistent features of the sector which have a greater impact on marginalised kaimahi. These conditions undermine both fairness and quality, with equity-related responsibilities often falling disproportionately on marginalised kaimahi without recognition or reward.

Government funding and regulatory settings too often compound inequities rather than address them, with recent policy changes reducing targeted equity support. Institutional cultures, while increasingly adopting equity statements, still lag in ensuring that commitments translate into lived realities. Without a systemic shift in how equity is understood and operationalised, these patterns will continue, serving the interests of those already privileged by existing structures while excluding those who are marginalised.

To achieve our aspirations, TEU will implement a range of the following actions.

• Press for the reinstatement and expansion of equity-based funding, ensuring it explicitly supports ākonga and kaimahi facing systemic barriers.
• Demand transparent pay systems and regular equity audits (including terms, conditions, and staffing levels/turnover) across the sector to close gender, ethnicity, and disability pay gaps.
• Advocate for secure employment as the default, challenging casualisation and the misuse of fixed-term contracts.

• Make equity a core demand in collective bargaining, including workload protections, recognition of cultural capital and pastoral labour, and accessible professional development.
• Campaign for transparent and fair promotion systems that value diverse contributions across teaching, research, service, and community engagement.
• Highlight inequities in government policy and hold institutions accountable for delivering on equity commitments.

• Provide members with resources, training, and workshops to strengthen local equity advocacy.
• Support branch leadership teams and delegates to challenge inequitable practices in their workplaces, including through the use of workload models and pay audits.
• Publish regular union reports monitoring equity indicators, ensuring visibility and accountability across the sector.

• Uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi by working in partnership with iwi and hapū to design and implement equity initiatives.
• Collaborate with organisations representing Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other communities to ensure intersectional approaches to equity.
• Integrate environmental justice into union advocacy so that equity and sustainability are advanced together.

Tertiary education is a public good. It strengthens Aotearoa New Zealand’s social fabric, supports democratic participation, and builds the skills and knowledge necessary for a just and sustainable future. Public investment in our tertiary education sector must be adequate, stable, and predictable, allowing institutions to focus on their core responsibilities of teaching, research, and community service rather than market-driven imperatives.

Consistent with Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union’s (TEU) Equity Policy, this policy recognises the intersecting inequities experienced by women, Māori, Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other marginalised kaimahi (staff) and ākonga (students). While the principles of equity, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, decent work, and democracy underpin all of TEU’s policy positions, this policy focuses specifically on the funding system that sustains tertiary education.

Our aspiration is for a tertiary education system that is securely and publicly funded, enabling institutions to serve their communities with independence and integrity. In this vision, public resourcing is sufficient to maintain high-quality teaching and research across disciplines, including areas that may not generate commercial returns but are vital to society’s cultural, intellectual, and democratic life.

In this vision, institutions are not reliant on volatile income streams such as international ākonga recruitment or commercial ventures. Instead, they have stable investment that supports fair workloads and secure employment for kaimahi, as well as accessible, affordable opportunities for ākonga. Funding settings reflect Te Tiriti o Waitangi, honouring the role of Māori knowledge, leadership, tikanga Māori, te reo Māori, and aspirations in shaping the system.

Funding is future-focused and supports the sector to model environmental sustainability, invest in green infrastructure, and prepare ākonga to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world.

This policy is needed because current funding arrangements are unstable and inequitable. Base funding has failed to keep pace with the actual costs of delivering high-quality tertiary education, leaving institutions increasingly reliant on private income. Overreliance on international ākonga fees makes the system vulnerable to global shocks, while short-term, competitive funding models discourage long-term planning.

These settings directly impact kaimahi, who face heavier workloads and greater insecurity, and ākonga, who face higher costs and fewer opportunities in disciplines not seen as commercially profitable. Funding cuts to areas such as the humanities and social sciences weaken democratic life and limit the diversity of knowledge. At the same time, the sector is under-resourced to meet the scale of the climate crisis or to fulfil Te Tiriti o Waitangi-based responsibilities.

The goal of this policy is therefore to secure a funding system that:

• Provides sufficient, stable, and inflation-indexed baseline funding.
• Protects the independence of tertiary institutions by reducing reliance on volatile markets.
• Ensures all disciplines, including those of cultural and democratic importance, are sustainably supported.
• Enables long-term planning, fair employment, and manageable workloads.
• Equips the sector to respond to the challenges of equity, Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations, and environmental sustainability.

To achieve our aspirations, TEU will implement a range of the following actions.

• Lobby government for a funding model that provides multi-year, inflation-indexed baseline allocations across the sector and honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi, tikanga, and te reo Māori.
• Advocate for equity-adjusted funding formulas that recognise the costs of supporting diverse ākonga and communities, in line with TEU’s Equity Policy.
• Press for sustainable funding of all disciplines, including the humanities, social sciences, and mātauranga Māori.
• Advocate for the expansion of publicly funded scholarships and grants with inclusive, flexible criteria that support access and success for marginalised ākonga, without restrictive age or background limits.
• Advocate for sustained public investment to close the digital divide, ensuring all ākonga and kaimahi have equitable access to digital infrastructure, connectivity, and resources necessary for quality teaching and learning.

• Publicly campaign for tertiary education as a public good, highlighting the dangers of marketisation and overreliance on international ākonga income.
• Build public support for increased investment in tertiary education by demonstrating its social, cultural, environmental, and economic value.

• Support members to take collective action where underfunding undermines job security, workloads, or educational quality.
• Provide members with resources and evidence to engage their communities and local representatives on funding issues.
• Co-ordinate analyses of the funding system every three years to identify funding shortfalls, inequities, and their impact on kaimahi and ākonga.

• Work with iwi and hapu, community organisations, and equity groups to ensure funding settings reflect Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations and community needs.
• Collaborate with environmental and ākonga groups to advocate for funding that supports sustainability and accessible education.

General kaimahi (staff) are essential to the success of Aotearoa New Zealand’s tertiary education sector.[2] They provide the professional, technical, administrative, ākonga (student) support, cultural capital, and operational expertise that ensures the smooth running of institutions and enables teaching, research, and community engagement to flourish. Yet despite their central role, general kaimahi often remain undervalued, under-represented in governance, and vulnerable to insecure employment practices and micro-management.

Consistent with Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union’s (TEU) Equity Policy, this policy recognises the intersecting inequities experienced by women, Māori, Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other marginalised kaimahi and ākonga. These inequities shape the working lives of many general kaimahi and must be addressed through fair, secure, equitable, inclusive, and responsive workplace practices. In this policy, “general kaimahi” refers to professional, technical, administrative, and allied kaimahi who are not employed primarily in academic teaching or research roles.

We envisage a tertiary education sector where general kaimahi are securely employed, respected, and valued as integral contributors to institutional life. General kaimahi employment is stable and fairly remunerated, with transparent career pathways and opportunities for progression. Their expertise in ākonga services, technical operations, digital systems, libraries, laboratories, health and wellbeing, administration, and other areas is publicly recognised as central to the mission of tertiary education.

Decision-making structures are inclusive, with general kaimahi voices present and influential at every level of governance. Workplaces foster professional development, provide adequate resources, and protect kaimahi wellbeing at all times, and particularly in times of change. Institutions honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi and work in partnership with Māori general kaimahi to develop and implement culturally grounded and equitable practices. General kaimahi contributions to sustainability are recognised as vital, with their roles supported in making tertiary education environmentally responsible and future-focused.

General kaimahi face persistent challenges that require a dedicated response. Their work is often rendered invisible, treated as peripheral rather than integral to the educational mission. This invisibility translates into systemic inequities, including lower pay scales compared to academic colleagues, limited opportunities for advancement, and exclusion from strategic decision-making.

Sector restructuring often lacks adequate consultation with general kaimahi and has intensified precarity, with general kaimahi often bearing the brunt of budget cuts and job losses. The overuse of casual and fixed-term contracts undermines employment stability, while rising workloads and digital transformations demand greater adaptability without adequate resourcing or training. These pressures have direct consequences for the quality of education and ākonga experience, as overstretched general kaimahi are less able to provide the support and expertise ākonga rely upon.

To achieve our aspirations, TEU will implement a range of the following actions.

• Campaign for equitable pay frameworks that recognise the complexity and value of general kaimahi roles.
• Advocate for secure employment by reducing reliance on casual and fixed-term contracts, promoting permanent positions as the norm.
• Push for inclusion of general kaimahi in institutional governance and decision-making practices at all levels.

• Highlight the contributions of general kaimahi in public and sector debates, ensuring their work is visible and celebrated.
• Challenge restructures and funding cuts that disproportionately impact general kaimahi.
• Promote the role of general kaimahi in advancing sustainability within tertiary education institutions.

• Support TEU branches to collect and publicly report data on general kaimahi pay, workloads, and conditions to inform bargaining and campaigns.
• Provide resources and training for members to advocate effectively on general kaimahi issues.
• Strengthen organising networks for general kaimahi within TEU, building solidarity and collective voice.

• Work with general kaimahi to ensure Te Tiriti o Waitangi is honoured in institutional practice and decision-making, including opportunities to develop their tikanga and te reo Māori.
• Collaborate with other kaimahi groups to advance sector-wide campaigns that benefit all workers, while maintaining a distinct focus on the unique challenges faced by general kaimahi.
• Engage constructively with institutions and government to secure long-term improvements in general kaimahi recognition and support.

Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union (TEU) affirms that intellectual property (IP) within Aotearoa New Zealand’s tertiary education sector must serve the public good. Knowledge created within our tertiary education institutions should advance education, research, and community wellbeing rather than being treated primarily as a private commodity.

Consistent with TEU’s Equity Policy, this policy recognises the intersecting inequities experienced by women, Māori, Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other marginalised kaimahi (staff) and ākonga (students). These inequities influence both the creation of intellectual property and the distribution of its benefits.

We envisage a tertiary education system where intellectual property is managed transparently, fairly, and in ways that strengthen the public role of tertiary education. In this vision, scholarly and teaching outputs remain accessible for educational purposes, and research conducted with public funding is openly available for public use.

Mātauranga Māori is respected as a taonga tuku iho, protected under Te Tiriti o Waitangi, with decisions and consent regarding its use and commercialisation resting with mana whenua and the authors. Intellectual property frameworks across the sector are consistent, easily understood, and promote trust between kaimahi, ākonga, institutions, and the wider community.

In this vision, intellectual property supports collaboration, innovation, and sustainability, contributing not only to institutional success but also to wider social and environmental wellbeing.

At present, intellectual property policies across tertiary institutions are inconsistent and often unclear, leaving kaimahi and ākonga uncertain about their rights. Some universities claim ownership over a wide range of outputs, while others allow greater kaimahi control, creating inequities and confusion. This fragmentation undermines confidence and can discourage innovation, collaboration, and open sharing.

For tangata Māori, inadequate safeguards continue to place mātauranga Māori at risk of misappropriation or commercial exploitation without proper consent. A clear and consistent framework is required to uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi and protect tino rangatiratanga over taonga tuku iho, including tikanga and te reo Māori.

There is also limited sector-wide commitment to open access, despite strong international evidence that open publication maximises the social and economic value of research. Without stronger national expectations, the benefits of publicly funded knowledge are not being fully realised.

Finally, kaimahi are often left without adequate support to understand or assert their rights, particularly when negotiating complex IP and commercialisation agreements.

To achieve our aspirations, TEU will implement a range of the following actions.

• Lobby for national standards ensuring publicly funded research outputs are made openly available wherever possible.
• Advocate for consistent institutional policies that allow kaimahi and ākonga to retain rights to their scholarly and teaching materials.
• Press for explicit recognition of mātauranga Māori as taonga, requiring Māori consent and benefit-sharing in any use or commercialisation.

• Campaign for sector-wide adoption of open access and open educational resources.

• Provide guidance to members on their intellectual property rights, licensing options (such as Creative Commons), and negotiating fair agreements.
• Offer training and workshops on IP issues, with particular attention to Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations and equity considerations.
• Monitor member experiences and identify cases where inequitable practices occur, using these to inform campaigning and bargaining.

• Work with Māori research collectives and appropriate Māori authorities, such as iwi and hapū, to support the protection of mātauranga Māori.
• Collaborate with open access networks and allied unions to strengthen collective influence on IP policy.
• Engage with environmental and open-source organisations to ensure intellectual property frameworks support sustainability and intergenerational wellbeing.

Te Tiriti o Waitangi is Aotearoa New Zealand’s founding document and provides the framework for partnership between tangata whenua and the Crown. For the tertiary education sector, Te Tiriti o Waitangi affirms the Crown’s duty of kāwanatanga (governance), guarantees Māori tino rangatiratanga (self-determination), and ensures rights and opportunities for all – obligations which must be actively upheld in governance, funding, curriculum, and institutional practice.

Consistent with Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union’s (TEU) Equity Policy, this policy recognises the intersecting inequities experienced by women, Māori, Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other marginalised kaimahi (staff) and ākonga (students). A Te Tiriti o Waitangi-honouring tertiary sector must address these inequities within the framework of tino rangatiratanga and genuine partnership.

We aspire to a tertiary education sector that fully honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi as a living covenant and constitutional foundation. In this vision, tino rangatiratanga is respected and realised through meaningful mana whenua leadership, co-governance, and co-design at every level of the sector. Mātauranga Māori is valued as a foundational source of knowledge, alongside tikanga Māori, shaping teaching, research, and institutional practice.

Our vision is one where tertiary institutions uphold their responsibility and accountability as partners to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. These institutions are places of belonging and equity, committed to ensuring all ākonga and kaimahi are allowed to thrive with dignity, cultural safety, and have fair opportunities through embedded practice. Institutional marae play a vital role in this vision, providing spaces of belonging, learning, and cultural expression that embody Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnership within the sector. As a taonga under Te Tiriti o Waitangi, te reo me tikanga Māori must be protected and promoted across teaching, research, and institutional activities, affirming their place as a living mātauranga of Aotearoa New Zealand. The sector also embraces kaitiakitanga (guardianship), acknowledging responsibilities to our taiao (environment) and mokopuna (future generations) by embedding sustainability and intergenerational justice into its mission.

Past governments have failed to uphold their responsibilities under Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Furthermore, the current coalition government has signalled an intention to narrow or weaken Te Tiriti o Waitangi commitments, including through the proposed Treaty Principles Bill and the Regulatory Standards Bill. These efforts risk reducing the Crown’s obligations to minimal terms and undermine mechanisms that protect mana whenua tino rangatiratanga, sovereignty, and equity in tertiary education. Simultaneously, funding cuts to Māori initiatives threaten to reverse progress towards greater participation and success for ākonga and kaimahi.

While many tertiary institutions have established Te Tiriti o Waitangi-based policies and initiatives, they remain uneven in their effectiveness and vulnerable to political change. Kaimahi Māori continue to be under-represented and often carry disproportionate cultural and pastoral workloads, while non-kaimahi Māori have uneven access to the support needed to build cultural capability, including a robust understanding of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its implications for the workplace. Institutional marae, where established, provide vital spaces of belonging and cultural integrity, yet their availability across the sector remains inconsistent, limiting their role as visible expressions of Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnership. Similarly, te reo Māori, though recognised as a taonga and as an official language of Aotearoa New Zealand, is still not adequately supported in teaching, research, or institutional culture. Without clear union advocacy and strong institutional accountability, Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations risk being treated as symbolic rather than transformative.

This policy provides TEU with the clarity and direction needed to respond to this context. It outlines how the union will defend and advance Te Tiriti o Waitangi within the tertiary sector, while complementing and cross-referencing other TEU policies on equity, democracy, and decent work.

To achieve our aspirations, TEU will implement a range of the following actions.

• Oppose legislative and policy changes that undermine Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations.
• Promote Te Tiriti o Waitangi-aligned approaches in all government submissions and policy processes, ensuring Māori tino rangatiratanga and equity remain central.
• Advocate for sustained, targeted funding for Māori ākonga and kaimahi.

• Coordinate campaigns with mana whenua and allied organisations to defend and strengthen Te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations across the sector.

• Support members to challenge institutional failures to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi, through collective bargaining and workplace advocacy.
• Build member capability with accessible training and resources on Te Tiriti o Waitangi, mātauranga Māori, tikanga Māori, and te reo Māori linked to practical workplace contexts.

• Encourage tertiary institutions to establish formal, well-resourced partnerships with iwi, hapū, and Māori organisations.
• Promote co-governance and co-design arrangements that embed Māori voices in institutional decision-making.
• Support kaupapa Māori (Māori approaches) institutions such as wānanga (Māori tertiary institutions), ensuring they are adequately funded and respected as Te Tiriti o Waitangi partners.
• Work with tertiary institutions to ensure ongoing comprehensive cultural capability training for all non-kaimahi Māori.
• Encourage tertiary institutions to establish institutional marae as spaces of belonging and by promoting tikanga Māori and te reo Māori as a living language across teaching, research, and daily practice.

Aotearoa New Zealand’s tertiary education sector has a critical role to play in supporting Aotearoa New Zealand to respond to climate change and ensure a sustainable and equitable future. Our tertiary education sector is uniquely positioned to generate knowledge, model sustainable practices, and support just transitions for communities and industries. Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union (TEU) recognises that climate action – central to which is the reciprocal relationship between tāngata and Papatūānuku – is inseparable from the public mission of tertiary education and is essential to the long-term wellbeing of kaimahi (staff), ākonga (students), and communities.

Consistent with TEU’s Equity Policy, this policy recognises the intersecting inequities experienced by women, Māori, Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other marginalised kaimahi and ākonga. While this document focuses specifically on climate change and sustainability, it should be read alongside TEU’s policies on Equity, Funding, Decent Work, and Te Tiriti o Waitangi, which provide further detail on intersecting principles and commitments.

We envisage a tertiary education sector that models leadership in responding to the climate crisis. In this future, climate responsibility is embedded in teaching, research, governance, and institutional operations. Tertiary institutions act as exemplars of sustainability, regenerative practice, operating with a low carbon footprint, resilient infrastructure, and practices that demonstrate care for the environment. Te Tiriti o Waitangi is honoured with mana whenua exercising tino rangatiratanga in relation to whenua and taonga.

Teaching, research, and community engagement foster the knowledge, understanding, and capabilities needed to sustain people and planet. Curricula and pedagogy at every level reflect a deep integration of climate change, sustainability, circular economy, intergenerational justice, and participatory democracy – grounded in te ao Māori and mātauranga Māori, and taught in ways that inspire both critical thought and emotional connection. Educators and ākonga are well supported through optimum working and learning conditions and ongoing professional learning that equips them to teach and learn across disciplines and to nurture a sense of shared responsibility for the future. Reciprocal relationships between tertiary institutions and communities flourish, creating spaces where collective learning and action drive enduring environmental and social transformation.

Kaimahi and ākonga are equipped with the knowledge and skills to contribute to just transitions in work and society. Research is future-focused, interdisciplinary, and responsive to community needs, supporting mātauranga Māori to flourish alongside scientific and technical expertise. Campuses are models of sustainable design, fostering environments that are accessible, inclusive, resilient, and conducive to climate impacts. The sector contributes not only to national climate targets but also to a broader vision of intergenerational wellbeing.

The urgency of climate change and other environmental crises requires the tertiary education sector to act decisively. Institutions are significant users of energy, transport, and resources, and have both the opportunity and responsibility to reduce their environmental impact. At the same time, tertiary education is uniquely placed to prepare society for climate transitions by embedding sustainability in all learning and advancing climate-focused research.

Despite growing awareness, significant barriers prevent tertiary education from fully realising its potential in addressing climate change and environmental sustainability. Climate-related content is often unevenly embedded across programmes, with limited coordination between disciplines and insufficient recognition of mātauranga Māori as central to environmental understanding and action. Many educators lack access to the training, time, or institutional support required to develop new curricula and pedagogical approaches, while existing funding models prioritise short-term outputs over long-term social and ecological goals. Community partnerships and public education initiatives remain underdeveloped, limiting opportunities for reciprocal learning and collective climate action. Without systemic change, tertiary institutions risk remaining reactive rather than leading the transformation that this moment demands.

Climate change has direct implications for campuses and communities, from rising insurance costs to physical risks from extreme weather events. It also presents equity challenges: some groups are disproportionately affected by climate disruption, and without deliberate action this could widen existing inequities as well as create new forms of inequity.

As outlined in TEU’s Equity Policy, addressing the systemic barriers faced by marginalised groups is a necessary part of ensuring that climate strategies are fair, effective, and inclusive.

To achieve our aspirations, TEU will implement a range of the following actions.

• Advocate for tertiary institutions to adopt sector-wide climate adaptation and mitigation strategies aligned with the goal to limit global warming to 1.5°C.
• Advocate for sustainability transitions that protect kaimahi and ākonga wellbeing by ensuring campus environments remain safe, healthy, and comfortable, with energy efficiency measures balanced against the need for conducive working and learning conditions.
• Ensure climate education and decision-making are centred on mātauranga Māori, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and the reciprocal relationship between tāngata and Papatūānuku..
• Advocate for the integration of climate change, sustainability, and just transition content across all disciplines, supported by national frameworks and tertiary education strategy settings.
• Advocate for climate-resilient and accessible campus infrastructure, ensuring the needs of disabled kaimahi and ākonga are prioritised in adaptation planning.
• Ensure sustainability and climate change are woven throughout tertiary curricula, rather than confined to specific disciplines, and that mātauranga Māori and local community knowledge are integral to course content and design.

• Campaign for government funding to support sustainable infrastructure, research, and teaching, ensuring costs are not shifted onto kaimahi or ākonga.
• Call for sustained government and institutional investment in educator capability-building, curriculum renewal, and pedagogical innovation to support effective climate education.
• Hold institutions accountable for sharing and meeting their sustainability commitments through consultation, monitoring, and transparent reporting.

• Support members to engage in climate-related initiatives and decision-making through training, resources, and workplace advocacy.
• Support members involved in curriculum design and delivery to embed sustainability, circular economy, and intergenerational justice into their teaching practice.
• Provide professional learning opportunities and networks for members to share resources, research, and examples of transformative climate teaching and learning.
• Ensure that kaimahi have the rights, protections, and resourcing necessary to undertake climate-focused research and teaching.
• Protect decent work in the context of institutional sustainability transitions, opposing precarious employment or outsourcing under the guise of “efficiency.”

• Partner with ākonga associations, sustainability-focused clubs, iwi and hapū, community groups, and environmental organisations to discover and advance shared goals of climate justice and sustainability.
• Encourage tertiary institutions to work closely with local communities, iwi and hapū, on adaptation planning and to act as anchors of resilience during climate events.

Workplace democracy is fundamental to a strong and inclusive tertiary education sector. It ensures that those who work and study in our institutions have a genuine voice in the decisions that shape their lives and their communities. For Te Hautū Kahurangi | Tertiary Education Union (TEU), advancing workplace democracy strengthens our ability to represent members, enhances institutional accountability, and upholds the principle that tertiary education is a public good.

Consistent with TEU’s Equity Policy, this policy recognises the intersecting inequities experienced by women, Māori, Pacific, disabled persons, queer, migrant, and other marginalised kaimahi (staff) and ākonga. These inequities must be actively addressed within democratic structures to ensure all voices are heard and respected.

We aspire to a tertiary education sector where democratic principles are embedded into the everyday life of institutions. Kaimahi at all levels have meaningful opportunities to contribute to governance, planning, and decision-making. Workplace democracy is visible in transparent processes, accountable leadership, and strong collective voice through union representation.

We envisage a sector in which kaimahi can challenge decisions, propose alternatives, and shape institutional directions without fear of reprisal. Workplaces are characterised by trust and respect, where collegiality and creativity are supported by robust democratic practice. In this vision, workplace democracy is not symbolic consultation, but a living framework that ensures the knowledge, experience, and priorities of kaimahi are central to how institutions operate.

The need for workplace democracy is underscored by the sector’s history of top-down governance, repeated restructuring, and the rise of precarious employment. Many kaimahi – especially those in insecure roles – are excluded from meaningful participation in decisions that directly affect their work. This erodes morale, undermines trust, and reduces the quality of education and research.

Workplace democracy also provides a necessary counterbalance to managerialism and financial imperatives that have dominated tertiary governance. By embedding democratic processes, institutions become more accountable to kaimahi, ākonga, and communities, and better equipped to serve the public good.

This policy works alongside TEU’s Equity Policy, Te Tiriti o Waitangi Policy, and Decent Work Policy. Together, these frameworks provide the basis for a sector that is fair, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of kaimahi and ākonga.

To achieve our aspirations, TEU will implement a range of the following actions.

• Lobby for legislative and regulatory frameworks that strengthen kaimahi and ākonga representation in institutional governance.
• Advocate for collective agreement clauses that require democratic consultation on restructuring, workload, programme development, and institutional priorities.
• Cross-reference and support TEU’s submissions on funding, equity, and decent work to reinforce workplace democracy in government policy.

• Run campaigns to highlight examples of good and bad practice in workplace democracy, using them to mobilise members and influence institutions.
• Publicly challenge decision-making processes that exclude or silence kaimahi voice, and champion models that demonstrate transparency and inclusion.

• Support the establishment of democratic forums in tertiary institutions that allow kaimahi to contribute meaningfully to governance and planning.
• Provide training and resources for delegates and members to participate effectively in democratic processes.
• Build member networks that strengthen collective voice, especially for those in precarious or marginalised positions.

• Promote genuine partnership with mana whenua in institutional practices and decision-making, consistent with TEU’s Te Tiriti o Waitangi Policy.
• Promote awareness of, and advocate for, the significance of meaningful engagement with iwi and hapu within the context of institutional decision-making.
• Support Pacific kaimahi to strengthen their collective voice within tertiary institutions and across the sector, recognising the importance of Pacific leadership, values, and community connections in shaping democratic practice.
• Work with ākonga associations and community groups to ensure tertiary governance reflects the interests of all who contribute to, and benefit from, the sector.
• Collaborate with other unions to strengthen collective approaches to workplace democracy across the wider public sector.