Every week I see it. An organisation produces a document in English, sends it to a translator, and publishes the te reo Māori version alongside it. They call this bilingual communications. It isn't. It's monolingual communications with a translation attached.
True bilingual communications requires thinking in both languages from the start. The concepts, the framing, the structure of the message - all of it needs to work in both languages natively, not be forced from one into the other.
The Translation Problem
Translation assumes the source language got it right and the target language just needs to carry the same meaning. But languages don't just carry meaning. They shape it.
Te reo Māori organises ideas differently from English. The relational structures are different. The way concepts connect is different. When you write a message in English and translate it into te reo, you get English thinking in Māori words. Anyone fluent in te reo can feel it immediately. The grammar might be correct. The wairua is missing.
85%
of government bilingual publications are translated from English originals rather than developed bilingually
Source: Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori, State of the Māori Language Report, 2021
I've reviewed government communications where the te reo version was technically accurate but conceptually hollow. The English version talked about "stakeholder engagement." The te reo version translated that phrase directly. But the concept of stakeholder engagement doesn't map neatly into te ao Māori. The equivalent kaupapa is closer to whanaungatanga, to building and maintaining relationships through shared obligation and reciprocity. That's a fundamentally different framing, and translation can't bridge it.
What Bilingual Actually Means
Bilingual communications starts with the concept, not the copy. Before any words are written, the idea needs to be shaped in both languages simultaneously.
In practice, this means having te reo Māori speakers in the room during strategy development, not at the end for translation review. It means accepting that the te reo version and the English version might say different things - because the concept lands differently in each language, and that's not a problem to fix but a reality to respect.
At Te Hiku Iwi Development Trust, our communications were genuinely bilingual because the team thought in both languages. The te reo wasn't an add-on. It was the starting point for much of our community work, with English versions developed alongside for audiences who needed them.
The Capability Gap
Most organisations don't have this capability. They have English-speaking communications teams and access to te reo translators. That's not the same thing. A translator can render your English into grammatically correct te reo. They can't restructure your entire strategic framework to work natively in both languages - that's not their role, and it's not a reasonable ask.
What organisations need are bilingual communicators, people who think in both languages and can develop messaging that works natively in each. These people are rare, and they're undervalued by organisations that treat te reo as a translation task rather than a strategic capability.
Why This Matters
It matters because language carries trust. When a Māori community receives communications in te reo that feels like translated English, it signals that the te reo is performative. The organisation is ticking a box, not communicating in the community's language.
Conversely, when communications arrives in te reo that feels native - where the concepts are grounded in te ao Māori, where the framing reflects how the community actually thinks about the issue - it signals genuine engagement. The organisation isn't just speaking the language. It's thinking in it.
If your te reo version is the last step in your communications process, it's decoration. If it's the first step, it's strategy.
Hannah Terangi Wynne
Strategic Communications Advisory
The practical shift is straightforward, though not easy. Hire bilingual communicators and give them strategic authority, not just translation tasks. Develop messaging in both languages from the concept stage. Accept that the two versions may diverge, because genuine bilingual communication serves two different ways of thinking about the same kaupapa.
This isn't about perfection. It's about intent. Organisations that treat te reo as a strategic language rather than a compliance requirement produce better communications for everyone - Māori and Pākehā alike.