DECONSTRUCTING BABYLON #139 - MEASURING WHAT MATTERS: CHECKING THE HEALTH OF OUR COMMUNITY
In our last few posts, we have looked at building a local economy and running businesses that look after the whānau. But how do we actually know if we are winning? Babylon has a very specific way of measuring "success" - it usually involves a bank balance, a GDP figure, or a pile of ticked boxes on a compliance form. In this post, we are looking at how to stop using the system’s yardstick and start measuring the things that actually matter to our health and our future.
The Research: Money vs. Life Force
Research Report #224 points out that the Babylonian system is obsessed with things that can be counted but often ignores the things that count. It uses "Money-First Thinking" to measure growth. If a forest is cut down and sold, the system says the economy has "grown." It doesn't factor in the loss of the birds, the silt in the river, or the heartbreak of the people who lost their shelter.
To deconstruct this, we use the Mauri Model. This is a simple but powerful way to measure the "life force" or the "health" of a project, a business, or a community. Instead of just looking at a profit and loss statement, we look at whether the life force is being drained or restored. We use a scale that goes from -2 to +2:
-2 Mauri Mate (Dead / Destroyed): The activity is killing the life force (e.g., pollution or exploitation).
-1 Mauri Heke (Declining / Degrading): The activity is making things worse over time.
0 Mauri Tū (Neutral / Maintaining): No real change, just treading water.
+1 Mauri Piki (Improving / Growing): Things are starting to improve and heal.
+2 Mauri Ora (Thriving / Restored): The life force is vibrant, healthy, and growing on its own.
Measuring the Right Things
When we use the Mauri Model in our own lives, businesses, or marae, we start to see a much clearer picture of reality. We can check the health of four key areas:
Te Taiao - The Land (Environment): Is the water getting cleaner? Is the soil healthier?
Te Tangata - The Whānau (Social): Are our families safer? Are our people feeling more connected and less lonely?
Te Ahurea - The Spirit (Culture): Is our identity being strengthened? Is our language being used?
Te Pūtea - The Household (Economic): Does everyone have what they need to thrive, not just survive?
By looking at these four areas, we can see if a decision is "Babylonian" (extracting and draining) or "Home-First" (restoring and building). A business might be making a lot of money (a +2 on the bank balance), but if it is burning out the staff and polluting the local stream, it is a -2 for the community. In the long run, a -2 always fails.
Taking Control of the Scorecard
We can start using this "Health Check" right now in the places where we have influence:
In Local Government: We can ask our councils to stop just measuring "rates revenue" and start measuring the Mauri of our roads, parks, and people.
In Our Schools: We can measure the health of our students’ belonging and confidence, not just their test scores.
In Our Businesses: We can do a monthly check - "Did we add more life force to our community this month than we took out?"
Babylon wants us to stay focused on the bank balance because that is the only thing the machine understands. But we are not machines. We are a living, breathing community in Taitokerau. By measuring what truly matters, we reclaim our right to define what success looks like. We move from a system that measures how much we "take" to a community that celebrates how much we "flourish."
For more information on the Mauri Model, check out the Mauri Model page or Strategic Paper #103 - THE MAURI MODEL - A NEW METRIC FOR WEALTH.
This series is based on Research Report #224 - The Tools of Babylon: A Forensic Deconstruction and Counter-Strategy. If you would like to read the full report, please contact the author via the contact us page.
