Links to resources, sites and publications

A curated set of trusted links for Māori GIS work in Aotearoa. These include datasets, portals, publications, standards, and practical tools.

National data portals and key agencies

• Toitū Te Whenua LINZ Data Service (LDS)
  National open geospatial datasets, download and APIs.
• LINZ LDS guide
  Help articles for searching, exporting, and using LDS web services.
• Stats NZ Geographic Data Service (GDS)
  Boundaries and geographic lookup tables, plus a boundary viewer.
• Stats NZ: Geographic data and maps
  Overview and links to boundary products and related guidance.
• MfE Data Service
  Environmental datasets and APIs from the Ministry for the Environment.
• MfE: About the Data Service
  What it is, what is published, and how the API works.
• Manaaki Whenua LRIS Portal
  Environmental and land resource layers, downloads and web services.
• Manaaki Whenua: LRIS portal support and guides
  How to use LRIS and related tools.
• NIWA DataHub
  Catalogue for NIWA data across climate, freshwater, marine, and land.
• NIWA Hydro Web Portal
  River flow and water quality monitoring data for selected networks.
• GeoNet
  National hazard monitoring and data access for earthquakes, volcano, and tsunami.
• GeoNet API
  GeoJSON endpoints for selected GeoNet datasets.

Core datasets for mapping in Aotearoa

• NZ Parcels (cadastral)
  Parcel polygons and attributes from LINZ.
• NZ Primary Parcels
  Current primary parcel polygons.
• Protected Areas (LINZ)
  Protected areas layer (land and marine), commonly used for context.
• NZ Gazetteer (web app)
  Official and recorded place names.
• LINZ: Place names
  Overview of place naming, NZ Gazetteer, and related resources.
• LINZ: New Zealand topographic maps
  Topo50 and other series, digital map products and printing.
• LINZ: Aerial imagery
  LINZ imagery products and how to access them.
• Land Cover Database (LCDB) on LRIS
  LCDB layer record and download options.
• GNS: New Zealand Active Faults Database
  Overview and download access for active faults.
• GNS: Active Faults map
  Interactive map for viewing faults (includes access pathways to data).
• GNS Web Maps and Web Services
  Entry point for GNS web maps and service endpoints.

Māori place names and cultural mapping

• Kā Huru Manu
  Ngāi Tahu Cultural Mapping Project.
• Kā Huru Manu Atlas
  Map interface for place names and associated kōrero (within the Ngāi Tahu rohe).
• Ngāi Tahu: Cultural mapping
  Project background and scope.
• LINZ: Researching place names
  Guidance and links for place name research.

Local government open data and map services

• Wellington City Council Open Data
  Council datasets via ArcGIS Hub.
• Wellington Water Open Data
  Water infrastructure and related datasets for the Wellington region.
• Greater Wellington Regional Council mapping
  Public mapping tools and entry points to GWRC maps.
• Auckland Council Open Data
  Council datasets including plans, assets, and environmental layers.
• Auckland Council GeoMaps (viewer)
  Web viewer for many public-facing layers.
• Canterbury Maps Open Data
  Open datasets and download pages.
• Canterbury Maps: Connect to services
  How to connect via WMS, WFS, WMTS, and Esri REST.
• Environment Canterbury Open Data Portal
  ECan datasets and collections.

Open data catalogues and cross-portal search

• data.govt.nz catalogue
  National catalogue for open data published by NZ organisations.
• Koordinates Data Portal directory
  Browse Koordinates-hosted portals and datasets.

Historical imagery, maps, and archives

• Retrolens
  Historic aerial imagery search and downloads.
• LINZ: Crown Aerial Film Archive scanning project
  Background on the national scanning programme.
• MapsPast
  Historical topographic maps (NZMS series).
• Papers Past
  Digitised newspapers, magazines, journals, letters, diaries, and more.
• Papers Past data using the DigitalNZ API
  How to access Papers Past metadata via API.
• DigitalNZ API
  API documentation for searching DigitalNZ sources.
• National Library open data
  Entry point for the Library’s open data and APIs.

Archaeology, heritage, and sensitive place information

• ArchSite
  National database of recorded archaeological sites (access conditions apply).
• Heritage New Zealand: Places search
  Search the Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero.
• Heritage New Zealand: Archaeology Digital Library
  Reports and information associated with archaeological authorities.

Data sovereignty, ethics, and governance resources

• Te Mana Raraunga
  Māori Data Sovereignty Network.
• Principles of Māori Data Sovereignty (PDF)
  A short principles document used widely in NZ practice.

Standards for web maps and interoperability

• OGC Web Map Service (WMS)
  Standard for map images over HTTP.
• OGC Web Feature Service (WFS)
  Standard for feature access and download via services.
• OGC Web Map Tile Service (WMTS)
  Standard for tiled map services.

Practical tooling and documentation

• QGIS documentation
  Official QGIS user guide and training manual.
• ArcGIS Online: OGC support
  How ArcGIS Online works with OGC services.
• LINZ: LDS APIs and web services
  Service options and API access patterns for LDS.
• GeoNet data access tutorials
  Tutorials for retrieving specific GeoNet datasets.

Publications and research starting points

• National Library record: Kā Huru Manu (article reference)
  Background item describing Kā Huru Manu.
• New Zealand Active Faults Database journal article
  Research paper describing the dataset and updates.
• Stats NZ environmental indicators: Te taiao Aotearoa
  Indicator series with downloadable supporting data.
• MfE and Stats NZ environmental reporting
  The reporting series, themes, and access points.