Manawaroa is a free NZ resilience audit tool — it helps you understand where you stand and builds a personalised action plan based on your actual situation. It is grounded in both NZ Civil Defence guidance and the kaupapa of the maramataka. This is an early version and your feedback is genuinely welcome. If something feels off, missing, or could be better — please let us know at [email protected]
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Your privacy is protected. All answers stay on your device — nothing is sent to a server, stored in a database, or seen by anyone else. When you close this tab, everything is gone. No login, no tracking, no data collection.
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Step 1 of 6 — your situation
He kupu whakataki — an opening thought
"Ko te mātauranga o ō tātou tūpuna, ko te taura here i a tātou ki te ao hurihuri nei."
The knowledge of our ancestors is the rope that connects us to this changing world. Preparation is not new. Our tūpuna watched the sky, read the sea, observed the tohu — signs — in the natural world, and planned ahead for what was coming. The maramataka guided when to plant, when to harvest, when to rest, and when to act. This tool is built on that same kaupapa: know your situation, read your environment, and build steadily from what you have.
How it works — 5 minutes
Answer six short sections about your current situation. The tool then builds you a personalised resilience snapshot and a printable action plan — tailored to where you actually are, not a generic checklist.
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Your situation
Where you live, who you're preparing for, your budget
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Your property
What you already have, your space, local hazards
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Water and food
Your most fundamental needs and current stores
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Power and communications
Backup power, comms, and your important documents
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Community
Your neighbours, networks, and local connections
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Skills and knowledge
What you and your household already know how to do
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At the end — your personalised action plan
Your answers generate a resilience snapshot showing your strengths and gaps, followed by a daily, weekly, monthly, and longer-term action plan matched to your actual situation. You can print the plan at the end of the session to keep offline.
Section 1 — your situation
Let's start with where you are
This isn't about judging your setup. A person renting in a city has a completely different starting point to someone on a rural lifestyle block — and both deserve a plan that fits their actual life, not someone else's.
Where do you live?
Northland
Auckland
Waikato / BOP
Wellington
Canterbury / South Island
Other NZ region
What best describes where you live?
City or large town
Small town or village
Rural — lifestyle block
Rural — farm or remote
What is your housing situation?
Renting — flat or house
Own my home
Own land — building or developing
Shared or communal living
Who are you preparing for?
Just me
Couple
Family with children
Multi-generational household
Flatmates or group
Does anyone in your household have specific needs?Select all that apply
Infant or toddler
Elderly person
Ongoing medication
Mobility limitations
Dietary requirements
Pets or animals
Mental health needs
None of these
What could you realistically invest in resilience each month?
$0 — free actions only
$25–50/month
$50–150/month
$150–300/month
$300+/month
Section 2 — your property
What do you already have?
What you physically have shapes everything. Even renters have more options than they think — many resilience actions don't require ownership or landlord permission.
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Tohu — reading what is already here
The maramataka teaches us to begin by looking at what surrounds us. Before our tūpuna planned for the seasons ahead, they first observed what was already present — the land, the water, the shelter. We start the same way.
What does your property have?Select all that apply
Rainwater tank
Bore or well
Shed or outbuildings
Solar panels
Wood burner or fire
Vegetable garden
Fruit trees
Chickens or livestock
Generator
None of these
How much outdoor space do you have?
None — apartment or flat
Small — balcony or courtyard
Medium — suburban section
Large — quarter acre or more
Rural — 1 acre or more
What local hazards apply to your area?Select all you're aware of — check naturalhazardsportal.govt.nz for your specific location
Flooding
Cyclone or high winds
Earthquake
Landslip or erosion
Road cut off or isolation
Tsunami zone
Volcanic activity
Not sure yet
Section 3 — water and food
Your most fundamental needs
Water is your most urgent priority — you can survive weeks without food but only days without water. Food security matters most when it's built around what your household actually eats, not a generic list.
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Ko te wai, ko te ora — water is life
The maramataka tracks rainfall, tides, and seasonal water flows. Our tūpuna understood their water sources intimately — when springs ran low, when rivers flooded, when to store and when to draw. This knowledge is still relevant today.
What is your main water source?
Town supply (mains)
Rainwater tank
Bore or well
Both tank and bore
Not sure
How much emergency water is currently stored?The NZ Civil Defence minimum recommendation is 9 litres per person for 3 days
None
Less than 3 days
3–7 days
2+ weeks
Ongoing supply
Do you have water treatment capability?Select all that apply
Water filter or purifier
UV sterilisation
Purification tablets
Can boil water off-grid
None currently
How much food does your household currently have stored?
A few days at most
About a week
2–4 weeks
1–3 months
3+ months
What dietary considerations matter for your household?This shapes which foods go into your personalised plan
Vegetarian or vegan
Gluten free
Dairy free
Nut allergy
Halal or Kosher
Infant or baby food
No restrictions
Can you cook without mains electricity or gas?
Yes — camp stove or open fire
I have a BBQ
Not currently
Section 4 — power, communications and documents
Can you function when systems fail?
Power outages are the most common emergency event in NZ. Mobile and internet networks often fail in the same events. Knowing how to stay informed, stay warm, and be findable are practical, achievable goals.
What backup power do you currently have?Select all that apply
Generator (petrol or LPG)
Solar panels
Battery bank or power station
Torches or lanterns
Nothing currently
What communications do you have if mobile and internet go down?Select all that apply
Battery or wind-up radio
UHF CB radio
Amateur or ham radio
Satellite phone or Starlink
PLB registered with RCCNZ
None currently
Important documents — which do you have as physical copies?Not just on your phone — somewhere you can grab in 60 seconds
Passport
Driver licence copy
Insurance documents
Medical records or prescriptions
Emergency contacts printed
Go-bag ready to grab
None yet
Section 5 — community and connections
Your most powerful resilience asset
Research is clear: the single biggest factor in surviving and recovering from a disaster is the strength of your local relationships. Not gear. Not stockpiles. People who know each other look out for each other.
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Mahi tahi — working together
The maramataka was never practised alone. It was held by communities — read collectively, acted on together. The concept of mahi tahi (working collectively) is woven into how our tūpuna prepared for seasonal change and unexpected events. Modern resilience research confirms the same truth.
Do you know your immediate neighbours by name?
Yes — and I have contact details
Yes — but no contact details
I recognise them, don't know them
No — I'm new to the area
No — just haven't got to it yet
If something happened right now, who could you call?
Several people within 10 minutes
One or two people nearby
People further away only
I'd be on my own
Do you have a local support network?Select all that apply
Whānau or family nearby
Close friends nearby
Local Facebook group
Sports or hobby group
Faith or marae community
Civil Defence group
None currently
Section 6 — skills and knowledge
What you know is as valuable as what you own
Skills can't be stolen, lost in a flood, or run out of battery. And unlike gear, they grow more valuable when you share them with others.
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Mātauranga tuku iho — knowledge handed down
The maramataka is itself a transmission of mātauranga — knowledge passed from generation to generation. The skills our tūpuna valued: how to grow and preserve food, how to read weather, how to care for people, how to build and repair — these are the same skills resilience is built on today.
Which of these skills does your household have?Be honest — this shapes your plan, not your score
Basic first aid
Food growing or gardening
Food preservation
Basic mechanics or repairs
Building or carpentry
Animal husbandry
Navigation or bush skills
Cooking from scratch
Solar or electrical basics
Water systems or plumbing
Reading natural signs and weather
He whakaahua — a reflection
"He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata."
What is the greatest thing in the world? It is people. Your resilience begins with knowing where you stand — honestly and without judgment. What follows is your starting point, not a destination.
Your resilience snapshot
Here's where you stand
Manawaroa is about building steadily from where you actually are. Every gap here is a next step — not a failure. Our tūpuna built resilience over generations, one action at a time. So do we.
He ara whakamua — a path forward
"Kua tae te wā — the time has come."
Your plan is built around your actual situation. Tap any task to understand why it matters. Tick it when it's done. Progress over perfection — every single action counts.
Your personalised action plan
Built from where you are
0 done
Tap a task to read why it matters. Tap the checkbox to mark done.
Daily habits
Weekly tasks
Monthly goals
Longer term
Daily habits are where awareness lives. None of these take more than a few minutes. The maramataka teaches daily observation — noticing what is happening around you, not waiting for a crisis to reveal it.
He tohu o te wā — a sign of the season
Watch the sky each morning. Note the wind direction, the cloud formations, the quality of the light. This is how your tūpuna read what was coming.
Your daily maramataka practice: observe before you act.
Weekly tasks are where real progress is made. Pick one or two to focus on rather than trying to do everything. Consistent small actions outperform occasional large efforts.
Monthly goals are where you step back and assess. What's been done, what's stalled, and what's the most valuable next investment of time or money? One completed monthly goal is genuine progress.
He whakaaro — a seasonal thought
The maramataka marks each month by what should be done — planting, harvesting, resting, repairing. Monthly resilience goals follow the same rhythm: there is a right time for each action, and doing things in sequence matters.
Review your plan at each new moon. What has changed? What is next?
These are your 3–12 month horizon goals. Bigger investments of time or money — but each one significantly increases your independence. Work toward one at a time, in the sequence that makes most sense for your situation.
manawaroa
My personalised resilience action plan · manawaroa.tuhi.co.nz