This paper was written for presentation at the Critical Education in an Era of Crisis Conference in Thessaloniki, Greece in June 2014. It is in two parts:
- PART 1: THEORY: Capitalism and Community Health. An Indigenous Perspective
Using a critical analysis of the capitalist health system, this paper challenges the western medical paradigm and looks instead at indigenous health system to reveal underlying principles that could inform radical change. It then proposes a new and improved model for community health based on these principles.
- PART 2: PRAXIS: Reclaiming Community Health: The Whakatane Community Hub
Working with 24 architecture students from 12 different ethnicities, the author develops designs for a new kind of community health facility - initiated and operated by, for and with the bicultural community of the small New Zealand town of Whakatane that exhibits the worst social and cultural statistics.