ABSTRACT. Calls to decolonise education have gained momentum in Aotearoa New Zealand, but not all moves toward inclusion are what they seem. When universities attempt to engage different worldviews and knowledge systems, such as mātauranga Māori, without ceding power or control, they risk transforming a radical project into a symbolic one. Drawing on Olúfẹ́mi Táíwò’s idea of elite capture, Graham Smith’s idea of pākehā capture and Sean Sturm’s ontological denial, we explore how settler institutions approach difference in ways that appropriate Indigenous knowledge that work to delegitimise rather than strengthen decolonial movements. Rather than dismantling colonial hierarchies, the ‘inclusion’ of Indigenous knowledge often reinforces them – benefiting those already in positions of authority. Using a series of common approaches to cultural difference in university settings (i.e., biculturalism) across Aotearoa New Zealand, we show how mātauranga Māori is frequently framed through binary logics, bureaucratised into policy, or instrumentalised to meet diversity metrics, sidelining its deeper cultural, political and spiritual commitments. These practices exemplify Táíwò’s critique: a project intended for collective liberation is co-opted by those who gain most from superficial reform. The superficial attention to cultural difference here is not justice, but containment – a settler move to innocence that preserves institutional power while appearing transformative.

Keywords: elite capture; Pākehā capture; bicultural; higher education; New Zealand; Indigenous

How to cite: Azarmandi, M., Tolbert, S., & Te Rongopatahi, K. M. (2025). Elite capture and the bicultural university: Rethinking the limits of cultural difference practices in settler colonial education. Knowledge Cultures, 13(3), 38–56. https://doi.org/10.22381/kc13320254

Received October 15, 2025 • Received in revised form November 25, 2025
Accepted November 25, 2025 • Available online December 1, 2025