Projects

The human capital theory holds that education is a form of investment in that the individuals who are consumers of education acquire skills and knowledge that can be converted into work and income in the post-school years. but it is not a level playing field, many would argue. Some of the so-called 'toughest kids' come from very difficult home situations.

This research project aims to determine how whānau might flourish.

In 2012, a wave of youth suicides in Northland featured far too many of Ngātiwai descent. 19 people under 25 years took their own lives, a huge increase from 5 the year before (Penney & Dobbs, 2014). Suicide rates for Māori youth in Te Tai Tokerau, including the Ngātiwai rohe, is therefore a major public health issue.

This research project explores the relationship between cultural connectedness and wellbeing (as a social determinant of health). The research will provide evidence relating to wellbeing and cultural connection within and between whānau with the intent to develop an aspirational model for Waikato-Tainui.

This research project evaluated and monitored the environmental, social, economic and cultural impacts of the grounding of the ship Rena on Otaiti, with a particular focus on the impacted areas of Maketū, Mōtītī, and Pāpāmoa. The research team led by Dr Kepa Morgan incorporated an assessment of the mauri of the impacted people within these areas and their environs.

Author: Manaia Rehu. Supervisor: Dr Kepa Morgan Hydraulic fracturing or ‘fracking’ is emerging as the future of global energy. Fracking operations are increasing at an alarming rate throughout North America and the rest of the world. However, the process of fracturing fuel-rich subterranean rock deep below the surface to extract oil and gas has great uncertainty surrounding it.

We know many of the key elements for social transformation, but what is not known is how to actively stimulate them at the right time, pace and scale, with the appropriate self-correcting mechanisms and forms of resource support provided at moments of need. This research project aims to create a new tool, namely an internationally comparative model of indigenous well-being.

Author: Elizabeth Jurisich Strickett. Supervisors: Associate Professor Helen Moewaka Barnes and Dr Tim McCreanor. This report was written while undertaking a Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga internship with Whāriki, SHORE and Whāriki Research Centre, Massey University.

This research looked at how the 2010/11 earthquakes in Ōtautahi (Christchurch) have affected Māori mental health communities. The research team led by Dr Simon Lambert focused on how the support networks for Tangata Whaiora (a term applied to Māori mental health clients that translates as people seeking health) and their whānau responded and recovered through the disaster.

 

Author: Joshua Tahana. Supervisor Dr Elaine Ballard This report outlines the background for a study to be undertaken tracking phonological development (speech skills) in Māori for Māori speaking pre-school children. Although there is a substantial body of literature on how children develop speech sounds in English we know nothing about the developmental trajectory in Māori.

Author: Tara Dalley. Supervisor: Dr Te Taka Keegan The aim of this research was to determine the level of awareness and willingness to use software with a te reo Māori interface by the Māori medium education sector.

He Mangōpare Amohia: Strategies for Māori Economic Development

Critical success factors for Māori economic development have been identified in a just released report on the three-year Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga (NPM) research programme – Te Tupunga Māori Economic Development.

Tiakina Te Pā Harakeke is a project focused upon tikanga and mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) models of wellbeing for whānau, with Te Pā Harakeke being a metaphor for whānau wellbeing. The project seeks to share with whānau and others, knowledge about successfully raising children in ways that are grounded within tikanga Māori, and have been and continue to be, practiced for generations.

 

Author: Raaniera Te Whata. Supervisor: Dr Merata Kawharu As there has been no major analytical works on contemporary Māori leadership, the purpose of this project is to contribute to addressing this knowledge gap by examining entrepreneurial tribal Māori leadership and the role it can play in the revitalisation of wealth in New Zealand in terms of culture, identity, economics and politics.

Can communicative language teaching (CLT) help save indigenous languages? This project is a review of literature on CLT and its relevance to indigenous language revitalisation. It forms part of a broader research project to examine the teaching and learning of Māori, Tahitian and Hawai’ian within universities.

The overarching question driving this research is, what are the critical success factors for Southern Māori SMEs at the different stages of the business life-cycle? To address this question the project team will undertake an in-depth case-study of Southern SMEs and in order to answer the overarching research question, the following questions will be investigated: 1. What are the characteristics of SMEs at the different stages of the business life-cycle (start-up, growth, resource maturity, take off)?

The purpose of this project is to determine if Kahawai (Arripis trutta) in fact enter rivers during summer to spawn. Located in the field in the Eastern Bay of Plenty as well as at Victoria University the intern will conduct field observations and water sampling, and also collect Kahawai from the river to determine their sex and reproductive stage. The intern will learn to conduct hapū initiated kaupapa Māori research that takes a transdiciplinary approach, using methods from multiple disciplines to inform hapū research questions.

The challenge for Māori carrying out development is to determine how to balance the drivers of a neo-liberal economic approach with the very ideals and principles that define us as Māori to ensure quality social and environmental outcomes for future generations. Through a previous NPM research project "Whakatipu rawa mā ngā uri whakatipu" the team has developed a prototype decision-making framework for collective assets, which takes into account well-being indices, tikanga Māori and financial measures.

Intern Mariana Pagan will work with Dr Marion Johnson, CSAFE Otago University during summer 2012-13. This project will scope and implement the collection and storage of land cover spatial data using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Global Positioning System (GPS) technologies.

Ngāti Kea/Ngāti Tuarā recently built a micro-hydro plant at their marae, Kearoa, and this generates more electricity than the marae can use. The hapū Māori Land Trust is keen to use the electricity as part of a strategy to move away from simply managing stock to also growing vegetables in a temperature controlled glasshouse. This project involves market research into horticulture in the New Zealand and Māori economies.