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He Maimai Aroha
Kaupapa Matua: Kaumātuatanga
Rangahau: Racism in schools
NPM Research Leaders: Professor Annemarie Gillies
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Hui | Events | Conferences
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NPM Researchers Hitting the Headlines
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E-pānui 58
In last month’s e-pānui we announced that Distinguished Professor Marcia Langton AO FASSA FTSE will be the opening keynote for our International Indigenous Research Conference to be held in Tāmaki from November 12 to 15. We are excited to confirm seven more keynote speakers for IIRC - each of them exceptional, each of them embodying our conference theme ‘Whītiki Taua: Research Solidarities. You can read more on them below, or check out the IIRC website.
As a precursor to IIRC, we will also be holding an Indigenous Data Sovereignty Masterclass in Tāmaki on 11 November. Leading IDSov mātanga from Aotearoa and abroad will be sharing insights, tips and tools on their areas of IDSov expertise. Places will be capped at 100 and registration will be via the IIRC website - keep an eye out for when it opens later this month! Masterclass participants will need to be registered for at least one day of IIRC.
Also, for those who are interested in the opportunities to collaborate through the Horizon Europe pillar 2 fund, please refer to our NPM Horizon Europe webinar which can be found on our website at: https://www.maramatanga.ac.nz/index.php/video/horizon-europe
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
With the arrival of Matariki, our NPM whānau took some much needed time to rest and reflect - remembering those who have passed, celebrating the present with loved ones, and looking forward to the coming year. With kai being so central to Matariki, some of us may have needed to get in some extra steps once the celebrations were over. Kaimahi and tauira Māori at The University of Waikato had no shortage of extra steps, collectively clocking up thousands of kilometres in the annual ‘Hīkoi in Hune’ event to honour the life and legacy of their late colleague Dr Paora Mato.
Meanwhile, excitement continues to build around NPM’s International Indigenous Research Conference that will take place in Tāmaki Makarau in November. The call for abstracts is being met with a flurry of proposals from around Aotearoa, and indeed the world. We are thrilled to announce that prominent Aboriginal writer and academic Marcia Langton will be IIRC’s opening keynote (see more below). Watch this space for more announcements on IIRC keynotes as we profile them here in the lead up to the conference.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
Two major events defined the month of Haratua (May). One was the huge turnout of Māori and allies around the motu on Budget Day to protest the coalition government’s approach to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and policies affecting Māori. At the heart of the national day of action was resistance to the ACT Party’s proposed Treaty Principles Bill and associated moves to remove Treaty clauses from existing legislation. The series of peaceful protests was as much an assertion of mana Māori motuhake and a collective desire for a more just and equitable Aotearoa, as it was an expression of no confidence in the government.
The same week saw the release of the 2023 census results showing that nearly one million (one in five) New Zealanders report having whakapapa Māori. The iwi data trust Te Kāhui Raraunga was front and centre of the release, providing commentary on what the results mean for Te Ao Māori, and providing access to the data through their bespoke iwi data platform Te Whata.
Both of these events were seeking, in different ways, to give expression to our collective identities as Māori and chart a course toward flourishing Māori futures - a kaupapa that animates everything we do at Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga.
In Haratua we also held a Horizon Europe webinar for Māori researchers. It was very well attended and provided our network with useful tips and information on the opportunities available through the European Union research fund and the potential for future collaborations.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
It is with mixed feelings that we deliver our final e-pānui for 2023. These are unsettling times for many and we are grateful to be able to draw on our collective strength and enduring resilience as a people, and to know that we will continue to carry forward the dreams of our tūpuna and the futures of our mokopuna. Beyond Aotearoa, we acknowledge the tremendous suffering that others are facing. Our deepest aroha goes out to the whānau and communities of Gaza - many of our NPM whānau have been involved in events and initiatives to stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine.
We are also grateful to be able to celebrate bright moments. Our lead story spotlights NPM Ruānuku Professor Linda Tuhiwai Smith who recently received the Royal Society Te Apārangi’s highest research honour, the Rutherford Medal. Linda was one of NPM’s founding Co-Directors. Her influence and vision is evident in NPM’s first annual report in 2002/3 stating our intent:
to “ground” research in the Māori perspective, to define research problems explicitly from the Māori experience of them, and to focus members of research teams on applying their discipline-based methodologies to the resolution of those problems. Māori language, knowledge and culture together with the contribution of expert Māori and their communities in the formulation of research projects, underpin all aspects of the research.
That intent has not changed. In 2021 NPM published Te Pūtahitanga: A Tiriti-led science policy approach for Aotearoa New Zealand. It called for a policy approach that is enabled by, and responsive to, Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Mātauranga Māori, and set out how Te Tiriti offers a powerful framework for connecting systems and communities of knowledge in ways that are mutually beneficial and future focused.
In 2022 NPM also published a collective submission on the government’s green paper Te Ara Paerangi: Future Pathways. Penned by some 40 Māori researchers, the submission noted that “our galvanising force is a collective ambition to realise best research, science and innovation outcomes for whānau, hapū, iwi, Māori and all communities across Aotearoa.
This year NPM hosted the International Indigenous Climate Change Research Summit and published a communiqué from the delegates emphasising the pivotal role of Indigenous voices, ideas, and actionable solutions in addressing climate change.
Our ongoing commitment is to undertake excellent Māori-led research that contributes to the future flourishing of our communities, culture and whenua as Tangata Whenua - a position from which we will not resile.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
To say that 2024 started off with a flurry of activity is an understatement. Many of our NPM whānau travelled to Tūrangawaewae Marae in Ngāruawāhia on 20 January to join the hui-ā-motu called by Kīngi Tuheitia. The focus on kotahitanga - unity across iwi and across peoples - drew up to 10,000 people from all over the motu. Those gathered were treated to a feast of kōrero from speakers that included our NPM ruānuku and former board chair, Tā Tipene O’Regan.
The kōrero and kotahitanga carried on through to the annual gathering at Ratana Pā a few days later and then to Waitangi, where many of our NPM whānau were among the estimated 80,000 or so gathered to tautoko the kaupapa: Toitū te Tiriti.
No doubt 2024 will bring more political ploys from various parties but of one thing we can all be certain - te ao Māori will rise to whatever wero is thrown down. Some of the most powerful forms of ‘rising’ may be through our everyday acts, in our homes and with our whānau. As Kīngi Tuheitia so eloquently put it at hui-ā-motu:
“The best protest we can do right now is be Māori. Be who we are, live our values, speak our reo, care for our mokopuna, our awa, our maunga, just be Māori. Māori all day, every day. We are here, we are strong.”
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
The past month has been a welcome period of collaboration and celebration.
Our valued partnership with The Michael and Suzanne Borrin Foundation has resulted in scholarships being awarded to two stunning Māori legal scholars, Amelia Kendall and Pita Roycroft, who will pursue postgraduate studies in the US - read more about them below. Dr Hona Black was also named as this year’s Fulbright NPM Scholar and will undertake research on te reo Māori at the University of Hawai’i. We have also partnered with the organisers of the ‘Designing our Constitution’ Conference to support an upcoming public lecture by the UN Rapporteur, Francisco Calí Tzay, at Waipapa Marae on 4 April.
We were thrilled that some of our NPM whānau could attend the pōwhiri at Otākou Marae for our former Pou Matarua, Professor Jacinta Ruru MNZM FRSNZ, who was appointed as the university’s inaugural Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori. Jacinta is used to leading the way, having been the first Māori professor of law in Aotearoa and, with Linda Tuhiwai Smith, the first wāhine Māori to be made a Fellow of the Royal Society Te Apārangi. We know Jacinta will bring exceptional leadership and impact to her new role.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
• Professor Tahu Kukutai
• Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
The wider NPM whānau have been preparing for a busy November with two major events on the calendar - the virtual International Indigenous Climate Change Research Summit that will take place 13 - 17 November (read more below) and the hui-ā-tau for the MAI national Māori and Indigenous postgraduate network that will be held at Massey University, 15 - 18 November. We are still taking registrations for IIRCS, with a very minimal fee for students, communities and NGOs thanks to the generous sponsorship of the Royal Society Te Apārangi.
Some of our readers will recall the Indigenous data sovereignty and universities communiqué from the IDSov collab at our International Indigenous Research Conference last year, calling on universities to address specific issues relating to Indigenous data ownership, control, access, analysis and storage. Following on from that, the Global Indigenous Data Alliance has just released the Indigenous data governance and universities communiqué, with the support of IDSov networks in Aotearoa, Australia, the United States, Canada, Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Pacific (diaspora Aotearoa).
It calls on universities to work with Indigenous Peoples to take a number of actions including identifying Indigenous Peoples’ data currently held by their institution and implementing IDSov and Indigenous data governance principles. NPM supports these global efforts to advocate for more just, ethical and culturally-grounded research data practices and systems, and for Indigenous Peoples to have authority over research data involving their communities, cultures and territories.We look forward to future developments here in Aotearoa and further afield.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
The past month has been an extremely busy one at NPM with our network being in full planning mode for the upcoming International Indigenous Climate Change Research Summit. The virtual gathering, which will take place from November 13 – 17, is designed to amplify Indigenous voices, ideas and actionable solutions on climate change. We are privileged to have Finnish Sámi leader, artist and activist Pauliina Feodoroff as our invited keynote speaker. You can read more about her mahi and legacy here in this Washington Post article. There is still time to register for IICCRS – early-bird registration closes 13 October.
Another significant gathering is also set to take place with our MAI doctoral network hui-ā-tau which will be hosted at Massey University, Manawatū campus, from 15 – 18 November. The conference is an opportunity for emerging Māori scholars and leaders to present papers, discuss key kaupapa and deepen bonds. Massey MAI co-ordinator Dr Monica Koia and the team have done an incredible job of pulling it all together. Ngā mihi nunui ki a koutou!
Finally, our heartfelt congratulations to Dr Ēnoka Murphy (Ngāti Manawa, Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Ruapani and Ngāti Kahungunu) who is the recipient of the prestigious Prime Minister's Educator of the Year award. The award recognises Dr Murphy's outstanding and sustained contribution as a reo Māori champion, and an educator who makes a difference to learners, their whānau and communities.
Kei runga noa atu koe Ēnoka! E poho kererū ana mātou.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
This month the NPM whānau were thrilled to celebrate the news that our NPM Ruānuku Emeritus Professor Ngahuia Te Awekotuku (Te Arawa, Tūhoe, Ngāpuhi, Waikato) was elected as a Companion of the Royal Society Te Apārangi. The award of Companion—Ngā Takahoa a Te Apārangi - recognises outstanding leadership or sustained contributions to promoting and advancing science, technology, or the humanities in Aotearoa. As this article in Stuff notes, Ngahuia has a long list of boundary-breaking achievements – including being the first wahine Māori to earn a PhD from a New Zealand university, awarded in Tamatekapua in 1981.
Among her many achievements, Ngahuia developed and taught the first tertiary sector Māori and Pacific Art History programme to a PhD level, and helped to establish Women’s Studies as an academic discipline at Waikato and Auckland universities.
We are proud of Ngahuia’s visionary leadership and enduring contribution to Te Ao Māori and the humanities in Aotearoa. E te Māreikura, poho kereru katoa a Ngā Pae mō tēnei whakamānawa kua uwhia ki runga i a koe, ka tika. Tū mai rā hei iho pūmanawa mō ngā whakareanga wāhine haere ake nei, haere ake nei.
Also, don’t forget to register for the upcoming International Indigenous Climate Change Research Summit. Early bird registrations will open shortly. Keep an eye on the IICCRS website for updates on registrations and our exciting lineup of local and international keynote speakers.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
July has been a busy month for our NPM secretariat with calls for proposals out for our New Horizons summer internships and Whakaaweawe Impact and Transformation grants, as well as the opening of submissions for our Indigenous Climate Change Research Summit. We are excited about the widespread interest shown in the opportunities on offer and look forward to announcing the outcomes in coming months.
This month we also begin a regular e-pānui feature on Tāmaki Paenga Hira Auckland War Memorial Museum, with the aim of introducing readers to some of the incredible taonga that are being cared for at the museum and the opportunities to connect with iwi, hapū and Māori communities. We hope that sharing these stories might also spark future research and collaboration.
Finally, we note that 9 August is International Day Of The World’s Indigenous Peoples, marking the first meeting of the United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Populations in 1982.
At NPM we feel privileged to be home to a national network of Māori researchers who are deeply committed to building the foundations for flourishing Māori futures.
In this month’s e-pānui we kōrero with two of our researchers, Professor of Architecture Deidre Brown and PhD student Kapua O’Connor, about the implications of their current research. Deidre, who is a Fellow of both the Royal Society Te Apārangi and New Zealand Institute of Architects, shares her unique insights into how the current housing environment impedes access to high-quality multi-generational housing for whānau. Kapua, who recently published the co-authored book A Fire in the Belly of Hineāmaru, explores the nuances of ahikā and its potential to expand contemporary understandings of mana. Meanwhile in our ‘meet the researchers’ section, Associate Professor Donna Cormack, who leads our RIRI (Research to Interrupt Racism and (In)equity) programme, shares what makes her tick.
Calls are also now out for the submission of project ideas for the NPM Futures Programme New Horizons summer internships and abstracts for the virtual Indigenous Climate Change Research Summit in November - see more details below.
Finally, with Matariki nearly upon us, we should all endeavour to take a pause - rest, recharge and reset.
Mānawatia a Matariki!
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors Professor Tahu Kukutai Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
This month was one of celebration, with the announcement of increased funding for Te Mataini in Budget 2023 and several prestigious awards going to wāhine across our networks.
The NPM whānau were thrilled to see the government commit $34 million over two years to Te Matatini, up from just $2.9 million a year. It was a long-awaited and much-needed boost to a kaupapa that for decades has had a profound impact on whānau and communities, extending far beyond the biennial showcase event. NPM was proud to partner with Te Matatini and other research partners to produce the report The Value of Kapa Haka last year, along with a widely-viewed webinar.
The month also brought good news for our rangahau whānau. One of our inaugural NPM co-directors, Distinguished Professor Linda Tuhiwai Smith, was extended the rare privilege of being elected a lifetime international member of the United States National Academy of Sciences. The accolade recognises Linda’s transformative contributions to education and Indigenous Science methodologies. Her 1999 book, Decolonizing Methodologies, is a must-have for any scholar undertaking research involving Indigenous communities and knowledge.
The scholarly excellence of Professor Alice Te Punga Sommerville was also recognised with her book Always Italicise: How to Write While Colonised winning the Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry at the 2023 Ockham Book Awards.
Kei runga noa atu kōrua!
Our NPM team also ended the month on a high note with our hui-ā-tau at Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato, where we were treated to a stunning performance by Māori Music finalist and taonga puoro band IA. Representatives from many of our 22 partner organisations, Te Tira Takimano, gathered to discuss what was front of mind in their own contexts and to reflect on how NPM can continue to add value. The challenges and opportunities afforded by RSI sector reform generated lively discussion and there is real excitement about the possibilities for iwi and hapū-led research in coming years.
Watch this space!
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
• Professor Tahu Kukutai
• Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
April has been an action-packed month for our NPM team.
We kicked off with a two day strategic planning session at Vaughan Park in Long Bay. It was the first time our Secretariat has come together since gaining new full-time appointments to our Pou Whakapā | Communications lead (Cindy Simpkins-McQuade, Ngāti Rangiwewehi, Tūhourangi - Ngāti Wāhiao, Tūwharetoa), and Pou Whakaweawe | Impact and Transformation lead (Dr Maree Sheehan, Ngāti Maniapoto, Waikato, Ngāti Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, Ngāti Tahu- Ngāti Whaoa). It was a timely opportunity to look forward and think about how, in our respective roles, we can all contribute to the NPM mission of ‘Creating the foundations for flourishing Māori futures.’
While at Vaughan Park we were also able to join the 2022-23 NPM Raumati Presentation Competition which was an online evening event. Six of our summer Interns chose to present on their rangahau, supported by their supervisors.
A big mihi to Moana Murray, Kate Palmer-Neels, Noah Kemp, Tama Blackburn, Hana Vause and Ashleigh Witehira for stepping
up and sharing their rangahau journey with us. You can read more about our winners later in this e-pānui.
Meanwhile, the team at Kanapu - NPM’s dedicated platform for supporting Māori talent and leadership in Research, Science and Innovation - launched their suite of activities with a free two-day national online hui, Hui Hihiri. With more than 300 registrations, and an exciting lineup of dynamic speakers from across te ao Māori, Hui Hihiri provided a virtual whare for Māori traditional knowledge holders and practitioners, researchers, scientists and innovators to gather and foster spontaneous energy, grow connections and be inspired.
The Kanapu team, in partnership with Aatea Solutions, will be holding a series of in-person regional wānanga across the motu over the next two months. Keep an eye out for more updates on Kanapu in future e-pānui.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
February has been a devastating month for whānau and communities, with the flooding in Northland and Auckland, and then Cyclone Gabrielle. We are grateful that the NPM secretariat was not directly impacted by Gabrielle. However, it was a very tense and worrying time for those with whānau in the hardest hit areas, particularly the East Coast, Hawkes Bay and Northland.
The loss of power and communication, and the inability to reach loved ones for many days, was particularly hard. Our aroha goes out to all of those whānau, marae and communities who have lost loved ones and livelihoods, and are now getting on with the momentous task of rebuilding.
Climate change has long been a key kaupapa for NPM, with recent initiatives including the publication of He Huringa Āhurangi, He Huringa Ao: A changing climate, a changing world and the upcoming International Indigenous Climate Change Research Summit in November. Much of our research and activities have focused on collective responses to climate change mitigation and adaptation, and community-driven solutions. In this e-pānui we talk to NPM senior researcher Dr Shaun Awatere about some of the shifts that we will collectively need to make to adapt to climate change now and in the future.
We are also grateful for the collective heartiness of Te Ao Māori and the ways that it comes to the fore when we need it most - such was the case with Te Matatini. The cultural extravaganza provided a much needed wairua boost for us all. The NPM secretariat and our Raumati Interns perfected the art of multitasking over the four days of the festival. The odd meeting may have been cancelled, and those of us who were tied to the office had multiple screens in action as we kept an eye out for our favourite groups. Our NPM Pou Tikanga Paora Sharples made numerous appearances, including media interviews. We want to acknowledge the outstanding work of Paora and the organising committee of Te Matatini for bringing such joy to the motu at such a difficult time. And a hearty congratulations to the overall winner, Te Kapa Haka o Te Whānau a Apanui.
As the festival catchcry goes, Proud to be Māori!
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
• Professor Tahu Kukutai
• Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
Welcome to our first e-pānui of 2023!
We are grateful that our Tāmaki-based secretariat and researchers were able to return to the office this week after the recent flooding. Our aroha goes out to the many whānau affected by the devastation left in its wake. The manaakitanga extended by communities and marae reminds us, once again, of the power of kotahitanga that endures within Te Ao Māori in times of crisis.
Extreme weather events and the wider effects of climate change will be front of mind at the International Indigenous Climate Change Research Summit which NPM will host later this year, from 13 to 17 November. The fully virtual conference will privilege an Indigenous paradigm of climate change and amplify Indigenous voices and solutions. Watch this space for ongoing updates and the call for papers.
Meanwhile, our Kanapu team Vanessa Clark and Kakahurimu Paekau have been busy with preparations for a series of national and regional wānanga with Māori researchers, knowledge holders and innovators.
A new NPM initiative, Kanapu has been funded by MBIE to accelerate Māori RSI talent, leadership and system navigation. You can read more about what’s in store for Kanapu later in our e-pānui.
Finally, many of us at NPM are looking forward to one of the most highly anticipated events on the Māori social calendar – the spectacular festival that is Te Matatini. Usually held biennially, the last time Te Matatini was held was in 2019 due to pandemic disruptions. This year the festival will take place at Eden Park from 22 to 25 February, and the occasion will be extra special due to its 50th anniversary. To commemorate, e-pānui takes a walk down memory lane with Te Matatini life member, Trevor Maxwell, who reflects on the enormous influence kapa haka has had on his life and the many joys and impacts, both on and off the stage.
We leave you with this clip of 2019 Matatini winners Ngā Tumanako.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
After a very busy period, the NPM whānau are looking forward to a period of rest, reflection and recuperation.
Last month we virtually hosted more than 600 participants at our 10th International Indigenous Research Conference. With open access keynotes, concurrent paper sessions and collabs, IIRC22 provided multiple forums for Indigenous researchers to come together and share, strategise, listen and learn.
The four collabs were a new format for IIRC22 and proved a flashpoint for collective thinking and action. The Indigenous Data Sovereignty Collab issued a conference Communiqué, calling on universities to stop data harming Indigenous communities, and to address specific issues relating to Indigenous data ownership, control, access, analysis and storage. You can read more here. The collab teams will continue to meet over the next year to deepen connections and scope opportunities for ongoing collaboration.
Meanwhile we were pleased to see that Te Ara Paerangi - Future Pathways White Paper contained key recommendations from the submission by Te Pūtahitanga collective of Māori scientists and researchers. The White Paper sets out a high level vision for reform of Aotearoa’s RSI system which includes embedding Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We shared some of our initial reaction on the White Paper with the Science Media Centre.
Finally, the last day for our NPM secretariat for 2022 is 21 December and we will re-open on 9 January 2023.
We wish everyone a joyful and relaxing break with loved ones and leave you with one of our favourite road trip jams for te wā o Hineraumati - Kalega.
Ngā Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
• Professor Tahu Kukutai
• Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
Scholars at Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga call for a 1988 report to be our blueprint for how we begin to restructure our country in the wake of Covid-19. Written more than three decades ago by Māori for the Department of Social Welfare, Puao-Te-Ata-Tu: Realising the Promise of a New Day recognised that the issues facing Māori resulted from failing systems of state provision underpinned by a broader context of colonisation, racism and structural inequity.
Amohia Boulton (Ngāti Ranginui, Ngai te Rangi, Ngāti Pukenga), Michelle Levy (Waikato-Tainui, Ngāti Mahuta) and Lynley Cvitanovic (Ngāti Pākehā) write that our whānau, hapū, iwi and Māori community responses to COVID-19 brought to life what Puao-Te-Ata-Tu so clearly articulated. Those responses demonstrated the vast potential that lies within Māori communities, when adequately resourced, to successfully meet the challenges of modern life.
During 2018–2019 several government-initiated reviews and inquiries focused on issues of critical importance for Aotearoa New Zealand. Without exception, these reviews identified profoundly failing state sector systems particularly for Māori, stressing an urgent need for bold transformational change.
This sixth Te Arotahi paper from Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga New Zealand’s Māori Centre of Research Excellence returns to the key messages in Puao-Te-Ata-Tu and concludes just as that report did more than 30 years ago, without those in positions of power and influence actively working to eliminate the institutional racism pervading our state institutions, the system will not transform.
"We are thrilled to announce these recent appointments to our Research Leadership Team. These Māori scholars are bringing new depth and inspiration to our team in this year of exciting transition and confirmation of Tertiary Education Commission Centre of Research Excellence status confirmed through to 2028” Co-Director Professor Linda Nikora FRSNZ
E-Pānui
Special Edition · Ngā Kete Mātauranga National Celebration 2021
Special Edition | Ngā Kete Mātauranga National Celebration 2021 ↗
On 24th March, Associate Minister of Education (Māori), Hon Kelvin Davis, officially launched NGĀ KETE MĀTAURANGA at Rongomaraeroa in Te Papa Tongarewa New Zealand’s national museum.
“Rongomaraeroa was the perfect place to celebrate this book” said co-editor Jacinta Ruru, “This marae is meant for the nation, it embodies the spirit of bicultural partnership, and the carvings and artwork are a superb striking expression of contemporary mātauranga. In this place, we see the possibilities for our nation - the possibilities we wish for the tertiary sector to fully embrace.”
Mana whenua representatives along with Te Papa’s iwi in residence Rongowhakaata, and their incredible Te Papa team lead by Arapata Hakiwai (Kaihautū Māori co-leader), Courtney Johnston (Chief Executive) and Board Chair Dame Fran Wilde, formally welcomed all attendees to Te Papa. Paora Sharples (Kaihautu Tikanga at Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga) was our master of ceremonies.
This issue is dedicated to our Māori Postgraduates and the Te Kupenga o MAI (MAI) network.
After the many disruptions of 2020, we finally came together, kanohi ki te kanohi, in late April for our much loved annual MAI Doctoral Conference.
Hosted superbly by MAI ki Waikato at the beautiful University of Waikato Tauranga campus, it was a special and empowering gathering.
Over 70 Māori doctoral candidates from MAI networks around the country travelled to share their research including:
- MAI ki Aronui
- MAI ki Tāmaki
- MAI ki Waikato
- MAI ki Massey
- MAI ki Pōneke
- MAI ki Otago
- MAI ki Canterbury
E-Pānui
Special Edition: A Tribute to Mānuka Henare 2021
"Dr Henare was a long-serving member of Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga who provided critical research leadership and mentorship in the fields of mātauranga, Māori and Indigenous business enterprise, development economics, history, and Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We mourn his passing. We acknowledge his contribution. We devote this e-panui to his work and legacy". Co-Director Professor Jacinta Ruru
Kei te ika a whiro o Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga
Ka mahue pani iho te ao rangahau Māori i muri nei
Kia tangi tīkapa ana i te aotūroa
E Mānuka, nāhau anō te mānuka i whakatakoto
Kia tāmaua ki ngā whanonga pono a te Māori ao noa pō noa
E te kanoi taiōhanga Māori, e te ngaio kaipakihi Iwi taketake
Takuate noa ake ana nei a Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga
Nā reira haere atu rā e te rangatira, haere atu rā
Matariki - marking the beginning of the Māori New Year - is an opportunity to pause and reflect: to take stock of the year that has been, to remember those that have passed, and to look ahead.
For Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga (NPM), the past year has been one of upheaval and change as we have all had to come to terms with living and working in a global pandemic.
We have lost much-loved colleagues including Associate Professor Manuka Henare, Dr Paora Mato, and Kaumātua David Rawiri Wharemate. We have also celebrated successes with seven years of additional funding from the Tertiary Education Commission, the election of NPM founding Pou Matarua Co-Director Linda Tuhiwai Smith to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, twelve of our NPM colleagues became Fellows of the Royal Society, Te Apaarangi, and the publication of the landmark book Ngā Kete Mātauranga: Māori scholars at the research interface.
On the cusp of Matariki, NPM gathered for our Te Tira Takimano Hui-ā-tau (TTT). TTT is NPM’s electoral college that represents our 21 research partners. They include wānanga, Crown Research Institutes, Independent Research Organisations, museums, a tribal college and our eight universities.
Partners, research leaders, Te Kupenga o MAI Co-ordinators and Pacific colleagues were warmly welcomed by mana whenua and our NPM Chair Kerensa Johnson.
The hui was an opportunity for the NPM leadership to articulate the strategic direction and work plan for 2021-2024. Soon we will be launching 5 new research programmes focused on Work, Racism and Equity, Environmental Relationship and Social Wellbeing.
They reflect the persistent challenges of our time and we know that through Māori-led research and the strength of our network NPM can bring impactful and tangible Indigenous solutions to our communities and whānau.
We were honoured to have Professor Robert Greenberg, Dean-Faculty of Arts, Waipapa Taumata Rau – The University of Auckland, attend and speak at the conference along with Dr Linda Tuhiwai Smith, chair of NPM’s International Research Advisory Board.
And we took the opportunity to farewell NPM Co-Director Jacinta Ruru with many hearty tributes, laughs and waiata whilst sitting with our new Co-Director, Professor Tahu Kukutai who will be formally welcomed into the role at Waipapa Marae in September.
As NPM transitions to a new funding period (2021-2028), we look forward to spring and plan for new beginnings. Aligning our activities with the rising of Matariki means recognising, appreciating and being grateful for the relationships that we have and the achievements we make together. Another year begins.
Pou Matarua Co-Directors
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
- Professor Tahu Kukutai
The month of August - Ākuhata - also known as Hereturikōkā or Here o Pipiri - is the time of our maramataka where conditions are optimal for planting and fishing. It is a time for grounding, and to be in close connection with Papatūānuku.
The current national lockdown has grounded most of us, the non-essentials of the motu, in ways that were unanticipated before the previous lockdown. However, the Delta-variant has brought uncertainty and concern—having seen its impact on the international stage.
Experts at improvisation under duress, the NPM secretariat moved swiftly and safely to remote working with relative ease. While primarily Tāmaki- based, the our secretariat and Pou Matarua (Co-Directors) also have mirumiru in Waikato, Rotorua and Te Tairāwhiti.
With tertiary institutions closed for at least a month, our partner entities have focused on delivering online learning to students, with ā-kanohi research and activities suspended for the foreseeable future.
Our focus at NPM has been on ensuring that our staff and researchers are safe and well, and able to maintain balance within their mirumiru given their many commitments and responsibilities. Zui have been essential for keeping us connected but we are also mindful that zui fatigue is real!
Throughout the pandemic, NPM kairangahau have been active in advocating for COVID-19 vaccination to keep our communities safe.
We know all too well the existing inequities within the healthcare system, the disproportionate disease burden that Māori already carry, and the grave consequences of under-vaccination for our whānau and communities, particularly when the borders re-open.
We know that there are whānau - too many - who are hurting at this time and our thoughts and aroha go out to them. One of our Ruanuku has even become an essential worker and is helping with care packs at the marae.
Finally, returning to our maramataka, we note the much-anticipated recent release of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Report (https://www.ipcc.ch/).
Climate change impacts and adaptation have been a priority research area for NPM for some time. Our Te Tai Ao platform, led by Dr Shaun Awatere of Manaaki Whenua was built on a diverse range of projects and activities relating to our whenua, wai and climate change.
Climate change mitigation and adaptation remains an important concern for our communities and will be a critical focus for further NPM research especially our environmental relationships and social wellbeing. We look forward to formally launching with an expert webinar panel the innovative research report from our Te Tai Ao research platform - He huringa āhuarangi, he huringa ao: A changing climate, a changing world. We look forward to sharing more details in due course.
Pou Matarua | Co-Directors
- Professor Linda Waimarie Nikora
- Professor Tahu Kukutai