Skip to main content
Rangahau · Internship project

Tangaroa Ara Rau: Whānau connections & Water Safety

About this research

This report has been prepared for Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga as part of the summer internship programme 2018-2019. This project is titled Tangaroa Ara Rau: Whānau connections and Water Safety with a purpose to understand unique whānau connections to water and its benefit for water safety.

Throughout the summer of 2018 Terina Raureti (Ngāti Raukawa) was given the opportunity to work alongside the waka club Hauteruruku ki Puketeraki and their Tūmai Ora initiative which focused on engaging rangatahi with their pepeha through waka.

The aim of this research was to understand the importance of whānau connection to water and its influence on water safety through exploring three research questions. These were:

1. What is a whānau connection to water?

2. How does Hauteruruku ki Puketeraki strengthen whānau relationships with water?

3. How does a connection to water influence water safety?

The main finding was that rangatahi found their personal connection to water through learning and exploring their own pepeha and whānau pūrākau. This enabled them to value their relationship with the water and strengthen it in a way that makes sense to their whānau, using Hauteruruku as a platform for engagement. Through understanding their pepeha and whānau pūrākau, rangatahi were able to respect and interact with the water knowing that it was something their whānau have done for generations. Key themes that emerged were pepeha, whanaungatanga, kaitiakitanga and karakia. These themes framed an understanding of how a whānau connection to water can influence water safety.

Whakaahua & Ataata · Images & Videos

Kairangahau · Researchers

Ētahi atu · Other projects

Scoping project

What we were and what we could be: Restorative Justice and its impact on Māori
Whare wānanga · Host University of Otago
Wā rangahau · Timeline Since 2020

We have identified a set of questions relating to Māori restorative justice in the Aotearoa Justice system and its effectiveness for Māori: What are the barriers Māori face when they participate in restorative justice as it stands? What can we learn from the traditional ways of resolving conflict that could minimise these barriers? The over-representation…

Internship project

Tangaroa Ara Rau: Tangaroa the Atua of Human Movement
Whare wānanga · Host University of Otago
Wā rangahau · Timeline Since 2019

This research report has been titled Rākau-nui as an acknowledgement to the full moon phase in the Maramataka (Māori lunar calendar). Rākau-nui also represents the collected journey to which this full report has been constructed from. The Maramataka is a repository of ancient and traditional knowledge orally handed down throughout the generations by our…

Full project

Community Connections to Place
Whare wānanga · Host University of Otago
Wā rangahau · Timeline Since 2018

This platform project explores how Māori-led taiao initiatives reconnect whānau and hapū with place, identity, and whakapapa. Through case studies, wānanga, and digital tools, the project examines the aspirations, processes, and outcomes of environmental mahi that strengthen connections between people and te taiao.