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Kaupapa · Projects 551
Over 30 years ago when Professor Russell Bishop started teaching he was struck by a single question: Why did so many Māori students start out well but fail as they went through school? Bishop, Professor of Māori Education at the University of Waikato, and colleagues interviewed Year 9 and 10 high school students, their families, teachers and principals from…
Through Our Eyes: Mapping the Social Landscapes of Māori Youth
This research project focused on Māori youth and documenting their social territories using multi-media visual data generated by the participants, in conjunction with wānanga and university-based practitioners and students in photography and film media. The researchers employed new methods in visual sociology and worked collaboratively with Māori youth and…
Science, Mātauranga Māori and Schools
This project examined current practices for measuring Māori participation and achievement in science and mathematics, investigated student experiences of science and mathematics in English medium and Māori medium schools and investigated the views of whānau, parents, caregivers and teachers of Māori students regarding science and mathematics education. To…
Whangaia te hinengaro: Reading to learn in te reo Māori
This project focused on kaiako literacy instruction practices and tauira learning pertaining to reading comprehension and Māori vocabulary development. It involved five Kura Kaupapa Māori schools located in rural communities or small rural townships. Kura staff and researchers were involved in a collaborative process involving the collection, analysis and…
Social Change in Eastern Bay of Plenty: Outcomes of the Forestry Industry on Māori Communities
The objectives of this research were twofold: first, to assess the societal impacts of the forestry industry on the wider Māori community as a result of the presence of the Whakatāne Board Mill and the Kawerau Norske Skog Tasman Mill in the Bay of Plenty region and second, to examine; (i) the extent to which employment at the mills has provided social…
Eugenics, Race ideologies and Biotechnology in Aotearoa: a Scoping Study
This research project examined the extent to which eugenics and race theories as discourses promoted certain forms of relationships that played a key role in defining social structures for both Māori and Pākehā.
Towards the development of guidelines for handling, use and storage of Māori genetic material in research
Efforts have been made to develop protocols for the use and handling of blood samples, but at the time of this study starting, the formation of guidelines that take into account the needs and views of Māori had not been completed. Guided by Kaupapa Māori research methodologies, this study acknowledged He Korowai Oranga (The Ministry of Health’s Māori Health…
Ko te huarahi ki mua: Roads for change
This project sought to identify and assess the damage done to Papatūānuku (Mother Earth) by chemical contamination from road construction in the Auckland metropolitan area, and to consider ways in which she may be healed. The research team built collaborations between Ngāti Whātua, Manaaki Whenua and key stakeholder organisations such as Transit New Zealand…
Te Reo, a language for Māori alone? An enquiry into the views of Māori
This research study canvassed Māori opinion at flax-roots level on the idea that te reo Māori, their language, be shared by all New Zealanders. A wide range of views and various types of data were gathered, and the response to the question of whether Maori could be considered a language for all New Zealanders signalled an affirmative response. However…
Whanake te kura i Tawhitinui – Building resilience within Māori communities
This research explores how mātauranga Māori enriches natural hazard resilience in Aotearoa by integrating Indigenous knowledge with science. It highlights Māori-led solutions that strengthen cultural identity, wellbeing, and community response to disasters. The resulting publication will be accessible and visually engaging, showcasing collaborative research…
He hakune rangahau o Te Atiawa: What could a Te Atiawa research model and methodology look like?
This internship examined publicly available sources to build a research report on Te Atiawa knowledge, perspectives, and values, aiming to develop a research model grounded in Te Atiawa mātauranga. The project informed the first phase of a Master’s thesis supporting Te Atiawa and their hapū to strengthen connections with their Tupuna Mounga, Taranaki.
Tutungia te kāpura hei oranga mō te hapū: Light the fires for our collective vitality
This PhD offers a re-examination of the tikanga of ahikā—traditionally understood as a metaphor for sustained occupation—by exploring the literal fires that burned on hapū lands. Through investigating the diverse uses of fire by Māori ancestors (for warmth, kai, light, and communication), this research reveals a richer, more refined understanding of ahikā…
Ngā Hua a Te Matatini : The benefits of kapa haka to Aotearoa
Conscious of the lack of serious inquiry into Kapa Haka, the CEO of Te Matatini Inc, the National Organisation for Kapa Haka in Aotearoa New Zealand approached Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga, New Zealand’s Māori Centre of Research Excellence (NPM), to make a start on rectifying this situation. This programme of research seeks to better appreciate the value and…
- Nikora et al. (2022). The Value of Kapa Haka – An Overview Report. Auckland, NZ : Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga
- Hall, M., & Bowden, L. (2021). Māori Performing Arts and Educational Outcomes Report.
- Meade, R. (2021). Exploring the Cultural Value of Kapa Haka – the Māori Performing Arts
- Mikaere, T.M. (2021). Ngā hua nui o te kapa haka.
- Nikora et al. (2021). Exploring the value and meaning of Kapa Haka - Māori Performing Arts : The Hine Rēhia Survey. Auckland, NZ
- Selby-Rickit, T.H.R. (2021). Ngā hua nui o te kapa haka.
- Te Huia, A., & Fox, R. (2020). Manawa ū ki te reo Māori : Matatini and non-Matatini survey responses
Te Awaroa – 1000 Rivers in a State of Ora by 2050
Across New Zealand, many rivers are unsafe parts of the ecosystem, with Kiwis seriously concerned about declining river health. The ‘bottom line’ regulatory approach of the government's freshwater reforms requires coordinated commitment across river stakeholders. Despite the talent and commitment of existing groups, the current fragmented approaches are not…
The Intergenerational Reality for Māori Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SME): Building resilience of Māori SMEs for the future
The significance of this research project lies in its contribution to deeper understand what role Māori SMEs have as critical constituents of the Māori Economy. Recent years have seen attention paid to the merit of the Māori economy, based on the potential of an economy worth an estimated $42.6bn in 2013 (Nana, Khan, & Schulze, 2015). However, this type of…
Connections and Flows: Precarious Māori households in austere times
In addition to public and scholarly deliberations regarding increased inequalities in society, this project responds to the continued socio-economic exclusion of many Māori households. We draw on recent scholarship on the precariat as an emerging social class comprised of people experiencing unstable employment, unliveable incomes, inadequate state…
Te Aho Tapu
Māori have a long association with the natural environment and are well-positioned to make important contributions to sustainably managing natural resources in New Zealand and the world. Kaitiakitanga and other practices provide a powerful foundation for developing paradigms in governance, management, caring, development and benefit-sharing of land, water…
Ngā Moemoea ō Ᾱpōpō: Empowering Taiohi Māori Leaders for the Future
This research explores how rangatahi Māori are navigating a world of deep uncertainty. Amidst climate change, poverty, injustice and cultural upheaval, this project centres Māori youth as powerful future-makers. Led by Professor Joanna Kidman, the study invites rangatahi to imagine, design, and plan thriving futures for their whānau, hapū and iwi—grounded…
South island Māori researchers gather for first-ever symposium
“The gathering was a landmark event as the first of its kind in the South Island and it showed the great increase of Māori researchers and the breadth of areas they were involved in.” -Dr Rāwiri Taonui, Head of Māori and Indigenous Studies at the University of Canterbury Twenty years ago there where only a handful of Māori researchers with PhDs in New…
Shared knowledge succeeds in protecting bird population
“….a very positive experience. We were able to preserve our mātauranga and build up our capacity in field work survey and monitoring methods along with gaining a new knowledge about our manu in the process.” Toko Renata, Chairperson of the Ruamaahua Islands Trust
Dr James Ataria: Producing a better environment by matching science and tangata whenua knowledge
“I think all New Zealanders pride ourselves on being clean and green, but we are increasingly asking what we need to do to protect that…” When winning support from local authorities, these days it’s the numbers that talk. And as a scientist with Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research based at Lincoln near Christchurch, Dr James Ataria has been using them…
Hāromi Williams: Capturing a unique legacy to build a better future
“We want our children to go out from school confident of who they are, where they come from and who they represent.” “It’s important the stories people tell about themselves,” Hāromi Williams says. At her office at Tāneatua near the Urewera, where she is Executive Manager of the Tūhoe Education Authority (TEA), she explains it’s a lesson she first learned…
Helping more children succeed at school
“Teachers enter the profession because they want to make a difference. This approach helps them do that.” MORE THAN 30 years ago when Russell Bishop first started teaching at Mana College in Porirua, he was struck by a single question: Why did so many Māori students start out well but still fail as they went through school?
Tāmaki Herenga Waka
Tāmaki Herenga Waka is the over-arching theme for a series of activities aimed at building a positive Māori consciousness and a more dynamic and connected community in Auckland City. The principle of the proverb dating from 1840 behind the name “Tāmaki herenga waka” (Tāmaki moored canoes) was to see an end of tribal conflicts in the region and that Auckland…