2012 Symposium Enhancing Māori Distinctiveness
Associate Professor Poia Rewi lectures at Te Tumu (School of Māori, Pacific and Indigenous Studies), the University of Otago. He affiliates to descendants of Mātaatua and Te Arawa. His main areas of research and teaching, and community engagement involve the Māori language, Māori culture, education and performing arts. He is Co-Principal Investigator on the three-year Ngā Pae o Te Māramatanga Pae Tawhiti initiative on Te Reo Māori.
Associate Professor Rawinia Higgins (Ngāi Tūhoe) works at Te Kawa a Māui, School of Māori Studies at Victoria University, Wellington. She is Co-Principal Investigator of Te Kura Roa, a three year Ngā Pae o Te Māramatanga Pae Tawhiti initiative on the value of the Māori language. It examines state and community responsiveness to Māori language revitalisation efforts in Aotearoa New Zealand. She leads the community project in collaboration with Te Ataarangi and Te Kōhanga Reo.
Associate Professor Higgins studied at Victoria University and completed her post-graduate degrees at the University of Otago. Her MA thesis was written in te reo Māori and examined the relationship between grandparents and grandchildren and her PhD thesis examined the identity politics of moko kauae. Her research is entrenched in the discipline of Māori Studies with a particular focus on the language and culture. Using these cultural paradigms, her work highlights the value of the language and Māori knowledge within modern academic discourse.