NPM research solves real world challenges facing Māori, in Māori-determined and inspired ways, allowing for sustainable relationships that grow the mana (respect and regard) and mauri (life essence) of the world we inhabit. We gather our expertise within four Te Ao Māori knowledge and excellence clusters or Pae:
- Pae Ahurei - Living Uniquely: Cherish and celebrate distinctively Māori futures.
- Pae Tawhiti - Living Lightly: Grow responsible social, economic and environmental relationships.
- Pae Ora - Living Well: Influence positive change for healthy and meaningful lives.
- Pae Auaha - Living Smartly: Nurture wise and ethical technological transformations.
An addition four Pātai or critical systems-oriented questions generate transformative interventions and policy advice for stakeholders and next users. All of our research will contribute mātauranga-informed theories, models and evidenced solutions in response to our Pātai. Our Pātai serve to integrate and energise our programme and Pae to synthesize our research for next stage impact and outcomes.
- Pātai Te Ao Māori - How can te reo, tikanga and mātauranga continue to inform our futures?
- Pātai Whānau - How can whānau wellbeing be realised in everyday life?
- Pātai Mauri - How can mātauranga inform and drive sustainable and just societal practices?
- Pātai Puāwai - How can research be used transformatively to accelerate the achievement of flourishing Māori futures?
The Pae and Pātai give form to our 7.5 year programme of research and orient and shape all activities of the Centre, and form the basis of our reporting on the impacts arising from the research that we undertake through our Matakitenga Research Framework.
| MATAKITENGA RESEARCH FRAMEWORK | ||||||
| PAE AHUREI | PAE TAWHITI | PAE ORA | PAE AUAHA | RAUTAKI KOUNGA | RAUTAKI WHAKAAWEAWE | |
| Living Uniquely [AH] | Living Lightly [TA] | Living Well [OR] | Living Smartly [AU] | Professional Excellence [PE] | Impact and Transformation [IT] | |
| IMPACT STATEMENTS | Cherish and celebrate flourishing  Māori futures | Grow responsible economic and environmental relationships | Influence positive change for healthy and meaningful Māori lives | Nurture wise andethical Māori technological transformations | Inspire Māori andIndigenous research  and excellence | Connect with partnersfor impact and  transformative change | 
| PATAI | OUTCOMES | OUTCOMES | OUTCOMES | OUTCOMES | OUTCOMES | OUTCOMES | 
| TE AO MĀORI - How  can te reo, tikanga  and mātauranga  Māori continue to  inform our futures?  [A] | AAH1 Research to  protect, regenerate  and future proof TeAo Māori [V4]. | ATA1 Te Ao Māori  models forsustainable,  equitable and just  societal practices  [V2,4] [H2] . | AOR1 Te Ao Māori  knowledge and  practice to enhancewellbeing in  whānau lives acrossthe lifespan and  generations [V3,4]. | AAU1 Methods to  accelerate the  potential for  technologies to aid  Te Reo revitalization  and the reclamation  of mātauranga [V4]. | APE1 Demonstrated  value of Mātauranga  Māori and Indigenous  epistemologies,  methodologies, and  methods [T5,8, V4, CC,  H4]. | AIT1 Establish Te Whare Ariā, a wānanga and innovation space to develop targeted and appropriate strategic impact and transformation research pathways [V2,4 H2] | 
| WHĀNAU - How can  whānau wellbeing be  realised in everyday  life? [W] | WAH2 Support for Te Reo Māori expression and use across all domains and generations while maintaining its relevance and integrity [V3, T5, H4]. | WTA2 New  knowledge and  applications for  whānau to be self-  determining and  self-sustaining [V1,  H3,5]. | WOR2 Te Ao Māori  knowledge for  relational growth-  fostering and  whānau  empowerment [V3]. | WAU2 Mātauranga  fusions to craft  technologies  enabling whānau to  live meaningful and  satisfying lives  [V3,4]. | WPE2 Deep community, national and international research relationships  and engagement  [T3,8,CC, P5]. | WIT2 Harness  connectedness with  partners in  transformation [T7,  VCC, H5]. | 
| PAE AHUREI | PAE TAWHITI | PAE ORA | PAE AUAHA | RAUTAKI KOUNGA | RAUTAKI WHAKAAWEAWE | |
| Living Uniquely [AH] | Living Lightly [TA] | Living Well [OR] | Living Smartly [AU] | Professional Excellence [PE] | Impact and Transformation [IT] | |
| MAURI - How can  mātauranga inform  and drive sustainable  and just societal  practices? [M] | MAH3 Te Ao Māori  models for  sustainable,  equitable and just  societal practices  [V2,4, H2] | MTA3 Mana and  mauri centred  knowledge for an  intergrated social,  economic,  environmental and  living relational  world [V2]. | MOR3 Methods to  disrupt the systems  and structures that  allow inequities to  arise thereby  obstructing wellness  for Māori [V3, H2,  T1,3, P2] | MAU3 Tikanga to  guide collective  privacy, consent,  trust, use and  benefit  requirements that  are flexible and  dynamic [V4]. | PPE3 Lead the CoRE sector towards achieving internationally equitable rates of Māori and Pacific post- graduate educational achievement and early career excellence [T3,6,8, VCC, H2, P5] | MIT3 Influence law and  policy making for Māori  wellbeing and just  societal practices [V2,3  T2] | 
| PUĀWAI - How can Māori-led research be used transformatively to accelerate the achievement of flourishing Māori futures? [P] | PAH4 New understandings and applications to accelerate transformative change for flourishing Māori futures [V1]. | PTA4 Possible,  provocative, and  preferable  transformation  pathways towards  flourishing Māori  futures [V3, H1,3]. | POR4 Te Ao Māori  building blocks for  wellbeing and  flourishing Māori  futures [V3,4]. | PAU4 Creative and  technological  transformations to  nurture flourishing  Māori futures [V1]  [H3,4] | PPE4 Grow the FTE  rate of Māori  academics across New  Zealand tertiary  institutions to at least  15% [T3,5,6,8, VCC, H2,  P5] | PIT4 Share and promote  NPM research for  uptake and impact [V4,  H5] |