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Tāngata · People 466
Mona-Lisa Wareka
I have been in, at and around the University of Waikato for the past ten years as a student, tutor, research assistant, tuakana/mentor, and teaching fellow. Since my last Graduate Stories post, I completed my MSocSc and a Diploma in Te Tohu Paetahi during the time of the pandemic, then began my PhD journey from the end of 2021. In terms of research interests, I am still very much interested in Rongoā Māori and wairuatanga/spirituality, Indigeneity and Indigenous anthropology, but in particular – as my PhD research pertains to – I have garnered an interest for ‘illegalised plant medicines’.
Uenukuterangihoka Jefferies
Uenukuterangihoka Jefferies (Te Whakatōhea, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Awa, Te Whānau-a-Apanui, Ngāti Maniapoto) is a documentary filmmaker and scholar whose work is grounded in the revitalisation and protection of Māori cultural traditions. He is a PhD candidate in the School of Art and Design here at AUT. Uenukuterangihoka engages in practice-led research that intertwines Māori narrative traditions and filmmaking, known as He Tamaiti nā Tangaroa, He Ahuahu o Mataora: Documenting Puhoro. He employs the pūrākau methodology to explore the art of traditional Māori tattooing and seeks to reclaim and…
Cynthia Otene
Maungataniwha te MaungaTapapa te AwaMangamuka te MaraeNgapuhi te WharemokoPuhi Kai ArikiPuhi Moana ArikiPuhi Taniwha RauKo Ngapuhi te IwiCynthia Otene is an esteemed Māori leader renowned for her significant contributions to hauora Māori, podiatry, and diabetes management. Born in Kaitaia and raised in Mangamuka, Cynthia has dedicated her career to Hauora Māori.Cynthia holds a Master of Health Science and is currently completing her Doctorate in Health Science at Auckland University of Technology (AUT), supported by the Tā Hemi Henare Kohanga Reo Doctorate Award.A dedicated clinician, Cynthia…
Deacon Fisher
Deacon Fisher (Ngapuhi) is a Lecturer and PhD student within Massey's School of Social Work.
Morgana Vicki Watson
As an avid gamer, Morgana Watson eagerly awaited the day she could become immersed in a role-playing video game that truly reflected her culture.“I’ve been a gamer since a child and, about 10 years ago, I was playing one of my favourite games, Tomb Raider, and thought, ‘I can’t wait till someone makes a Māori Tomb Raider or a Māori God of War’, but it never happened.”Inspired by the “incredible Māori speakers” at a 2018 technology and innovation event Ko Māui Hāngarau, Morgana decided she would have to make the Māori game herself.
Waimarie Onekawa
As one of the programme leaders in the department, I have a responsibility to ensure that the coordination and administration of courses are robust and meet the standards required by Auckland University of Technology (AUT) and the Midwifery Council New Zealand (MCNZ). I oversee the entire curriculum and establish boundaries and consistency, lead curriculum reviews, plan the team's approach to learning and teaching, discuss and embed cultural safety and mātauranga Māori within the programme, and ensure our moderation processes are fair and rigorous. As a lecturer, I actively participate in the…
Nadine Helen Riwai
I am a Māori health professional, registered nurse with extensive experience across clinical, operational, and national roles within Aotearoa health system.My work spans primary care, regional coordination, and national programme leadership, with a focus on cancer screening, equity, and strengthening whānau access to care. I have worked across the National Cervical Screening Programme, supporting system implementation and stakeholder engagement during the transition to HPV primary screening across Aotearoa.
Awatea Waimārie Moxon
Awatea Waimārie Moxon's PhD adopts a mixed-methods research approach to provide a thorough understanding of the relationship between Māori whakapapa knowledge and psychological wellbeing. Both qualitative and quantitative data was collected from Māori participants from a range of iwi, vocations and knowledge levels. Chapter 1, explores the influence of whakapapa knowledge on wellbeing according to Mātanga whakapapa (experts of Māori history and genealogy). Chapter 2, provides themes related to the lived experience of whakapapa knowledge in the form of moko-kanohi (Māori facial tattoos)…
Kristie-Lee Thomas
Tēnā koe! He uri au nō Ngāti Mutunga ō Wharekauri me Te Āti Awa.I'm passionate about bringing people and knowledge systems, particularly Mātauranga Māori and disaster risk science together in ways that best support whānau, hapū, iwi & local communities in planning and preparing for disaster events and climate change.I currently work part time for UC on a number of kaupapa Māori research projects, co-lead RNC Te Whanake Te Kura i Tawhiti Nui research programme and teach into the UC Master of Disaster Risk and Resilience programme whilst I study towards my doctorate.
Dr Darren Ngaru King
Darren Ngaru King is an interdisciplinary research scientist with experience spanning the earth and human-systems sciences. His research focus is climate variability, tsunamis and impacts on Māori communities. He investigates factors that influence the risk, vulnerability and endurance of climate-sensitive sectors, systems and groups, using approaches grounded in applied geology, Māori oral history and Mātauranga Māori. Darren is also a member of the Kāhui Māori of the Deep South National Science Challenge.
Dr Peter Meihana
Peter is a Senior Lecturer in Māori History at Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa, Massey University, and a Trustee of Te Rūnanga a Rangitāne o Wairau. His research interests include Māori history; tribal history; and colonisation.
Israel Birch
Israel Tangaroa Birch is known for his distinctive work with steel and lacquer. His highly polished, patterned surfaces interact with light to create shifting, luminous fields of colour and shadow that seem to ripple as the viewer moves—offering a deeply immersive experience.Birch’s practice involves grinding and carving directly into steel, embedding a physicality into each work that speaks to the process of making. This dynamic energy—of movement, sound, and intent—feels captured within the material itself, reflecting his constant exploration of the medium’s limits.Birch holds a Master of…
Professor Regan Potangaroa
Dr Regan Potangaroa is Professor at the School of Future Environments at AUT. He is recognised as a global expert in humanitarian engineering and Māori-centred resilience. With 45 years of experience spanning structural engineering, architecture, disaster response, and academia, Regan has been involved with over 200 humanitarian deployments in 22 countries and pioneered innovative assessment methods for traditional timber structures like wharenui. His recent work, featured in the short film Rising from the Earth; showcases how marae across Aotearoa are navigating seismic risk, climate change…
Dr Ruakere Hond
Dr Ruakere Hond is a longstanding advocate of te reo Māori revitalisation and a key supporter of the Parihaka community. He was instrumental in working to achieve reconciliation between that community and the Crown, and he has held several leadership roles in Māori language organisations, including Te Reo o Taranaki, Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi, and Te Ataarangi. He has served two terms as a member of Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori and is a past board member of Te Mātāwai, which leads the implementation of the Maihi Māori language strategy.In 2013, Dr Hond completed a doctorate in public…
Lara Taylor
Lara Taylor's whakapapa is to Ngāti Tahu, Tūhourangi, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Pāhauwera, and Ngāi Tahu ki Murihiku. She is passionate about Māori rights and interests, particularly related to Te Ao Tūroa. Her career has involved Māori planning and strategy – Auckland Council, Māori researcher at Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research, and advisory and governance roles for hapū and iwi. She is a Komiti Member on the national Māori planner’s forum Papa Pounamu, associated with the New Zealand Planning Institute. Lara has recently established her own business, E Oho! which specialises in Māori policy…
Tonga Karena
No Ngāti Kahumate, no Ngāti Hinekura ahau. He kaiawhiawhi ki Parihaka, ā, he kaiwhakaūkaipō i te reo o Taranaki. Inā tata nei i noho hei kaimahi ki PKW – he rau whakaihoiho te tūranga. I tua atu i tērā, he kaiwhakahī waiata, he tauira tākuta, ka mutu, he pūkenga ki roto i nga whare wānanga hoki. Ko ia tērā ko te Pou Tikanga o Tuiora.As Pou Tikanga, Tonga Karena provides the cultural leadership and vision for our whole organisation. He ensures that the cultural resilience of Tui Ora kaimahi is the framework for our everyday activities and our engagement with our community.Tonga has had a…
Gina Waters
Gina has 15 years’ experience in community work and clinical mental health practice in both New Zealand and Australia. Gina is currently enrolled in the Doctoral Clinical Psychology program at the University of Auckland and is affiliated with the Centre for Brain Research and the Esme and Tom Tomblinson Family Trust. Gina has an interest in supporting innovative research programmes which have strong translation into clinical mental health practice for improving wellbeing outcomes, especially for Māori. She is leading a Mātai HRC grant in ADHD to support her research in Tairāwhiti.
Alyssa Thomas
Alyssa’s research engages with the rangatahi of her hapū, Patuharakeke; with additional funding support from New Zealand Freshwater Sciences Society. Over the course of a three-day wānanga, Alyssa gained an insight into the aspirations of ngā rangatira mō apōpō, with particular regard to the management of Pukekauri dam, a local freshwater resource. Through whakapapa and whakawhanaungatanga, the rangatahi connected with te taiao and began/continued their journey of kaitiakitanga and tino rangatiratanga. Alyssa presents her research and findings of rangatahi visioning and aspirations for…
Kay Berryman
Kay Berryman (Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Āpakura, Waikato, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngai Tahu) has been awarded a Māori Health Research PhD Scholarship worth $123,600.Her PhD study through the University will explore Māori women and Indigenous women's perceptions and experiences of mātauranga in the context of waka ama and its impact on their hauora (holistic wellbeing).“My doctoral research will incorporate my hauora experience, gained through my own journey of waka ama. The PhD scholarship will enable me to dedicate myself fully to advancing health outcomes of wahine Māori and tamariki,” explains Ms…