Whakawhiwhinga Tūranga
He whakawhiwhinga tūranga ka tukuna atu hei taunaki i ngā kairangahau kua hiwa ai ki ngā rangahau nanaiore i Aotearoa nei.
Ki raro iho ko ngā kaiwhiwhi o te whakawhiwhi tūranga
2025
Penina Hitti
Massey University
Pacific childhood experiences and their influence on metabolic and mental health: a holistic study of risks and protective factors
Amount awarded: $740,749
Pacific Fellowship
This study aims to explore how childhood experiences—both negative (adverse) and positive (beneficent) can impact long-term health for Pacific young adults. Research has shown that negative childhood experiences, like abuse or neglect, can increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and mental health challenges in later life. However, positive experiences, such as strong family support, cultural connections, and resilience, may help to protect against these risks.
Pacific cultures, with their emphasis on community, family, and spirituality, offer unique strengths that could buffer the negative impacts of childhood adversity and long-term health conditions. By using the Fonofale model, a holistic framework for Pacific health, this research will explore what cultural factors can promote resilience and reduce metabolic and mental health risks.
The study will involve 100 Pacific adults aged 20-34 years old, examining both measurable health outcomes (eg, blood pressure,glucose levels and mental health) and personal stories that can provide insights of resilience factors. Findings from this study will help shape culturally relevant health strategies that contribute to reducing the risk of metabolic syndrome and mental health struggles. This research has the potential to guide public health approaches that are both effective and culturally appropriate for Pacific communities, addressing significant health inequities
2025
Fa’asisila Savila
University of Auckland
Improving cardiovascular health for Māori and Pacific people engaging with Buttabean Motivation’s ‘From The Couch’ programme
Amount awarded: $966,825
Obesity poses the greatest cardiovascular risk for Māori and Pacific populations in Aotearoa New Zealand. Despite efforts to promote weight loss and lifestyle changes, these communities continue to experience higher levels of obesity and related comorbidities compared to non-Māori, non-Pacific populations.
This Fellowship will evaluate the “From the Couch” (FTC) health programme run by the Maori-Pacific driven community organisation, Buttabean Motivation (BBM). The programme provides intensive wraparound support to community members living with extreme obesity who want to improve their health and wellbeing. The Fellowship will follow a cohort of FTC participants for two years, investigating clinical markers such as blood sugar and cholesterol, and evaluating the benefits of engaging in the programme.
Other health measures, such as mental wellbeing, spiritual health, and social relationships, will be examined to determine the effects of participating in BBM’s much sought-after programme. Although open to all ethnic groups, BBM uses Māori and Pacific approaches to hauora to create a safe space for these communities to engage socially while participating in exercise and nutrition classes, and other social supports like work ready programmes.
The findings from this research will add to the body of evidence demonstrating the value and impact of using Kaupapa Māori and Pacific concepts for delivering health services and culturally appropriate research for these communities.
2025
Tākuta Terina Raureti
University of Otago
Terina (Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga, Ngāti Rangitihi) is the inaugural Māori Fellow and her project is a call to action to connect whānau to their tupuna awa (ancestral river), the Ōtaki Awa (Ōtaki River), through participating in Kauora (a whānau created swimming kaupapa) to improve the heart health of whānau.
Dr Raureti says “The awa are the heart of our taiao (environment); our manawa whenua. Our manawa whenua in Ōtaki are the waterways and whakapapa of the Ōtaki Awa and the Waitohu Awa that flow through our whenua to sustain and nourish our whānau, hapū and iwi.”
Ōtaki awa: He manawa whenua
Amount awarded: $765,430
2023

Tākuta Debbie Zhao
Te Whare Wānanga o Tāmaki-makaurau
Te tautuhi i ngā tohutoro mo te hauora manawa ki Aotearoa
Te rahinga i riro: $790,975
He mahinga whānui te mate manawa MRI ki te whakamātau i te āheinga cardiovascular o roto i te hauora me te mate Pākehā. E kīia ana he paerewa o taumata kē atu mo te ngāwari o ngā inenga mo te nui o te manawa, te morphology me te āheinga. He mea waiwai ki te whakamātautau MRI ko te mātauranga o te “normal” ranges ki te nui o te manawa, te ngahue, te rahinga, ka tāhapa i te pakeketanga me te hanganga ngahue o te tinana, ā, ka whakakaweawetia e te mahi ai me ngā mātāwaka. Ko ēnei ranges ka whakarawea i te hirahira o te ripa tauārai o ngā mātāpono mo te whakatau māuiui, prognosis, me te whakataunga clinical.
Ahakoa kua tautuhitia ēnei māuiuitanga mo te Pākehā, kāore anō ngā MRI reference ranges e hāngai ana ki ngā Māori me ngā iwi o Te Moana-Nui-Ā-Kiwa. Ko te whakamahinga i ngā aratohu non-representative nā konā ka mahue, ka whakahē rānei i te whakatau māuiui o te mate manawa o ngai Māori me ngā iwi o Te Moana-Nui-Ā-Kiwa. Ka takaroa te maimoatanga me te whakakohuki i te hauora o te tūroro. He whitawhita te hiahia kia waihangatia ētahi mātāpono e tika ana mo te whakamātau i te manawa me te MRI, e matatika ai te putanga hauora o ngai Māori me ngā iwi oTe Moana-Nui-Ā-Kiwa.
2022

Tākuta Anna Ponnampalam
Te Whare Wānanga o Tāmaki-makaurau
Ki te whakawhanake i ngā pou tarāwaho mo te gestational cardio metabolic management i waenga i ngā wāhine Māori me ngā wāhine o Te Moana-Nui-Ā-Kiwa
Te rahinga i riro: $571,156
Ko te āhuatanga o te Gestational mate huka, he āhuatanga matatini e pāhekoheko ana ki te hapūtanga, ka whakaaweawetia te cardio-metabolic hauora o te māmā me te tamaiti, i te anamata. He haepapa tā te mate cardio-metabolic mo te nuinga o ngā āputa mo te āhua o te oranga e pāhekoheko ana ki te panekiretanga o te manaaki me te taumata ira tangata o ngā Māori me ngā iwi o Te Moana-Nui-Ā-Kiwa e noho nei ki Aotearoa. Ko te pakeke timatanga o ngā heipūtanga cardio-metabolic, he whakahirahiratanga taiohinga o roto i ngā Māori ki tā te tangata Tiriti me te tūpono o ēnei heipūtanga, ka whakaranea tonu.
Ka whakawhanake tēnei rangahau i te heipū pou tarāwaho kia pai ake te screening, te mana whakahaere me ngā turukitanga o ngā wāhine Māori me ngā wāhine o Te Moana-Nui-Ā-Kiwa kua pāngia e te mate huka whakatupu mā te whakamahi i te rangapū hāpori me ngā mātāpono whakaahua, me te whakamārama i ngā kōrero o te whenua me te pūnaha ioio i te whanaketanga o te mate huka whakatupu. He wāhanga tā te rangahau ki te tautohu i ngā āhuatanga kia aukati me te patu i te mate huka whakatupu. I mimiti rawa te tūpono o te mate huka whakatupu kia pakaru mai te hurihanga mutunga kore me te whakawhitinga o te mate cardio metabolic mo ngā uri o te anamata.
2022

Tākuta Sandra Hanchard
Te Whare Wānanga o Tāmaki-makaurau (kua tukuna he pūtea moni me te Heart Foundation).
He mahere e aro atu ana ki te mana taurite discharge mo te auheke manawa
Te rahinga i riro nā Pūtahi Manawa: $429,965
Te rahinga i riro nā Heart Foundation: $192,930
E arotahi ana tēnei ketuketutanga ki ngā mahere optimising discharge me te interface i waenga i ngā taumata hohipera me te manaakitanga o te hāpori mo te auheke manawa, ina koa, ngā tūroro/whānau o ngai Māori me ngā iwi o Te Moana-Nui-Ā-Kiwa. Ko ngā whāinga o tēnei rangahau, me whakawhiwhia tētahi whakaahua aroā o te mahere discharge mo te auheke manawa puta noa i ngā hohipera e hora ana i Aotearoa me te motuhaketanga o ngā kaupapa ki te mahere discharge kua pai ake mā ngā tūroro auheke manawa o ngai Māori me ngā iwi o Te Moana-Nui-Ā-Kiwa.