Te Korowai Pūtahi Manawa

The research impact enables and empowers the research to uphold rangatiratanga and the uses and advances of Māori knowledge, resources, and people. This research is strongly connected to Mātauranga Māori as it is based on the practices of tūpuna (ancestors), such as having a strong relationship with the elements of the environment. This research focuses on the learning and sharing of traditional knowledge to whanau and communities in Aotearoa to ensure the continued use and connection to the environment, such as the knowledge of native plants to keep well and improve illnesses.

“Ko te kai a te rangatira he kōrero.”

The investigation will involve collecting ngā pūrākau mō te manawa, or “heart” stories, from Ngāti Whātua ki Ōrākei whānau. These stories will consist of “heart-related experiences” shared by whānau who consent to participate and share their stories. Heart-related experiences are defined as those involving whānau encounters, whether medical or otherwise, stemming from a “heart-related” incident.

By drawing on heart experiences from whānau, this investigation aims to create a profile of Ngāti Whātua ki Ōrākei's heart health. Heart health (manawa ora) is a critical issue for Māori communities, which experience disproportionately high rates of heart-related conditions among whānau throughout Aotearoa. These inequities are deeply rooted in colonisation and systemic racism, necessitating solutions that are anchored in Māori values and driven by Māori communities.

The kōrero shared will help us understand the insights, barriers, enablers, and impacts that whānau face. This includes whānau interactions, health behaviours and lifestyles, experiences with health services, communication and literacy, preventative measures, and other types of interventions. An analysis of this type of data aims to enable Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei to provide more suitable and effective heart health strategies for their whānau. These decisive actions will integrate relevant mātauranga, tikanga, and kaupapa, allowing for strategic interventions that improve heart health (manawa ora) to be tailored for ngā uri o Ngāti Whātua ki Ōrākei. For Ngāti Whātua ki Ōrākei (NWŌ), addressing manawa ora is not merely a medical concern—it's a generational responsibility, deeply rooted in whakapapa, mātauranga Māori, mana motuhake, and tino rangatiratanga.