Fatu Malosi: A Pacific navigation of academia for improved heart health equity

Fatu Malosi, a Pacific-led national summer research programme funded by the Pūtahi Manawa Centre of Research Excellence, launched last week at Waipapa Taumata Rau | University of Auckland, welcoming 25 Pacific students and their families.

Co-led by Dr Julie Winter-Smith and Nuseta Hope, the programme creates a dedicated pathway for Pacific students into research and postgraduate study, an area where Pacific students face barriers and representation has historically been low. Winter-Smith understands these challenges firsthand, having once been one of the few Pacific students in academia herself.

"Not enough Pacific students continue into research or postgraduate study. Fatu Malosi is a pathway that contributes to filling that space," says Winter-Smith.

Pūtahi Manawa Co-Director Pacific, Soteria Ieremia, told students they were selected with intention and purpose.

"Māori and Pacific Peoples continue to experience the highest rates of heart disease in this country… Your identity and your experiences are essential to creating the solutions that work for our families and our communities."

Why it matters

Pacific Peoples remain significantly underrepresented in academia. In 2019, only 1.7% of academics in New Zealand were Pacific, and Pacific Professors made up less than 5% of all Professors. Since these figures were published, subsequent funding changes have led to a 140% increase in Pacific academics, but gaps remain.

Editor of Oceans Between Us: Pacific Peoples and Racism in Aotearoa, Associate Professor Sereana Naepi, shared her expertise with the cohort at their fonotaga last week.

"Research is a form of service. It has the ability to change not just one person's life, but our entire community's," says Naepi.

She also recently co-authored a paper that examines in detail what holding a higher education qualification, such as a PhD, means for Pacific People. 

"I want more Pacific academics, more Pacific graduates, because when that happens, we get a higher socio-economic status, which addresses our health outcomes, improves our chances of home-ownership, increases our net-worth, and other positive outcomes". 

The study found that Pacific People with doctoral degrees earn even more than their non-Māori, non-Pacific peers, breaking inequity trends. 

Summer Research

Over the summer, Pacific students will investigate 23 cutting-edge and equity-focused topics across universities, community health providers, and the Ministry of Health. Topics include:

• AI to support Pacific Peoples with Heart Failure
• A throat swabbing program in South Auckland to reduce rheumatic heart disease
• How parents navigate the ongoing medical challenges their children face post-heart surgery and balance the influence of spirituality, including indigenous beliefs and Christian faith, and biomedical science.

Dr Sandra Hanchard, an expert in equity-focused research in Aotearoa, will work with a Fatu Malosi student to understand the potential benefits and risks of digital health and AI in the self-management of heart failure for Pacific patients and their families.

"It's important that we ground our research in Pacific and Indigenous worldviews and uphold the mana of our participants.

It makes absolute sense that we bring along a Pacific student in our research, who brings their own strengths and unique perspectives from their communities to help us codesign, interpret and disseminate our findings in a culturally responsive way." 

Global Indigenous Connection

Winter-Smith shared Fatu Malosi with the world at two international indigenous conferences this year, including the World Indigenous Peoples Conference on Education (WIPCE) hosted by Auckland University of Technology last week. 

"Showcasing Fatu Malosi ensures that our Pacific stories, knowledge systems, and solutions are visible and heard. Conferences such as WIPCE provide opportunities for Indigenous peoples internationally to learn from one another and for collective advocacy",  says Julie Winter-Smith.

Next Steps

Fatu Malosi students will come back together to present their work, alongside their peers in the Pūtahi Manawa Māori sister programme, Kura Raumati, in February 2026.

Media Contact

Tracey Kellett | Marketing and Communications Advisor
tracey.kellett@auckland.ac.nz