Research Project Stories – Katherine Yates
October 4, 2023
Research Project Stories – Amelia Lin
October 9, 2023
Cheryl Kurei and Olga waiting for the concrete to be poured to fix the poupou in place.
Mātauranga for Resilience
Mātauranga Māori has much to offer in the realm of disaster risk reduction. Indigenous knowledge in Aotearoa New Zealand stems from hundreds of years of living with the land. It is localised, community-led, and long term in its scope. These are strengths that need adding to the repertoire for dealing with natural hazards in this country, where current approaches are often nationwide, government-led, and short-term solutions.
Because of colonisation and the movement of Māori away from their whenua, mātauranga has become an endangered resource for many hapū. Traditionally, it was passed between generations orally, through whakataukī, pūrākau, and waiata, so conscious effort is now required to retain it.
Te Hiranga Rū QuakeCoRE researchers are partnering with Ngāti Ira, a hapū from the Bay of Plenty, for a project entitled, “Whakapapa, Whānau, and Whanaungatanga Wānanga: Indigenising community engagement through kōrero.” The project aims to explore and preserve Ngāti Ira’s mātauranga of earthquake resilience in a form deemed appropriate by the hapū.
Olga Filippova of the University of Auckland is partnering with Anna-Marei Kurei of Ngāti Ira to co-design and co-lead the project. They have a culturally diverse and multidisciplinary team covering various aspects of the mahi. Anna-Marei is also undertaking a master’s degree as part of the research.
Currently, the investigators are spending time on whakawhanaungatanga, building relationships, so that there is a strong foundation for the joint research. They have been involved in wānanga on a parallel project – the work to revitalise Ngāti Ira’s historic wharenui, Tānewhirinaki. Investigating Māori techniques of earthquake-strengthening used in Tānewhirinaki, and replicating that with modern materials is part of QuakeCoRE’s Disciplinary Theme 5 (DT5) Mātauranga Māori and Earthquake Resilience.
Through this collaborative work it is hoped that QuakeCoRE will gain an increased appreciation for indigenous perspectives on earthquake resilience. Ultimately, the researchers aim to see mātauranga Māori used extensively to inform risk mitigation policies and practices.
Roger Rakuraku leads the morning karakia to bless the installation of the full-scale section of the Tānewhirinaki wharenui.
Our annual Request for Proposals (RfP) supports eighteen-month, Associate Investigator led research projects that complement the Coordinated Research Projects within the Disciplinary Themes (DT) and Inter-disciplinary Projects (IP) of QuakeCoRE's Research Programme.
The RfP includes Proposal Development Grants which enable early career researchers to develop strong contestable external research proposals.
At the time of publishing, the annual call for RfP Projects, Masters and PhD Scholarships funding is open now, until midday, Wednesday 18 October 2023.
For more information visit the Opportunities page of our website, or contact [email protected]
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