Supporting equitable healthcare outcomes in Aotearoa New Zealand requires urgent attention. Several models of Māori health and wellbeing introduce elements and strategies that may be central to adjustment to chronic illness. This article conducts a literature review of Māori health and wellbeing models and best practice guidelines to identify what Māori see as central to illness adjustment and determine practical strategies to inform better practice in the context of chronic illness. Two overarching themes were identified as central to the adjustment process: dimensions of health and wellbeing, and whanaungatanga.

This article describes how the creation of a “Hā habit”—a breathwork practice that is inspired by the whakapapa of the Hā—can alleviate the debilitating effects of trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and generalised anxiety. The article first conducts a literature review that examines the definitions and contributing factors of these disorders and their psychological and physical symptoms. An analysis of Aotearoa New Zealand mental health statistics is then carried out, which is followed by a description of breathwork and its benefits.

The Māui Mua project investigated the experiences of six tauira Māori graduates who were the first in their whānau to enter tertiary education. Successful graduates of the Bachelor of Māori Language and Indigenous Studies at Te Puna Wānaka at Ara Institute of Canterbury Ltd (Ara) were interviewed about their learning experience, from their first day through to graduating, and commented on their motivation to study, their times of struggle and pressure, and their supports and strategies to overcome barriers to successfully complete their qualification. The learning experiences of tauira Māori were analysed using a framework informed by the Māui narrative.

This article draws on research undertaken for the study Kaitiakitanga: Māori Experiences, Expressions, and Understandings (Beverland, 2022). Four main themes were identified: Whānau, Taiao, Taonga Tuku Iho and Tino Rangatiratanga. The research was undertaken through a Kaupapa Māori methodology that carried an obligation to apply Māori ways of knowing and being across all areas of the study. This article draws upon one component from the larger study that concerned taiao and mauri ora. Kaikōrero discussed how being on land, by their respective waterways or being able to access their own cultural resource brought them mauri ora such as balance, cultural connection and wellness.

Māori experience disproportionately worse outcomes from infectious diseases compared to non-Māori, and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) contributes to these inequities. The aim of the study reported in this article was to gain insight into Māori experts’ perspectives on AMR using a One Health approach, which incorporates understandings of human, animal and environmental health. Qualitative methods were applied and were guided by principles of Kaupapa Māori research.

This article explores the use of an intersecting methodology termed Te Kupenga as a philosophical approach to gathering, interpreting, and storing mātauranga wahine. The research aimed to understand the ways of being and doing of physically active wāhine Māori and relate them to characteristics of atua wāhine. A kupenga is a type of open weave net used for fishing or gathering food. In this research, it represents the weaving together of three approaches: Whakapapa, Mana Wahine theory, and physical activity.

In 2017, the Imagining Decolonised Cities (IDC) competition sought submissions for the public’s visions of a decolonised Porirua. The IDC competition was an opportunity for Ngāti Toa Rangatira to solicit utopic ideas for their city post-settlement. This article presents an analysis of the 40 entries, exploring how participants understand decolonisation enacted in an urban setting. We identified two overarching themes from the submissions that can be linked to wider theories of decolonisation, particularly Corntassel’s (2008) theory of sustainable self-determination.

This qualitative study explored high-achieving Māori students’ perceptions of their best and worst secondary school teachers. Participants (N = 96) were Year 12 or 13 students at English-medium secondary schools in Aotearoa who had attained certificate endorsement at Level 1 or 2 in the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA). Findings showed that Māori students’ best teachers had high expectations for their achievement. They spent class time teaching students and discussing their learning, whereas students’ worst teachers had low expectations and restricted their access to high grades in NCEA.

Post-settlement governance entities (PSGEs) are an outcome of the Treaty of Waitangi settlement process. Their role is to hold, manage and be responsible for the collective assets received on behalf of claimant groups, most often represented by iwi. However, many PSGEs serve wider purposes, including social, cultural, environmental and other iwi-defined purposes. This article seeks to answer the following research question: What factors influence the design and operation of PSGEs? Through analysing literature and data collected from the experiences of three PSGEs, we find that challenges PSGEs tend to encounter are not a result of their design.

I am part of the research group Te Koronga, a Māori Postgraduate Research Excellence rōpū at the University of Otago. Te Koronga conducts research with a vision of mauri ora and is underpinned by a Kaupapa Māori philosophy. For the past six years, under the supervision of Associate Professor Anne-Marie Jackson and Professor Chris Hepburn, I have worked alongside Kāti Huirapa ki Puketeraki of Kāi Tahu and Te Aitanga a Mate of Ngāti Porou primarily in the context of customary fisheries management. For me, as a non-Māori student and researcher, Te Koronga has been a safe space to engage in te ao Māori and Kaupapa Māori research.