Amid Aotearoa New Zealand’s housing crisis, rangatahi Māori face unique challenges in accessing not just houses but kāinga—places that nurture whānau and cultural identity. Using Kaupapa Māori research, He Tātai Whetu ki te Rangi, he Rangatahi ki te Kāinga (2020–2024) explored rangatahi realities and aspirations for kāinga in Tāmaki Mākaurau. Findings reveal that rangatahi struggle to secure appropriate housing, while navigating discrimination, intergenerational impacts of land alienation and invisibility in housing policy. These systemic barriers cascade into effects on mental health, cultural identity and whānau formation.

This paper explores the process of co-designing a mātauranga-Māori-informed mindfulness intervention with rangatahi in a wharekura and examines the effects on wellbeing. Mahitahi co-design methodology underpinned the design, implementation and evaluation of the intervention, and quantitative psychological tests measured improvements in wellbeing and dispositional mindfulness. Findings showed positive indications for a decrease in levels of psychological distress, improvements in Māori quality of life domains and higher levels of dispositional mindfulness.