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Reimagining community resilience through a Te Ao Maori worldview
No full textEfforts to improve community resilience have seen universal efforts to grow capabilities in disaster management for the built environment. Although comprehensive frameworks exist, the perspective used to derive these frameworks fails to address marginalised communities' vulnerabilities, including Indigenous Māori people. Colonization and socio-economic deprivation on Māori mean community response frameworks fail to reflect their values and specific needs when preparing and responding to natural disasters. The nature of Māori culture and values presents an opportunity to reimagine the scope of community resilience for an inclusive framework. The Māori history has resilient practices weaved into the very fabric of their culture, which knowledge has survived through the oral transmission of waiata, whakataukī, whakairo, and pūrakau. The practice of community resilience amongst ancient Māori was not consigned to singular events but instead is a holistic perspective to the manner of living. Sourcing and qualifying this information from people aligned and immersed in nature is the knowledge required to improve the frameworks to respond to natural disasters while expanding the literature on community resilience. A comprehensive analysis of traditional Māori resilience is conducted by evaluating a variety of Mātauranga Māori that relate to the resilient nature of Māori. This information is compared to modern Māori perceptions of community resilience using a derived earthquake scenario for the local Iwi Ngati Toa, located in the city of Porirua within the Wellington region. This information will enable a comprehensive definition of community resilience and improve disaster response frameworks to be more inclusive, safe, sustainable, and resilient
In their voice: Adult learners' perspectives on literacy and numeracy, learning and wellbeing
No full textIn their voice: Adult learners’ perspectives on literacy and numeracy, learning and wellbeing (2023) reports on a case study undertaken in collaboration with Literacy Aotearoa. It has been undertaken as part of a larger project, The expression, experience and transcendence of low skill in Aotearoa New Zealand (2019–2024), the aim of which is to provide policy recommendations to improve life-course trajectories and socio-economic outcomes for adults with low literacy and/or numeracy (L+N) skills in Aotearoa New Zealand (Aotearoa). In their voice: Adult learners’ perspectives on literacy and numeracy, learning and wellbeing examines adults’ experiences as they navigate their lives and develop their L+N repertoire towards their aspirations for themselves and their families. Our focus is mainly on Māori (the Indigenous peoples of Aotearoa) adults.
The study has taken place at a time when adult L+N policy is at a crossroads in three senses. Policy over the last 23 years has only marginally improved L+N on the measures government uses with adults, yet it is known that wide-ranging, holistic benefits accrue from L+N education that values and embodies Māori interests and ways of being. Second, the most recent iteration of L+N policy expired in 2017 and is yet to be replaced, opening an opportunity for reconceptualisation and transformation of adult L+N policy. Third, Māori educators have articulated and demonstrated over decades the content and approaches for L+N learning that are of interest and value to Māori adults and whānau (immediate and extended family) but these remain by-and-large systemically unsupported. Nevertheless, government expectation is that all policy in Aotearoa account for wellbeing outcomes as set out in the ‘Living Standards Framework ‘and ‘He Ara Waiora’ (The Treasury, 2021, n. d.).
The standpoint for this study is that the Eurocentric perspective of literacy that predominates in adult L+N policy in Aotearoa – reading and writing alphabetic text, usually in English, and primarily for economic purposes – is inadequate in our bicultural nation. This narrow view of literacy and its purposes severely limits the extent to which Māori expectations for adult L+N education and for Māori prosperity are realised, contrary to the word and the spirit of Te Tiriti o Waitangi (The Treaty of Waitangi). Viewing literacy through sociocultural, sociomaterial, critical literacies and Indigenous lenses, the study makes a strong case for a much broader understanding of literacy and its purposes to decolonise adult L+N policy for the future. Supporting this aspiration, the study advances the notion of multiple meanings of literacy in which Māori perspectives are valued, upheld and promoted. Māori perspectives are understood as centring on whakapapa (genealogy) which provides the framework for connectedness of all things and is the basis for Māori identity and for comprehending and interpreting the world.
The research process was informed by Kaupapa Māori (a Māori agenda) to the extent possible. Māori researchers conducted all but one interview and contributed to the thematic analysis of participants’ narratives. Two Pākehā researchers worked closely with the Māori team members and were guided by them. The specific approach for this case study was co-designed with Literacy Aotearoa to ensure participants’ needs and aspirations in the research were met. Twenty adults (15 Māori, one Samoan and four Pākehā) graciously agreed to share their insights and were interviewed individually, in pairs or in a focus group according to their choice. They were aged from early 20s to late 60s and varied in their qualifications and learning challenges. The same number of men and women took part. The following questions directed the interviews and focus groups:
1. What has motivated people/whānau to make change in their lives?
2. What was the pathway that people/whānau have taken to make change in their lives?
3. What are people’s experiences of their efforts to make change in their lives?
4. What have been supports or facilitators, barriers or challenges in their efforts?
The narrative transcripts were analysed from a critical sociocultural and strengths-based standpoint. Findings were described and discussed in relation to the following broad thematic categories:
1. What matters to people in their lives – views of wellbeing, values and aspirations
2. Learning and life pathways – experiences of learning, schooling and post school
3. What enables people to live the lives they choose
4. What makes it harder for people to live the lives they choose
The study shows the centrality of te ao Māori (Māori worldview) in the lives of Māori adults and whānau. It is fundamental to Māori identity and wellbeing and remains throughout their lives even when they have experienced periods of disconnection. Enacted valuing of te ao Māori within the programmes enabled participants to feel safe to be who they are, excited about their L+N learning, and looking forward to meaningful outcomes for themselves and their whānau despite the oft-present anxiety about returning to a classroom. Relatedly, prioritising the wellbeing of the learners through caring and respectful learning environments is crucial to coming to and staying in L+N learning opportunities which can then provide an opportunity to transcend hurtful past learning experiences and enable participants to see themselves as capable learners and contributing adults in the world. These characteristics of the participants’ learning experiences in the study programmes reflected values and ways of being fundamental to being Māori which meant the dissonance often experienced in other learning settings was not present and participants could enjoy learning what and how was important to them.
The study notes that L+N in the Eurocentric meaning was addressed in the L+N programmes our participants attended (for example digital skills for work were taught) but the programmes simultaneously embodied broader meanings and purposes of literacy that are not typically foregrounded in L+N policy in Aotearoa. The study contends that the enactment in the programmes of Māori values and ways of being and doing allowed transformative learning to occur, not just for the Māori learners but for everyone. The study demonstrated that L+N learning valued by learners themselves is best defined as the acquisition of knowledge and skills that have meaning and are useful in their lives, can contribute to better lives for whānau, hapū and iwi and can be passed on to future generations. Defined from this viewpoint, valued L+N includes matauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) and Māori cultural practices, values and language; foundational skills and knowledge in English missed at school; and specific skills for changing times including work and everyday personal, family and community life that centres whānau (family and extended family) wellbeing.
The study calls for a change in the definition and rationalisation embedded in current (though expired) adult L+N policy from a narrow economy-focused approach to a broad and culturally inclusive definition and rationalisation. This requires detachment from a singular view of what literacy is to a view of literacy as a multiple construct; in other words, seeing literacy as having many meanings. Accompanying this embrace of literacies, Māori perspectives of L+N must move from the margins of adult L+N policy to the centre, led by Māori
How can genomic data inform biological invasions?
Get PDFRates of biological invasions are increasing, with global trade and climate change causing significant damage to biodiversity, human well-being, primary industries, and economies around the world. However, our ability to predict and prevent future invasions is limited by significant gaps in our mechanistic understanding of the invasion process. Advances in next generation sequencing technologies and bioinformatics make it possible to investigate potential genomic factors that drive invasion success with much higher resolution and accuracy than prior research based on a small number of genetic loci. My thesis argues for the value of population genomic data in invasion biology, first examining the uptake of genomics in invasion research and then providing a case study for using genomic data to understand invasion patterns of pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella).
The first analysis (Chapter 2) compares the extent to which population genetic data versus population genomic data, including reference genomes, have been used or are publicly available to study globally invasive species from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) “100 of the World’s Worst Invasive Alien Species” (WAS) list. In this chapter, I demonstrate that ‘invasion genomics’ is still in its infancy with respect to research uptake: while 82% of species on the WAS list have been studied using some form of population genetic data, just 32% have been studied using population genomic data. Further, 55% of the WAS list species lack a reference genome, however 18% of these were sequenced in the last three years, indicating a growing investment in genomic resources that looks promising for future invasion genomics research.
The second analysis (Chapter 3) showcases population genomic data being used as a tool to inform a biological invasion. Pink bollworm is one of the most destructive global pests of cotton, costing farmers millions of dollars each year in productivity losses and management efforts. A small population of pink bollworm is currently established in North West Australia, where it poses a significant threat to the expanding cotton industry there. In this chapter, I analysed genomic data in the form of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) – obtained through a reduced representation, genotyping-by- sequencing technique (DArTseq) – for global populations of pink bollworm to elucidate the population structure and connectivity patterns of the pest. My results show that pink bollworm populations in my dataset have low genetic diversity and strong differentiation between populations from different continents. Importantly, the high genetic differentiation between Australia and other continents reduces concerns about gene flow to North West Australia, particularly from populations in India and Pakistan that have evolved resistance to transgenic insecticidal cotton.
As species continue to move globally beyond their natural ranges, understanding how genome-driven processes facilitate invasion is critical. Genomic data can enhance our mechanistic understanding of the invasion process and inform proactive management of invasive species. Yet, despite progress in this space, there remain limitations to the breadth and depth of such studies that are highlighted throughout my thesis. These represent valuable research opportunities. With the cost of generating genomic data constantly decreasing and long-read sequencing bridging the gap for many taxon-specific challenges, genomic data is starting to address many previously intractable research questions and has the potential to improve overall biosecurity outcomes worldwide
Beyond structuralism: Exploring a semantic based approach for describing the Māori language in grammar books and textbooks for pedagogical purposes
Get PDFSince the 1950s, the advancements and developments in English language studies has had a profound impact on its description that has made it less syntactically driven and more communicatively oriented. This has the potential to influence language description moving it from a purely structurally focused orientation to a more semantically focused one that could influence pedagogic outcomes in more meaningful and useful ways. Nevertheless, in the case of the Māori language, its description has largely focused on structure linguistics that was prevalent in the 19th and early 20th centuries. There has been very little focus on a semantic description and this, in turn, is reflected in grammar books and textbooks on te reo. This thesis set out to explore a semantic approach to describe te reo and to rethink how this type of description may be realized and included in the design of grammar books and textbooks for the teaching and learning of te reo in the broader field of second language pedagogy and acquisition. The thesis also includes a practical component in which a small sample of Māori language teachers were interviewed to determine how linguistic and/ or semantic approaches to describe te reo may have or have impacted on their own beliefs, attitudes, and teaching practices (See, Chapter 7). Thus, it is argued here that research-based studies, advancements, and developments in language descriptions over the past five decades (See, for example, Council of Europe, 1949; Fillmore, 1967; Longacre, 1968; & Crombie, 1985b) should play central roles in the design of a semantic based description of the Māori language from which a linguistic based description can significantly benefit
Reflections on remixing open access content into open educational resources: A new paradigm for sustainable data-driven language learning systems design in higher education
Get PDFThis chapter presents a new paradigm for sustainable data – driven language learning systems design in higher education that draws on qualitative reflections spanning a decade (2012–2022) with stakeholders from an ongoing global research study with the FLAX (Flexible Language Acquisition) and F-Lingo projects at the University of Waikato in Aotearoa New Zealand (Fitzgerald (2019) A new paradigm for open data-driven language learning systems design in higher education; König et al. (2022)SmartCALL). Design considerations are presented for remixing domain specific open access content into Open Educational Resources (OER) for academic English language provision across formal and non-formal higher education contexts. Primary stake holders in the research collaboration include the following three groups: (1) Knowledge organisations that provide open access to academic content—libraries and archives, including the British Library and the Oxford Text Archive, universities in collaboration with MOOC providers and the CORE (COnnecting REpositories) open access aggregation service at the UK Open University; (2) Researchers who mine and remix academic content into corpora and open data-driven language learning systems—converging from the fields of open education, computer science and applied corpus linguistics; (3) Knowledge users who re-use and remix academic content into OER—English for Academic Purposes (EAP) practitioners from university language centres. Automated content analysis was carried out on a corpus of interview and focus discussion data with the three stakeholder groups in this research. We discuss themes arising from the research data that reflect the different stakeholders’ experiences of remixing open access research content that has been produced within the academy for re-use as open educational content for teaching and learning features of academic language within open data-driven language learning systems. These open learning systems have been specifically designed to scale with OER expansion and traction in mind for their sustainable uptake both within and beyond the brick and mortar of the traditional university. The new paradigm presented in this chapter challenges, as the OER movement must, established business models and deeply embedded cultural or institutional norms that present obstacles to OERexpansion and traction and the sustainability of the movement. One persistent challenge concerns the lack of open education policy across the higher education sector for full open access (for use, modification, adaptation) via Creative Commons licensing to content produced within the academy. Thus, while this research has theoretical and practical implications in applied linguistics, computer science, language teaching and learning and open education, more generally, it also has significant cultural, business model and policy implications for higher education
Drawing on linguistic concepts to teach te reo Māori; Drawing on te reo Māori to teach linguistic concepts
No full textIn this paper, we explore the intersections in our teaching practice between the discipline of linguistics and te reo Māori. From the perspective of language teaching, in pedagogic materials for te reo Māori, we have observed that linguistic concepts are not typically highlighted (cf. Moorfield 2001, Jacobs 2012). From the perspective of teaching linguistics, te reo Māori is seldom employed to illustrate or assess linguistic concepts, although it commonly features in accounts of language revitalization. Content that does occur is limited (cf. Burridge & Stebbins, 2016).
As a tertiary lecturer of the Māori language, I (Kanauhea) consider how, in my teaching practice, I draw on my technical knowledge of linguistics to enhance my explanations of language structures and their functions, where these are unfamiliar to language learners. As a tertiary linguistics lecturer, I (Julie) consider ways in which I draw on my beginner knowledge of te reo Māori to enhance my teaching of linguistic concepts, reflecting on materials I have developed to teach and assess students.
We argue that students of te reo can benefit from linguistic understandings on their language learning journeys. Equally, as Aotearoa New Zealand's indigenous language, te reo Māori should have a strong presence in linguistic teaching materials, and our linguistics students should graduate with an indepth knowledge of te reo Māori structures
Understanding weight management experiences from patient perspectives: Qualitative exploration in general practice
Get PDFBACKGROUND: Obesity is a complex health issue affecting the quality of life of individuals and contributing to an unsustainable strain on healthcare professionals and national health systems. National policy guidelines indicate that general practice is best suited to deliver obesity healthcare, however, obesity rates continue to rise worldwide indicating interventions are ineffective in this space. The aim of this study was to explore the weight management experiences from patient perspectives.
METHODS: This qualitative study used semi-structured interviews with 16 rural Waikato general practice patients. Interviews were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.
RESULTS: Four themes were identified: Inconsistent Information, Significance of Holistic Factors, Obesity Centre Need, and Education. Participants expressed frustration at contradictory health messages, commercial company and 'expert' definition distrust, and that 'holistic' aspects to health significant to the weight management journey were unable to be addressed in general practice.
CONCLUSION: Whilst primary care is positioned as suitable for delivering obesity healthcare, this study found that participants do not perceive general practice to be equipped to deliver this care. Instead, participants argued for a specialist obesity centre capable of meeting all their obesity healthcare needs. Further, wider issues including on-line commodification of health and neo-liberal capitalism - factors that exploit people with a stigmatised health issue - can cause further harm to the participant. A radical modernisation of education, information, and resources from regulated, qualified and 'trusted' healthcare professionals who can provide safe, non-stigmatising supportive services is recommended to meet the unique and changing food climate, reduce obesity rates and improve health outcomes
Landscape-level variation in stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen across aquatic ecosystems in New Zealand
Get PDFThe stable isotope ratios of carbon (δ¹³C) and nitrogen (δ¹⁵N) are frequently used in food web studies as natural biological indicators for tracking ecological processes, interactions, and energy flows from the basal plant and detrital energy sources to the primary and secondary consumers. The spatial heterogeneity in the ecological, biogeochemical, hydrological, and geomorphological processes of aquatic ecosystems can influence the δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N isotopic baseline of food webs, which directly affect the isotopic composition of primary and secondary consumers. A better understanding of the significant drivers of δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N of aquatic organisms at the landscape scale would facilitate and improve the accuracy of the use of these isotopic ratios as natural tracers.
The main objective of this study was to identify the leading mechanisms influencing the spatial variability of δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N across New Zealand aquatic ecosystems at the landscape scale. The aims of this study were; (1) to review and collate the findings from published stable isotopic studies that investigated the effect of environmental factors on δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N of aquatic organisms, (2) to identify the sources and scales of δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N variability for top-predatory fish across New Zealand lake environments and, (3) to identify the sources and scales of δ¹⁵N variability for top-predatory fish and invertebrates (predatory and non-predatory) across New Zealand stream and river environments. Lake and stream δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N data of aquatic organisms were collated from a range of published and unpublished scientific literature across New Zealand. Data from a total of 88 lakes sourced from 11 publications and 475 stream sites from 15 publications were assessed to investigate the direct and indirect effects of environmental factors on the spatial variability of stable isotopic ratios across lakes and streams. To do so, a combination of correlation analyses, principal component analysis (PCA), and piecewise structural equation modelling (pSEM) were carried out.
The variability of top-predatory fish δ¹³C values across New Zealand lakes was best explained by the morphology of the lake. Fish sampled from lakes with large surface areas and volumes had higher δ¹³C signatures from lakes of smaller morphological size. I hypothesised that larger lakes allow for more influence of δ¹³C-enriched atmospheric CO₂ due to greater equilibration through gas exchange processes and turbulence regimes, contributing to the observed increase in enrichment of fish δ¹³C with lake surface area. The top-predatory fish δ¹⁵N most strongly reflected the watershed land use and showed no apparent relationship with lake size. The variability of non-predatory and predatory invertebrates, and top-predatory fish δ¹⁵N across New Zealand streams was best explained by the local land use in the upstream catchment and the nutrient concentrations, i.e., the total nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations.
Our findings suggest that δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N respond to different environmental drivers. Carbon isotopic ratios tend to reflect the natural ecosystem properties, whereas nitrogen isotopic ratios respond more readily to the watershed land use. The findings in this study were consistent with previous stable isotopic research conducted in North American and European aquatic ecosystems, which have examined the effects of environmental factors on C and N isotopic ratios among aquatic organisms. An enhanced understanding of the natural ecosystem processes and anthropogenic influences, contributing to the spatial distribution of δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N of aquatic organisms, can improve the study design and interpretation of stable isotopes as a tracer in food web and ecosystem ecology, by taking into account the natural and human-induced spatial and trophic subsidies
Impact of migration costs, microcredit, and remittances on cross-border labour migration decisions: Evidence from a Cambodian household survey
Get PDFOver the past two decades, the migration of Cambodian workers has contributed to poverty reduction and economic development. However, it has also constituted a substantial challenge, in view of the significant increase in the exodus of Cambodian migrant workers, particularly the migration to Thailand. This challenge has highlighted the need for a better understanding of the process, as well as of the interconnectedness and complementarity of migration and policies. Given the prominence of the topic, this thesis provides an examination of the Cambodian labour migration process.
There are four key research papers in this thesis. Using survey data from 422 households in three northern provinces of Cambodia, the thesis begins with an attempt to evaluate and quantify the monetary costs of migration and evaluate the impact of worker-paid migration costs on decision whether to migrate through legal and illegal channels. In the first core paper, migration cost is a critical factor in international labour mobility, but little is known about the pay of migrant workers in foreign jobs. Previous studies do not capture the effects of direct worker-paid migration costs on migration decisions. An alternative specific conditional logit model is used in this chapter to account for alternative migration costs, and the control function method is used to control for endogenous moving costs. Our results show that lowering the total cost of labour migration reduces irregular migration by 15.8 percentage points. Factors such as Thailand’s immigration policy, as measured by the deportation rate, migrant length of stay, and wages, also influence whether migration is regular or irregular. These findings should prompt policymakers to consider alternative approaches to reducing migration costs and maximising the net gain on migration.
The second paper, constituting Chapter 3 in this thesis, investigates the microcredit-migration linkage through the lens of South–South Migration (SSM). Evidence from the literature evaluating the linkage between microcredit and migration is ambiguous. This chapter analyses the effect of microcredit on labour migration decisions in the context of South-South Migration (SSM) through the Cambodia to Thailand migration corridor. The study uses the endogenous switching probit model (ESP) to control for endogenous selection bias in borrowing and for the structural differences between decisions to borrow or not to borrow that influence the resolve to migrate. The findings suggest that households with access to credit are more likely to have migrant family members than their non-borrowing counterparts. It is evident that households that have borrowed from financial institutions are 5.6 percentage points more likely to migrate, whereas households that borrow informally show a 3.2 percentage points likelihood of migrating. The findings of this study are important for policymakers to reassess policies on credit availability and redesign microfinance programmes to maximise gains from labour migration.
An investigation of the impact of remittances on household debt performance and levels of indebtedness is carried out in the third empirical paper, presented in Chapter 4 of the thesis. The findings suggest that households view remittances as transitory income, which declines as a migrant’s length of stay away from home increases. Because remittance transfers are transitory, the results suggest that they have a positive impact on household debt performance, particularly in low-debt households. Thus, remittances can lower the debt of recipient households. Given the importance of remittances in households' debt reduction, policies promoting remittance transferring options and fee deduction should be endorsed in order to maximise remittances received by recipient households.
The final paper is elaborated in Chapter 5 of the thesis. This chapter examines two intertwined policy issues in the Cambodia-Thailand migration corridor during the COVID-19 period, focusing on labour recruitment practices and debt-related migration. This paper first identifies existing labour migration issues and policy gaps prior to the pandemic, then argues that these pre-existing challenges caused a delayed response, negatively affecting labour migration. Current labour migration during COVID-19 is heavily influenced by the motivations of private recruitment agencies (PRAs) engaged in this lucrative business, by high migration costs, and debt-induced and debt-financed migration. In the aftermath of the pandemic, the study recommends that key stakeholders discuss how to regulate labour mobility. With the evidence of Cambodia-Thailand labour mobility, policymakers can enhance policy designs and interventions to mitigate the effect of COVID-19 and manage future migration crises
'Fish of New Zealand'
Get PDF‘Get off the road you lycra-clad cunt!’
A bond is formed with a foul-mouthed kahawai hitchhiking along Surf Highway 45. A penis-riddled espionage colours a Catholic School’s swimming sports. A group of children trek down the coast on the hunt for a washed-up whale carcass. A boat-stand attendant fetishizes a neon-lit performance artist. A Toyota Corolla cruises through Hamilton fog on its way to pick up the morning-after pill. Two feuding sisters take turns on a young boy’s lizard.
Fish of New Zealand is a collection of short stories, constructed in shifting points of view and various formats — flash, stream-of-consciousness, instructional landscaping tips, medication fine print, email chains, and euthanasia consent forms. The collection plays out like a series of kiwiana vignettes, focusing and honing in on the unique experience of growing up in Aotearoa. The landscapes are familiar, the characters recognizable, and the tone of voice is matter-of-fact kiwi.
Although presented as a work of fiction, most of the stories here actually took place in some shape or form — as hard as that may be to believe. They have been plucked from my childhood, teenage experiences, and glimpses into the adult world, and molded into a literary mountain range. Fish of New Zealand traverses the strange, the wry, and the grotesque, in a story collection that reads like a black sand fever dream.
The stories in this collection are at once instantly recognizable, and yet entirely foreign. Picture the driver, cruising around the coast, who spots a kahawai without luggage and his flipper in the air. Or the disillusioned accountant in a board meeting, who floats up in a cloud of nicotine and hovers over the conference room table. The collection praises the kiwi utopia of friendly geckos and Weet-Bix cards, fresh-aired bush walks and ocean-side pōhutukawas — but doesn’t shy away from the violence hidden within its roots.
At its core, Fish of New Zealand is a personal account of growing up in Aotearoa, although I hope the reader sees themselves somewhere within this collection. It shows what it means to be a New Zealander; the lives we lead and the relationships we form. How we are shaped by the place we grow up in.