Māori economies have unique foundations, which differ fundamentally from Eurocentric economies, making it difficult to identify appropriate epistemological and methodological approaches to understanding them. Critical Māori economies scholars emphasise the importance of whakapapa-based approaches to understanding Māori economies. In this article, whakapapa is conceptualised as a way of both knowing (epistemology) and coming to know (methodology) Māori economies. It introduces a whakapapa-based episto-methodological framework based on four key tenets—dimensionality, relationality, obligations, and multi-temporality—to understand Māori economies from a te ao Māori perspective.

Whakataukī are metaphors that provide us with ethical guidelines, and tikanga and kawa are the wisdom, knowledge and history handed down from the past to future generations to help people navigate their lives and support aspirations for today and the future. Using a twin-hulled waka ama as a metaphor for the relationship between participants and researchers in Indigenous research, this article explores Māori and Indigenous ethics as having equal status to Western research ethics. In relation to research, ethics can be a complicated domain when working alongside Māori and Indigenous peoples.

The story of Te Whakatōhea is indistinguishable from its relationship with kai. Starting with the iwi’s migration narratives from Hawaiki to Aotearoa New Zealand, through an economic flourishing that followed initial contact with European settlers, then as a matter of survival following raupatu, kai has been an integral component of Te Whakatōhea culture and tikanga. Today this relationship with kai is manifest in the industry-leading aquaculture enterprises of the iwi; however, there are also serious challenges present in terms of its people’s nutritional wellbeing, with access to fresh kai in the Ōpōtiki rohe limited for a high portion of the population.

Research on the health outcomes of Pasifika people in New Zealand has begun to focus on the church’s role as well as that of the Pasifika worldview. This study explores the relationship between the church, Pasifika families and the health system through the concept of vā. Five Pasifika participants, four parishioners and their church minister were interviewed online to facilitate dialogue and gather their voices. Four themes emerged from the interviews and the data analysis: (1) the role of family and close relationships, (2) interactions with healthcare, (3 the role of the church and (4) overarching systemic discussions.

This article examines the differing financial challenges faced by Sāmoan women across four countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on the impact of national response strategies. Utilising survey data from 325 participants, the study reveals that 48% of respondents experienced negative financial effects, with younger women disproportionately affected. Textual analysis highlighted increased household costs, employment disruptions, business losses, and diminished remittances, compounded by limited government support in several contexts.

Māori pharmacists are under-represented within the pharmacist community at 2.1%. This figure is substantially lower than the approximately 18% representation of Māori within the total population of Aotearoa New Zealand. The purpose of this research was to determine why Māori stay in the pharmacy profession, consider leaving or leave the profession, and what roles they move into if they leave. Those who had ever been a Māori pharmacist were invited to complete an anonymous online questionnaire. The responses of the 28 participants, representing approximately 26% (n = 23) of registered Māori pharmacists (n = 89), plus five who had left the profession, are presented here.

This research investigated how mātauranga Māori through a pūrākau could be used to increase a tauiwi teacher’s confidence and practice within a tuakana–teina learning relationship. Mātauranga Māori relates to the interwoven connections between humans and the world that inform tikanga. Relationship with the local hapū and their tikanga of partnership and whakamana provided a framework of whanaungatanga, through which ako occurred between the hapū and the tuakana–teina.

Crucial to promoting Indigenous youth autonomy is engaging with young people in research processes in a way that promotes their voice and cultural agency. Like other young people, taitamariki Māori perceptions of their own lives and experiences provide essential input towards creating better conditions for and with them, now and in the future. In planning Harmonised, our school-based taitamariki and Māori-centred project promoting healthy intimate partner relationships that ran from 2016 to 2020, we found little literature to guide our engagement processes.

Cats occupy a complicated space in Aotearoa New Zealand. Domestic cats are valued companion animals. In contrast, feral cats are recognised as one of the most damaging invasive species nationally and internationally. Given this duality, it is important to understand how all New Zealanders perceive and value both feral and companion cats. This literature review explores contemporary Māori attitudes and values towards cats, as documented in academic and grey literature, as well as iwi and hapū management plans.

The significant burden of type 2 diabetes (T2D) for Maaori populations highlights the crucial need for culturally responsive health education. This study used Kaupapa Maaori participatory action research methodology in collaboration with a semi-rural Waikato community to develop tailored T2D educational resources. The process included initial consultation, thematic analysis, resource development, community feedback, and final refinement. Eleven participants (aged 35–44) engaged in focus groups to ascertain their preferences for educational materials. Maaori researchers undertook thematic analysis, integrating Kaupapa Maaori concepts and a strength-based perspective.

Sir Hirini Moko Mead’s Five Tests framework helps identify a te ao Māori response to contemporary challenges. One such issue that Mead confronted, more than two decades ago, was genetic modification. We applied Mead’s precedent test to a genetic technology under development in Aotearoa New Zealand called single-sex offspring selection (SSOS). Single-sex offspring selection aims to control rat populations that harm native species either by producing primarily male litters or, by rendering females infertile, through a gene drive.

This study explored whether functional, accessible, affordable, buildable (FAAB) small homes (45–70 m²) can meet the needs and aspirations of whānau Māori. Seventeen participants shared their experiences and design preferences through interviews and interactive activities. Analysis was informed by Te Whare Tapa Whā (Durie, 1985), a Māori model of wellbeing that recognises the interconnectedness of spiritual, emotional, physical, and whānau dimensions. Participants emphasised the importance of whānau-centred design, connection to whenua, cultural expression, and accessibility across life stages.

In 2010, the passing of the Electoral (Disqualification of Sentenced Prisoners) Amendment Act removed voting rights for all prisoners, regardless of sentence length. A decade later, prisoners serving sentences of less than three years were re-enfranchised. Research and public discourse have highlighted the disproportionate effects of prisoner disenfranchisement for Māori, given persistent overrepresentation of Māori in prison. However, less attention has focused on the specific effects of disenfranchisement for wāhine Māori in prison.

This narrative review examines the intersection of gambling harms and stigma among Māori, Pacific peoples, Asian communities and youth in Aotearoa New Zealand. The literature shows that stigma is shaped less by individual behaviour than by structural factors such as colonisation, socio-economic inequities, migration pressures and the concentration of pokies in low-income communities. We identify how stigma is experienced within each population and how it influences help-seeking, highlighting the central role of identity, cultural obligations and collective wellbeing.

The New Zealand Government is planning to establish youth justice military-style academies through legislation. Public critique argues they are essentially boot camps, and research shows that these approaches can negatively impact young people who have experienced trauma. This article shares insights from a project funded by Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga investigating trauma in rangatahi Māori engaged in serious youth offending. This study explored the perspectives of Kaupapa Māori community-based social workers, youth workers and organisational leaders (n = 11) working with rangatahi Māori who appeared in the youth court for offending.

Mātauranga Māori has been severely impacted by settler-colonial agendas; however, continued efforts by Māori have supported mātauranga revival. This article examines interviews with 10 māmā and their journeys to reclaim ancestral knowledges for their tamariki. Māmā described reclaiming ancestral practices, including birthing traditions, wairuatanga, tikanga Māori, te reo Māori, rongoā Māori, weaving and food cultivation. Drawing on a whakapapa approach and the Hautū Waka framework, thematic analysis revealed a journey into the unknown, guided by tohu and shaped by challenges and resilience.

This commentary examines the widespread issue of mis- and missed diagnosis of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), with a particular focus on the disproportionate impact on Māori individuals and their whānau. Grounded in a Kaupapa Māori approach, this research integrates mātauranga Māori and lived experience to critically analyse the systemic barriers that prevent accurate identification and timely support for neurodivergent individuals.

This commentary proposes that the decision to hold findings from te ao Māori and biomedicine in productive tension—rather than resolving them into a single integrated account—is not a methodological preference but a constitutional obligation grounded in the te reo text of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Drawing on the ontological turn in research methodology and on recent Waitangi Tribunal findings, the commentary argues that the two texts of the Treaty/Tiriti constitute two different worlds of reality: the English-language version enacting a hierarchical transfer of sovereignty; the te reo text enacting complementary, coequal spheres of kāwanatanga and tino rangatiratanga.

This commentary explores how systemic inequities and homelessness, particularly among Māori in New Zealand, can be addressed through a public health approach that integrates Indigenous models of health. It emphasises the importance of considering broader social determinants of health, such as housing, income, education, and access to healthcare, in the design and delivery of public health interventions. Utilising the Te Whare Tapa Whā framework, a Māori model of health, this commentary illustrates how culturally responsive and holistic approaches can enhance the effectiveness of public health programmes.

This commentary responds to the removal of the Kāinga Ora–Homes and Communities Sustaining Tenancies Framework (STF) by the National-led Coalition Government of Aotearoa New Zealand. We suggest that the ideologies informing the removal of the STF are grounded in a long history of colonial housing policies that have led successive governments to politicise Māori housing through punitive policies. Despite recent reports written about Māori housing by both the United Nations and the Waitangi Tribunal advocating for Māori housing as a fundamental human right, the removal of the STF provides an example of how guaranteed housing is treated as a privilege, as opposed to a right.

A book review by Te Kupua O’Connor of Mātauranga Māori, written by Hirini Moko Mead (2025).

In this general issue, MAI Journal Volume 15, Issue 1 presents a wide collection of Indigenous research and scholarship that foregrounds Māori and Pacific perspectives on resilience, wellbeing, and self-determination. This issue features 15 articles, four commentaries, and a book review exploring kaupapa such as Māori economies and kai sovereignty, Indigenous research ethics, health and housing inequities, education, and justice. Contributions span topics from whakapapa-based economic frameworks and māra-centred urban planning, to rangatahi voices, Māori workforce experiences, and Pacific health and financial wellbeing.