Publications

Hongi, Harirū and Hau: Kaumātua in the time of COVID-19

Kaumātua have key leadership responsibilities within their communities and are crucial in curbing the spread of COVID-19. Yet kaumātua are also among the most vulnerable to the disease, given compromised health, living situations and reliance on whānau and others for care. Our study explored kaumātua concerns and reactions to COVID-19. We aimed to understand how kaumātua understand the tapu of the body and tikanga relevant to the spread of COVID-19. We are interested in how kaumātua navigate the challenges presented by COVID-19 in light of evolving advice and regulations regarding personal distancing, self-isolation and gatherings. We used digital technologies and cellphones to communicate with Ngātiwai and Waikato kaumātua on a regular basis over a six week period. Drawing on rich kōrero from our first round of interviews we will share findings from the study to assist Māori communities, policy makers and health providers.

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Tupuna Awa: People and Politics of the Waikato River - Marama Muru-Lanning

‘We have always owned the water . . . we have never ceded our mana over the river to anyone’, King Tuheitia Paki asserted in 2012. Prime Minister John Key disagreed: ‘King Tuheitia’s claim that Māori have always owned New Zealand’s water is just plain wrong’.

So who does own the water in New Zealand – if anyone – and why does it matter? Offering some human context around that fraught question, Tupuna Awa looks at the people and politics of the Waikato River.

For iwi and hapū of the lands that border its 425-kilometre length, the Waikato River is an ancestor, a taonga and a source of mauri, lying at the heart of identity and chiefly power. It is also subject to governing oversight by the Crown and intersected by hydro-stations managed by state-owned power companies: a situation rife with complexity and subject to shifting and subtle power dynamics.

Marama Muru-Lanning explains how Māori of the region, the Crown and Mighty River Power have talked about the ownership, guardianship and stakeholders of the river. By examining the debates over water in one New Zealand river, over a single recent period, Muru-Lanning provides a powerful lens through which to view modern iwi politics, debates over water ownership, and contests for power between Māori and the state.

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Listening to the voices of our harbours: Kāwhia, Manukau and Whangārei

Our research focuses on ‘kaitiakitanga’ and on ‘harbours’, stemming from the intersection of these in the Manukau Harbour claim, led by the late Dame Nganeko Minhinnick, which was central to kaitiakitanga becoming a key concept in law and policy. We will investigate kaitiakitanga as an ethic and flaxroots politic, emphasising the work of community activists at multiple levels, from the shores and waters of their harbours to the steps of Parliament.

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Te Ora a Ururoa: Learning from the Mahi of Kaitiaki

Mai Hawaikinui ki Whangaparāoa, huri ki Tāmaki, ki Whangārei, ka hoki anō ki Tāmaki. Whiti atu ki te Mānukanuka o Hoturoa. Ka haere ki Mōkau, ka taka te punga. Ka hoki ake ki Kāwhia kai, Kāwhia tangata, Kāwhia moana.

Ka tū ko Hani rāua ko Puna.

This tauparapara created by the late Hukiterangi Muru for our research traces the harbour routes travelled by the Tainui waka, which is said to have been guided into the Kāwhia Harbour by Paneiraira, a taniwha and kaitiaki. The English translation is ‘From Hawaiki to Whangaparāoa, to Tāmaki, to Whangārei and returning to Tamaki. Crossing over to the Manukau Harbour. Continuing on to Mokau. Turning to Kāwhia, Kāwhia the waters, Kāwhia the sustenance, Kāwhia the people. The resting place of Hani and Puna, the taurapa and tauihu of the Tainui waka.’

The James Henare Research Centre was awarded funding by the Royal Society of New Zealand Te Apārangi in 2020 for a project focused on kaitiakitanga over harbour environments, based at four case sites: Kāwhia, Aotea, Manukau and Whāngārei. 1 The research investigates kaitiakitanga as both an ethic and flaxroots politic, emphasising the work of community activists at multiple levels, from the shores and waters of their harbours to the steps of Parliament.

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Hauora Kaumātua: a review essay on kaumātua wellbeing

Research on hauora kaumātua, health and wellbeing constitutes a small, but growing body of literature. This review essay examines the current state of knowledge and the progress made over recent years in achieving kaumātua health and wellbeing. Health and wellbeing are not defined by the absence of disease, but by the interplay between culture, environment and whānau. While research to date has contributed enormously to the development of frameworks and approaches that have advanced Māori aspirations, we do not yet have a full understanding of kaumātua health and wellbeing from the perspective of kaumātua themselves. This review considers the methodological and theoretical approaches that have been developed to understand the social and environmental contexts of older Māori and argues for approaches that centre the kaumātua voice in addressing the persistent inequities in Māori health outcomes.

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Ko ngā kaumātua ngā poupou o tō rātou ao: kaumātua and kuia, the pillars of our understanding

This feasibility study examined innovations in kaupapa Māori (a Māori approach) research methods to explore kaumātua (older Māori men and women) understandings of ageing well. We designed a research pathway that brought together kaupapa Māori methods in the form of noho wānanga (a method of knowledge sharing) with kaumātua and researchers in Tutukaka in 2018. Kaumātua participants were invited as guests in a comfortable and congenial setting to share their experiences of growing older. Our engagement with kaumātua, and our data-gathering and analysis methods provided an effective method for understanding kaumātua well-being. We found that focusing directly on health did not resonate with participants. There was diffidence when kaumātua talked about their own personal health, when compared with their enthusiasm for other parts of their lives. They understood well-being as a holistic process connecting hinengaro (mental health), wairua (the spirit and spiritual health), tinana (physical health) and te taiao (natural environments).

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Once were Gardeners: Māra and planting protest at Ihumātao

In a 2009 speech, prominent Māori lawyer Moana Jackson said that the novel Once Were Warriors (Duff, 1990) could have been more appropriately named Once Were Gardeners (New Zealand Drug Foundation, 2009). By doing so he argued against the notion that Māori possess a “warrior gene” predisposing them to violence. Instead, Jackson maintained, Māori were more likely to have a predisposition for gardening. Gardening, or mahi māra, has been practised by Māori for centuries in Aotearoa New Zealand. Although motivations may have changed, mahi māra remains an important expression of what it means to be Māori. This affirmation is particularly relevant when it comes to the recent Māori occupation of Ihumātao, one of the oldest Māori settlements in Aotearoa. This article explores the idea that gardens and gardening demonstrate a form of Māori protest and resistance. It also examines the importance of māra at Ihumātao and its occupation to Kelly Marie Francis, known as “The Whenua Warrior”, a member of the group occupying Ihumātao, Save Our Unique Landscape (SOUL). Understanding the occupation acknowledges the importance of māra in te ao Māori.

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Kāinga Noho – Kāinga Whenua Housing and Whenua: Kaumātua Voices

Home ownership and living arrangements make up an important part of planning for retirement. Traditionally a house was part of the asset portfolio for retirees with the aim to be mortgage free, and the ability to downsize if desired, especially from stand-alone homes on full sections (although rates of home ownership have varied by ethnicity). The housing options available to seniors are changing due to increases in house prices and fewer smaller houses. There is a small but increasing movement towards alternative living arrangements, such as co-housing, some seniors are ‘flatting’, and there is continued use of ‘granny flats’ and multigenerational living. How these changes impact pre-retirement savings and retirement income is not well understood. The objective of this report is to understand the expenses and income of retired people living in diverse housing situations.

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Caregiving, ethnicity and gender in Māori and non-Māori New Zealanders of advanced age: Findings from LiLACS NZ Kaiāwhina (Love and Support) study

Objective

This study investigates sex and ethnicity in relationships of care using data from Wave 4 of LiLACS NZ, a longitudinal study of Māori and non-Māori New Zealanders of advanced age.

Methods

Informal primary carers for LiLACS NZ participants were interviewed about aspects of caregiving. Data were analysed by gender and ethnic group of the LiLACS NZ participant.

Results

Carers were mostly adult children or partners, and three-quarters of them were women. Māori and men received more hours of care with a higher estimated dollar value of care. Māori men received the most personal care and household assistance. Carer employment, self-rated health, quality of life and impact of caring did not significantly relate to the gender and ethnicity of care recipients.

Conclusions

Gender and ethnicity are interwoven in caregiving and care receiving. Demographic differences and cultural expectations in both areas must be considered in policies for carer support.

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Muru-Lanning, M. 2022. Matauranga Māori and environmental research: The interface of Māori knowledge and anthropology. Oxford Research Encyclopedias Anthropology. Https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190854584.013.307 Acknowledging the leadership of Professor Tahu Kukutai and the collaboration between Te Ngira Research Centre and the James Henare Research Centre.

Kukutai, T., Clark, V., Jacobs, R., Jones, N., Muru-Lanning, M., Newbold, E., Sterling, R., Teague, V., Huria, L., Watts, D. (2023) Submission on Office of the Privacy Commissioner A potential biometrics code of practice: Discussion document.

Jones, N., & Steagall, M. M. (2023). Unprecedented Times: Māori Experiences of Pandemics Past in the Time of COVID-19. LINK Praxis, 1(1), 109-129.

Marama Muru-Lanning, Hilary Lapsley, Tia Dawes and Keri Mills. (2023). ‘Kaumātuatanga: Kōrero of Māori Elders from Three Tai Tokerau Tribal Groups.’ Pacific Studies, 46 (1), 84-102. 

Marama Muru-Lanning and Hilary Lapsley (eds.). (2023). Special Issue, ‘Growing Old in the Pacific’. Pacific Studies, 46 (1).

Marama Muru-Lanning and Hilary Lapsley. (2023). Introduction to Special Issue, ‘Growing Old in the Pacific’. Pacific Studies, 46 (1), 1-10.

Muru-Lanning, M., Lapsley, H., 2022. Harirū, Hongi and Hau in the time of COVID-19. Psychology Aotearoa, Volume 14 Number 1 Haratua May 2022

Tia Dawes, Marama Muru-Lanning, Hilary Lapsley, Ngapare Hopa, Ngahuia Dixon, Cilla Moore, Charmaine Tukiri, Nicholas Jones, Charlotte Muru-Lanning & Moana Oh (2021) Hongi, Harirū and Hau: Kaumātua in the time of COVID-19, Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 51:sup1, S23-S36, DOI: 10.1080/03036758.2020.1853182.

Muru-Lanning, M., Lapsley, H., Dawes, T., Jones, N., Muru-Lanning, C., Oh, M., Tukiri C., Dixon, H., Hopa, N., Moore, C., 2020. Hongi, Harirū and Hau: Kaumātua in the time of Covid-19: Findings from a study of kaumātua in Ngātiwai and Waikato-Tainui (Final Report). Health Research Council of New Zealand

Dawes, T., Lapsley, H., & Muru-Lanning, M. (2022). Hauora Kaumātua: a review essay on kaumātua wellbeing. Kōtuitui: New Zealand Journal of Social Sciences Online, 17(4), 429-444. https://doi.org/10.1080/1177083X.2022.2067482

Pouwhare, R., Leenen-Young, M., Uperesa, L., Muru-Lanning, M. 2022. The Call of the Waka Kuaka: New Directions for the Journal of the Polynesian Society. Waka Kuaka | The Journal of the Polynesian Society, Vol 131(4), 347-354. https://doi.org/10.15286/jps.131.4.347-354

Muru-Lanning, M., Mills, K., Harrison, N., Lanning, G., & Tukiri, C. (2022). Te Ora a Ururoa: Learning from the Mahi of Kaitiaki. Public History Review, 29, 78-95. https://doi.org/10.5130/phrj.v29i0.8275

Burch, K., Nepia, M., Jones, N., Muru-Lanning, M., Williams, H., & O’Connor, M. (2022). Chapter 4: Robots in the Workplace: Behind the Digital Interface/Ngā Karehiko kei te Wāhi Mahi: Kei Muri i te Tāhono Matihiko. In More Zeros and Ones: Digital Technology, Maintenance and Equity in Aotearoa New Zealand. Bridget Williams Books. doi:10.7810/9781990046834_5

Muru-Lanning, M., Dawes, T., Woodward, S, Pouwhare, R., Tukiri, C., (2022). Kāinga Noho – Kāinga Whenua: Housing and Whenua: Kaumātua Voices [Report commissioned by Te Ara Ahunga Ora: Retirement Commission].

Kukutai, T., Clark, V., Mika, J., Muru-Lanning, M., Pouwhare, R., Stirling, R., Teague, V., Watts, D., & Cassim, S. 2021. The COVID-19 domestic vaccine pass: Implications for Māori, pp.1-7 (7) [Policy Brief for the Privacy Commission].

Muru-Lanning, M., Lapsley, H., & Dawes, T. (2021). Ko ngā kaumātua ngā poupou o tō rātou ao: kaumātua and kuia, the pillars of our understanding. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples, 17(2), 246-253. https://doi.org/10.1177/11771801211019396

Muru-Lanning, M., Thorne, R., Waitere, H., & Venkateswar, S. (2021). Indigeneity: Reflections in Four Voices. In The SAGE Handbook of Cultural Anthropology (pp. 581-588). SAGE Publications. doi:10.4135/9781529756449.n32

Muru-Lanning, M., Mills, K., Tukiri, C., Harrison, N., Lanning, G., Solomon, S., (2021), Te Ora a Ururoa: Learning from the mahi of kaitiaki. New Zealand Historical Association Biennial Conference. [Webcast] https://webcast.massey.ac.nz/Mediasite/Play/c9dc1dc2476e4687b44fa5d75397b6141d

Jones, N., Lapsley, H., Muru-Lanning, M., Pouwhare, R., (2021), ‘Kaumātua make their voices heard’ [Newsroom Web Article]. https://www.newsroom.co.nz/kaumatua-make-their-voices-heard

Muru-Lanning, M. (2021). ‘Research project finds kaumātua are the tūara of Māori society’. Māori Television: Te Ao Tapatahi. Avaliable at: https://www.teaomaori.news/research-project-finds-kaumatua-are-tuara-maori-society

[Television Interview]

Muru-Lanning, M. (2021). ‘How Covid Changed Tikanga’. The University of Auckland. Avaliable at https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2021/12/02/how-covid-changed-tikanga.html

Grey, R.-S., Muru-Lanning, C., Jones, N., & Muru-Lanning, M. (2020). Once were gardeners: māra and planting protest at Ihumātao. MAI Journal: A New Zealand Journal of Indigenous Scholarship, 9(3). https://doi.org/10.20507/MAIJournal.2020.9.3.4

Jones, N., Muru-Lanning, C., & Muru-Lanning, M. (2020). Te Ao Tawhito: The Old World 3000 bc–ad 1830, Atholl Anderson (2018). In Journal of New Zealand & Pacific Studies (Vol. 8, Iss. 2, pp. 293-298). Intellect. doi:10.1386/nzps_00043_4

Muru-Lanning, M., Mills, K., Lanning, G., Solomon, S., (2020), Listening to the Voices of our Harbours: Kāwhia, Manukau and Whangarei. Coastal News 72 July [Short Article].

Muru-Lanning, M., Vigar, N., Cameron Sunde, S., Randerson, J., (2020), Tidalectic Rhythms: A Durational Performance with Te Manukanuka o Hoturoa [Laser Talk].

Lapsley, H., Muru-Lanning, M., & Dawes, T. (2020). Ko Nga Kaumatua O Tatou Taonga: Supporting the Well-being of Maori Elders in a Changing World. In INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF QUALITATIVE METHODS Vol. 19 (pp. 1 page). SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC. Retrieved from http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/

Lapsley, H. M., Muru-Lanning, M. J., & Dawes, T. (2019). Ngā Kaumātua, ō Mātou Taonga: Supporting kaumātua health in a changing world. In Qualitative Health Research Conference. Vancouver, Canada. Retrieved from https://www.ualberta.ca/

van Meijl, T., McCormack, F., Merlan, F., Muru-Lanning, M., Sissons, J., (2019), Doing Indigenous Epistemology: Internal Debates about Inside Knowledge in Māori Society. Current Anthropology Vol 60 (2), 1-18. [Journal Article Comment]. https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdfplus/10.1086/702538

Muru-Lanning, M., Davies, C., Harrison, N., Lee, N., Muru-Lanning, C., Stubbing, R., (2019), Flushed: The story of septic tanks In Takahiwai [Short Film]. https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/research/research-institutes-and-centres/james-henare-maori-research-centre/nga-rangahau-our-research.html

Wagner, J. R., Jacka, J. K., Hviding, E., Mawyer, A., & Muru-Lanning, M. (2018). Introduction: River as Ethnographic Subject. In Island Rivers: Fresh Water and Place in Oceania (pp. 1-25). ANU Press. doi:10.22459/ir.06.2018.01

Kepa, M., & Muru-Lanning, M. L. (2012). Developing research in matauranga te mate Maori. In International Indigenous Development Research Conference 2012 proceedings (pp. 167-173). Auckland [Conference Proceeding]. Retrieved from http://www.indigenousdevelopment2012.ac.nz/