Part of this research is the development of a Rongoā ‘Biosphere’ - meaning a representation of all the elements that make up Rongoā and how they holistically relate, to illustrate the full range of Rongoā benefits.
For more information on our other Rongoā research projects visit Whakauae Research Services.
Te Ao Rauropi is a 3-year, Health Research Council-funded project with the overarching aim of understanding the contribution Rongoā Māori makes to the health and wellbeing of the people of Aotearoa and to the environment more broadly.
The study is premised on the knowledge that a significant gap exists between our understanding of Rongoā Māori and its potential to rebalance spirit, land, people. There has not been a single study to date that has attempted to understand the extent to which Rongoā benefits, and contributes to, the wellbeing of the people and the environments that we inhabit. Nor has there been a study which seeks to understand the diverse ways in which Rongoa supports and maintains that wellbeing. There have been many studies focused on specific aspects of Rongoā however, in this work we were trying to understand both the depth and the breadth of the practice of Rongoā and identify how, and in what manner, Rongoā delivers benefit within our communities.
The overarching aim of the research was to articulate the wider theory and practice of Rongoā, identifying the wellbeing benefits that occurred because of practising this philosophy. Within this overarching aim, the study had several objectives including:
Between 2022 and 2023 we undertook data collection in four distinct phases to understand the true extent of Rongoā Māori. We conducted key informant and focus group interviews; we held a wānanga with Rongoā experts; we convened the first national online Rongoā symposium attracting over 1000 individual registrations; and we collected the thoughts and reflections from a group of rangatahi as they participated in the symposium. In the course of our interviews, we captured the views of 55 individual participants located in Northland, Auckland, Waikato, Hauraki, Bay of Plenty, Manawatū/Whanganui, and Te Waipounamu/South Island.
The key output from this project is the Te Ao Rauropi model, the culmination of all the view experiences and insights gained from our research participants and collected together in diagrammatic form. The model can be found here. A technical report reporting our results is also forthcoming.
Our goal has been to ensure our research improves the understanding of Rongoā; that Rongoā is not simply a series of healing modalities, but that Rongoā needs to be considered as a way of being that includes all that Māori culture values, treasures and holds dear concerning the mind, body, spirit, family and land. We hope that our research findings will encourage both the Crown and Māori to take positive action to protect and preserve Rongoā and support it to flourish so that this critical taonga can continues to contribute to the holistic health and wellbeing of all the people and the land in Aotearoa.
The logo which we are using for this Symposium was designed for Whakauae by Ngahina Gardiner (Ngā Wairiki, Ngāti Apa, Te Ātihaunui-ā-Pāpārangi) for the Te Ao Rauropi project; a three-year Health Research Council-funded study exploring the depth and breadth of Rongoā Māori. Ngahina, a local Whanganui man, is himself a Rongoā healer, talented tā moko artist and carver. In his kōrero around the whakapapa of his logo design, Ngahina explains that the purple koru represents the interconnection of all things - ngā tāngata, te tai ao, rongoā rākau, mirimiri ngā mea katoa.
The koru also connects us to wairua; purple is the colour of the kumara, a highly regarded food source, and used to whakanoa things tapu. The small green pikopiko depict wairua and wellbeing; they have a relationship with each other and do not follow a defined direction but have many pathways. The pikopiko also represent new growth and possibilities. The tekoteko in red represent male and female elements in harmony with each other. At the bottom of the design are maunga and awa; grounding us in our environment and to Papatūānuku, she who sustains us.
Dr Amohia Boulton is the Director of Whakauae Research Services Ltd, the only owned and mandated iwi health research centre in Aotearoa. A health services research of some 20+ years, Dr Boulton has always been interested in the intersection of Crown policy and Māori aspirations for their health and wellbeing. In 2008 she began working with a group of researchers who had the desire to support and uphold Rongoā Māori as a viable healing tradition in a contemporary health care system. It was at that point that she became aware of the significant needs of the Rongoā Māori sector including the challenges of funding sustainability and the role of the Crown as a Treaty partner to protect the taonga that is Rongoā Māori. From these first tentative understandings, Dr Boulton has continued to conduct and support Rongoā-focused research with members of the Rongoā sector (practitioners, managers, administrators) and like-minded scholars and academics, all of whom are committed to Rongoā traditions and knowledges becoming a valued part of the health care system. Dr Boulton’s goal is to support efforts on behalf of the sector that aim to see Rongoā Māori valued by all not only for its intrinsic worth as a taonga, but for the teaching and healing it can bring to our lands, our waterways, how we care for our country and how we care for each other.
Dr. Mark works as an independent researcher who has conducted several research projects on Rongoā Māori (traditional Māori healing) to continue expanding on understanding its holistic nature. This research was driven by her belief that traditional healing practices can help to heal the people and the land, while acknowledging that the practice and knowledge needs to be protected too. In addition, she has conducted research on the intersection between Rongoā and medical treatment and is currently focused on writing about Indigenous health and healing.
Dr. Tanya Allport is a senior researcher at Whakauae Research, where she focuses on advancing Māori health through innovative and culturally resonant research. With a background in Māori health research, Dr. Allport is deeply committed to exploring Indigenous modalities of healing and the reclamation of holistic health practices. Her work aims to address and reduce current health inequities, advocating for natural medicines and empowering research that helps individuals to take control of their own health. Dr. Allport's interest in non-Western health systems motivates her to seek and promote alternative approaches to wellness that are rooted in Indigenous knowledge and traditions. She is proud to have been part of the Te Ao Rauropi research project, which has significantly advanced the understanding and validation of traditional healing practices.
Donna is a practicing Rongoā Māori clinician, tutor and advocate for upholding indigenous healing practices in Aotearoa, New Zealand. In addition to authoring popular media articles about Rongoā Māori, Donna also provides her expertise to a number of research teams across the country. She was the mandated spokesperson for Te Kahui Rongoā, the New Zealand national collective of Māori healers for 10 years and has been appointed to a number of Māori, Government and professional body advisory groups for her expertise in Māori medicine. A fulltime advocate for Rongoā Māori she joined Whakauae Research Services as a researcher on the Te Ao Rauropi HRC-funded project (Mapping the Biosphere of Rongoā). Rongoā Māori is the indigenous wellbeing system for Māori. It is a tool for reconnecting Māori to the natural world and each other and the gifts that we each bring to the world.
Gill is a senior Māori researcher and evaluator with Whakauae Research Services, an iwi-owned health services research organisation in Aotearoa New Zealand. Gill enjoys working with Māori communities which enables her to engage, build capability and seek solutions with those communities. She is excited about being able to use research and evaluation as a way of building Māori potential and making research real for Māori. She holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Social Sector Research and a Master of Arts (Māori). She is a member of Wai-Rangahau Ethics Committee and the Australian Evaluation Society (AES) Evaluation Excellence Awards Committee.
