WEBINAR: Indigenous Joy
In this hour long free webinar, Dr Hariata Tai Rakena, PhD, will join Dr Nikki Penetito-Hemara to share her recent doctoral dissertation research on Indigenous joy that collaborated with an Ojibwe land-based cultural immersion camp for rangatahi in Northern Minnesota, US. Hariata will discuss the findings from the study that explored what joy experiences are like to the Indigenous kaumātua, kaiako, rangatahi and whānau involved. She will also discuss the cultural exchange research experience with the Ojibwe community at the Fond du Lac reservation. Finally, Hariata will draw connections demonstrating the importance of joy meaninfully incorporated into health and educational programmes, and what Māori applications may look like.
About our kaikōrero
Dr Hariata Tai Rakena, PhDNgāti Hauā, Ngāti Māhanga hapū of Waikato Tainui
Hariata is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Center for Indigenous Health at Johns Hopkins University, where she completed her PhD in public health, specialising in social behavioral approaches to global health. As a Fulbright New Zealand scholar, she now has over a decade of experience in the international Indigenous public health sector where she has expanded her professional experience to Canada, Australia, Sweden, and most recently, the United States. Hariata started her career in public health as one the first Toi Tangata interns in 2013/14. She is back to share her experiences and mātauranga from this journey.
Dr Nikki Penetito-Hemara, PhDNgāti Ranginui, Ngāti Kahungunu, Whakatōhea, Ngāti Porou
Dr Nikki Penetito-Hemara is a dynamic researcher, strategist, and champion of mana wāhine, committed to research, social innovation, and systems change grounded in kaupapa Māori principles and practices. Her PhD, He Pūkenga Pūrākau, Ka Ora te Tamaiti, explores ancestral creation narratives and physical activity as a pathway to achieve Māori wellbeing. A Māmā of four and a respected national play practitioner, Nikki weaves taonga tākaro (traditional Māori games) through both practice and research, activating movement as a living expression of identity, connection, and hauora (wellbeing). He tīwaiwaka ahau nā Māui!