Search Results (311)

Freshwater quality is degrading globally, and regulatory monitoring remains largely retrospective, identifying non-compliance only after it occurs. This study identifies whether multi-year, regulatorily relevant compliance breaches can be forecast from sparse monthly monitoring records alone and whether such forecasts improve on the assumption that next year resembles the current one. Using approximately two decades (2004–2024) of Land, Air, Water Aotearoa (LAWA) data from 497 South Island, New Zealand river sites, a single pooled gradient-boosted (LightGBM) classifier was trained to forecast Escherichia coli worst-band (Band E) non-compliance under the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management at one-, two-, and three-year horizons, benchmarked against persistence, trend projection, and majority-class baselines under strictly temporal validation. The model discriminated breaches reliably (AUC 0.84–0.85) and exceeded persistence in balanced accuracy at all three horizons, significantly at two and three years. Its principal value was early warning: among currently compliant sites, it recovered roughly half of subsequent breaches, transitions that persistence cannot detect by construction, yielding a forward watchlist of 97 sites at risk of entering the worst band (Band E) by 2027, concentrated in pastoral catchments. Forecasting from monitoring data alone imposes an honest ceiling; scores are reported as risk rankings. The findings support a shift from reactive to anticipatory freshwater management. Full article

Parenting programs in Aotearoa New Zealand are typically designed by and for non-Indigenous parents of non-disabled children, yet are routinely promoted to all families, including Māori (the Indigenous people of Aotearoa) and families of disabled children, despite limited cultural relevance. This paper describes and discusses the co-creation of a culturally responsive program for whānau (families) of a disabled child, undertaken over three years using a participatory, culturally informed approach. Drawing on key practices from te Ao Māori (the Māori worldview)—including whakawhanaungatanga (relationship building), tuakana-teina (peer-to-peer support), and koha atu koha mai (reciprocity)—the team developed and iteratively tested a wānanga-style program across three stages of development (foundation building, program drafting, and program testing). Evaluation data was collected from participants (n = 16), facilitators (n = 3), and authors, using anonymous online surveys (participants, facilitators), in-person discussion (facilitators), and reflective observation (authors). Data analysis was pragmatic and participatory in design, prioritizing collective sense-making. Findings indicate that whānau highly valued dedicated time for wellbeing reflection, culturally grounded content (particularly the Whiti Te Rā wellbeing model), peer connection, and practical supports such as on-site childcare. The paper reflects on the intentionality required for working together, including the need to center Māori knowledge, flatten power dynamics, and slow down program development to prioritize relationship over output. This work contributes to community psychology and public health scholarship as an example of decolonial, anti-racist practice in community health program design. This paper offers a template for how culturally responsive, co-created program design and delivery can work in practice. Full article

Māori experience inequities in the recognition of mate wareware and in access to dementia and aged care support in Aotearoa New Zealand. Less is known about how whānau experience supporting a whānau member with mate wareware, what support they find helpful, and what they consider important for mate wareware-friendly communities. This kaupapa Māori qualitative study involved a co-design phase with seven kaumātua, which informed the study questions and whānau hui guide, followed by ten in-depth whānau Māori hui involving 12 individual participants; the whānau hui formed the analytic dataset. Whānau hui data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Four interconnected themes were developed: delayed recognition; whānau caregiving as collective strength alongside concentrated responsibility; sustaining wairua, identity, and belonging; and care transitions and structural barriers. Interpreted together, these themes informed a four-condition account of mana-preserving care, in which mana may be sustained or eroded through interactions among recognition and knowledge, whānau caregiving, wairua, identity and belonging, and service and institutional conditions at transitions. Where continuity fragmented, whānau frequently undertook integrative work to bridge gaps across people, places, culture, and services. The findings point to earlier mate wareware information and support through Māori-facilitated and community-based approaches, support that recognises concentrated caregiving responsibility, continuity across services and transitions, and routine practices that embed tikanga, while reducing reliance on whānau to compensate for fragmentation. Full article

Hand-drawn field maps are an irreplaceable archive of archaeological sites, yet converting scanned images of analog field maps into geospatial data remains a significant bottleneck. Currently, prompt-driven large language models (LLMs) cannot reproduce human heads-up digitizing consistently or affordably at scale. LLMs do, however, allow users to quickly produce custom computer vision (CV) workflows. We describe an example of one such custom Python (3.13.9) pipeline that extracts polygons that represent terraces on maps of fortified settlements (called pā) in Aotearoa New Zealand. It starts with scanned archaeological maps, decides if the map is in a cartographic style it can process, finds shapes, and decides if these shapes are valid based on a model trained on human-annotated examples. It works extremely quickly, outputs clean geospatial datasets, and has excellent spatial and formal accuracy, with a mean intersection-over-union (mIoU) for matched detections of 0.89–0.94. Detection performance, as measured by F1 scores covered an extremely wide range, from 0.800 to 0.00, with a mean of 0.528 (median = 0.588) typical of marginally successful CV studies. In practice, for every four terraces correctly mapped, three are missed, and three false positive are created. Critically, when we did a fit-for-purpose evaluation using an archaeologically meaningful metric (the Gini coefficient), we discovered a sliding scale of reliability. The best results were comparable with human-traced maps (F1 scores > 0.80). Below that, introduced error meant they were reliable in some senses but unreliable in others (F1 0.53 to 0.80). The worst were totally unreliable for quantitative analyses (F1 < 0.53). The lesson for archaeology is this: standard CV benchmarks alone cannot tell us whether an automated output is fit for archaeological inference. Archaeology would benefit from discipline-specific fit-for-purpose metrics, like the example here, as a regularized part of computer vision studies. Full article

The aim of the study was to identify the characteristics of Aotearoa/New Zealand osteopaths who report often discussing occupational health and safety (OHS) issues with patients. Participants completed a questionnaire, through a practice-based research network, exploring their demographic, practice, and clinical management characteristics. Backward logistic regression was used to identify statistically significant predictors of often discussing OHS issues with patients. Two hundred and seventy-seven (N = 277) completed the questionnaire. One hundred and fourteen participants (41.2%) reported often discussing OHS with patients. Predictors associated with lower odds of often discussing OHS included more years in osteopathy practice (aOR 0.95, 95% CI 0.92–0.98), volunteering as an osteopath (aOR 0.40, 95% CI 0.19–0.91), sending referrals to a massage therapist (aOR 0.49, 95% CI 0.26–0.91) or naturopath (aOR 0.43, 95% CI 0.24–0.79), and working across more than one practice location (aOR 0.46, 95% CI 0.24–0.87). Predictors associated with higher odds included receiving referrals from another osteopath (aOR 2.72, 95% CI 1.33–5.58), often treating work-related injuries (aOR 2.26, 95% CI 1.19–4.30), often discussing medications (aOR 2.21, 95% CI 1.20–4.07), and often discussing physical activity (aOR 7.74, 95% CI 2.42–24.80), though the latter estimate carries considerable imprecision. A significant proportion of Aotearoa/New Zealand osteopaths report discussing OHS issues with their patients. These findings reflect self-reported consultation behaviours and should not be interpreted as evidence of formal occupational health competence or effectiveness. Further research on the nature, content, and outcomes of osteopathic engagement with OHS concerns is needed. Full article

Background: Endometriosis is a condition that is very challenging to diagnose and manage. Objectives: The purpose of this study is to assess the impacts of diagnosis and treatments in the journeys of endometriosis patients in Aotearoa New Zealand. Methods: Two online surveys were conducted with cohorts of 616 and 679 endometriosis patients to assess diagnosis and treatments, respectively. Results: In this exploratory study, the diagnosis cohort self-reported a median delay from symptom onset to confirmation of the diagnosis of 10 years, with a median delay from symptom onset to first seeing a doctor (“doctor delay”) of 4 years. Upon receiving their diagnosis, 53.7% indicated the “number one” emotion they felt was relief. In the treatment cohort, the only medical management strategy perceived as “effective” by over 75% of users was hysterectomy (84.3%), despite this not being a cure for endometriosis. Common first-line treatments were viewed poorly for their perceived effectiveness, with over-the-counter pain relief viewed as effective by 25.8% of users, combined oral contraceptive pills by 23.2% of users, progesterone-only pills by 42.8% of users, and intrauterine contraceptive devices by 49.7% of users. Conclusions: Endometriosis is a condition typified by challenges for patients with its delayed diagnosis, resistance to management, and a high prevalence of discouraging experiences in medical care settings. These large-sample cohorts highlight that improvements in the diagnosis and management of endometriosis warrant urgent attention by clinicians and policymakers alike. Full article

Globally, school meals have formed a social safety net for improving children’s nutrition, health, and educational attainment. In Aotearoa New Zealand, government funded lunches for children attending schools in low-income neighbourhoods were introduced in 2020, amidst rising poverty levels and consequent household food insecurity. The aspirations encapsulated within the scheme’s indigenous Māori name, ‘Ka Ora, Ka Ako’ (‘to be well, healthy and safe; to be ready to learn’) have lost focus since reforms to the lunches in 2024 prioritised cost savings, resulting in widely publicised quality issues. This present study draws from a critical multi-level investigation into the issue of hungry children in New Zealand schools, prior to the introduction of ‘Ka Ora, Ka Ako’. Narrative analysis identified how food in schools has been conceptualised within the context of a settler colonial charity model and neoliberal austerity. Applying a critical community psychology lens highlights how burnt and meagre lunches offered to children from food insecure households are a concrete product of historically grounded, unequal relations between groups. A community psychology approach reimagines state-funded food in schools as a public good, arguing for equitable rights to nutrition, including recognition of Māori rights to food sovereignty. Full article

Kauri dieback, caused by Phytophthora agathidicida Weir, Beever, Pennycook & Bellgard, poses a major threat to the ecological and cultural significance of Aotearoa New Zealand’s kauri forests. Visitor behaviour, particularly boot-cleaning and adherence to track-use guidelines, is a key transmission pathway. Using the COM-B framework and audience segmentation, we surveyed 451 visitors to the Waitākere and Hunua Ranges to identify behavioural drivers, barriers, and segment-specific intervention needs. Stepwise regressions accounted for 52% of the variance in self-reported boot-cleaning compliance and 56% in track-use compliance within this sample (adjusted R²). Boot-cleaning compliance was enhanced by habit strength, worry about spreading the pathogen, awareness of correct procedures, and reliance on functional cleaning stations, while inconvenience and chemical aversion reduced compliance. Track-use compliance was lowered by perceived low likelihood of spread, doubts about mitigation effectiveness, time-cost concerns, and strong forest-use identity, whereas protection motivation and habitual rule-following increased compliance. Latent profile analyses produced three segments per behaviour: boot-cleaning—Conflicted, Receptive, Engaged; and track-use—Identity-Driven Forest Users, Uncommitted, Engaged—which differed systematically in knowledge, concern, and compliance. We outline potential intervention implications informed by these findings and prior literature. Full article

This contribution engages with perspectives, concerns and experiences of artists who staged either their own life stories or the life stories of others. At its core, it challenges the idea that staging a life story is solely an empowering, self-enabling and emancipatory aesthetic practice. By analysing two choreographies and their respective working conditions, as well as an interview with one of the choreographers, this article reflects on the commercialisation and neoliberal extraction of personal life stories. Further, this contribution revisits the concept of ‘cultural mobility’ with two case studies. The first one, mi vida en tránsito (2022), draws on the precariousness and vulnerability experienced in times of professional mobility in the Central European dance scene. Overseas (2022), the second case study, criticises the Eurocentric assumption that mobility is equally distributed across the globe. To analyse both case studies, this article establishes ‘cultural immobility’ as a scholarly perspective on how immobility relates to the production, performance, practice and circulation of cultural artefacts and artistic works. Full article

Indigenous women experience a disproportionate burden of adverse perinatal health outcomes, yet the extent and nature of health promotion interventions addressing modifiable behavioural and social determinants remain poorly synthesised. This scoping review mapped smoking, nutrition, alcohol, physical exercise, and social and emotional wellbeing (SNAPS(o))-related perinatal health promotion programs delivered through Australian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs), supplemented by relevant peer-reviewed evidence identified across Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, Canada, and the United States. A two-phase design looked at peer-reviewed literature from January 2010 to January 2025 across PubMed, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Library, followed by a structured review of Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (ACCHO) websites in Australia (n = 145). Data were extracted on program characteristics, SNAPS(o) components, implementation models, and evaluation outcomes. Findings were synthesised using content analysis. Thirty-four programs were identified in total, most delivered through ACCHOs (n = 26) and predominantly implemented in Australia (n = 29). Smoking was the most frequently addressed component (n = 18, 55%), while nutrition and social and emotional wellbeing were each included in 27% of programs (n = 9), physical exercise in 18% (n = 6), and alcohol in 15% (n = 5). Grey-literature programs more commonly reflected multi-component, holistic models compared with peer-reviewed studies and formal evaluations. Only 10 programs had identifiable formal evaluation evidence, including published or publicly reported evaluations, almost all of which were identified through academic sources. Evaluations focused primarily on tobacco-related behavioural outcomes, with limited reporting of sustained maternal or infant health endpoints. The perinatal SNAPS(o) intervention landscape for Indigenous women is characterised by strong community-controlled delivery but limited published evaluation, particularly of integrated models implemented within ACCHOs. The concentration of evidence on smoking cessation highlights a need to expand evaluation across broader domains of maternal wellbeing. Strengthening Indigenous-led evaluation frameworks and outcome measures that reflect holistic models of care is essential to advancing equitable and culturally grounded perinatal health systems. Full article

Tikanga Māori, the indigenous system of values, principles, and practices in Aotearoa New Zealand, offers a relational, ethics-based framework for responding to contemporary global challenges such as geopolitical instability, environmental degradation, and digital disruption. Dominant Western approaches, often grounded in individualism and resource extraction, are increasingly limited in addressing these issues. Drawing on Aotearoa New Zealand as a case study, tikanga is presented as a living system centred on interconnectedness, responsibility, and collective wellbeing. Examples from law, health, research ethics, and sport demonstrate how these values shape both institutional practice and everyday behaviour. Rather than functioning as a cultural add-on, tikanga provides an alternative way of understanding relationships between people, communities, and the environment. The analysis highlights the relevance of tikanga-informed approaches for rethinking governance, leadership, and sustainability in an increasingly complex and interconnected world. Full article

Cultural heritage arises from the interactions of people and the connected environment, manifesting in both tangible and intangible forms. Standard management aims to identify and register heritage assets, with subsequent conservation preserving identified values. Australian and New Zealand/Aotearoa heritage-specific legislation enshrines distinct ascribed values, formed in response to charters presenting heritage philosophies. Recent shifts towards greater acceptance of intangible heritage and emerging scholarly attention towards sensorial aspects (smells and sounds) demonstrate trajectories of change and a broader understanding of heritage theory. How this is exemplified in real-world management is rarely discussed. Taking Australasia as an example, this paper aims to survey values as enshrined in heritage legislation, examine aesthetic value definitions, and investigate recognition of olfactory sensorial aspects in heritage registers. We find that despite aesthetic, historic, and scientific values being commonly presented in the legislation, aesthetic olfactory attributes are largely absent, being recorded in only 0.18% across all heritage entries. Of these, a quarter were attributed significance or value, with the majority of entries being associated with offensive smell mitigation. We find this incongruent with recent scholarly work, and discuss potential reasons thereof, finding there is significant room to develop identification/assessment of olfactory aesthetic heritage. Full article

Purpose: Preclinical studies report low-intensity ultraviolet C (UVC) light to be safe and effective in treating murine bacterial keratitis, however, limbal impacts of UVC have yet to be investigated directly. This study evaluated the depth and density of UVC-induced DNA damage in the porcine and human limbus following UVC exposures of varying supratherapeutic dose. Methods: The corneoscleral junction (limbus) of full-thickness porcine corneas was exposed to supratherapeutic doses of UVC light (265 nm, 1.93 mW/cm²) for 5, 10, 15, 30, or 60 min (exposure groups) or remained unexposed for the same durations (control groups), with a sample size of 6 per group. In parallel, human corneal tissue was exposed to UVC for 1 or 5 min and processed identically. Following exposure, all tissues were frozen, dissected, and analysed using immunohistochemistry to detect cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers (CPDs) as markers of DNA damage. CPD distribution, depth, and density were subsequently evaluated. Results: CPDs were localised predominantly in the superficial corneal epithelial layers, irrespective of the UVC dose. The mean ± SD thickness of the corneal epithelium in the UVC-exposed groups was 38.9 ± 18.9 µm, and the average depth of CPD formation was 13.3 ± 8.43 µm. The proportions of cells affected by CPDs within the corneal epithelium (mean ± SD) were 47.8 ± 25.6%, 58.5 ± 16.2%, 39.9 ± 26.4%, 41.3 ± 27.3%, and 38.9 ± 28.3% for exposure durations of 5, 10, 15, 30, and 60 min, respectively (p > 0.05). Human cornea showed similarly limited penetration, with no difference in CPD proportions between the 1 and 5 min UVC exposures (p = 0.70). Conclusions: UVC-induced DNA damage in both species was confined to the superficial cellular layers of the cornea, with no detectable damage observed in deeper tissues, including those where limbal stem cells reside, even after supratherapeutic doses of up to one hour of exposure. Full article

Recent advances in large language models (LLMs) have enabled new forms of software creation through natural-language interaction. However, many AI-assisted coding tools continue to assume familiarity with development environments, programming workflows, and technical conventions, which may limit accessibility for early-stage learners and communities historically underrepresented in digital participation. This challenge is particularly relevant in Aotearoa New Zealand, where Māori and Pacific peoples remain underrepresented across STEM and technology pathways. This paper introduces TechTahi, a browser-based, syntax-free AI-assisted platform designed to support low-barrier digital creation through natural-language prompts and immediate in-browser previews. The study had two aims: to describe the design rationale and workflow of TechTahi and to explore early learner perceptions following initial use of the platform. An exploratory pilot design was employed. Five participants completed a post-use survey after hands-on interaction with TechTahi. Responses were analysed descriptively, with open-ended feedback reviewed for recurring themes. Findings suggested generally positive perceptions of accessibility and ease of use, particularly the ability to create working applications without prior coding knowledge. Participants also identified opportunities for culturally relevant features, including language support and locally meaningful design elements, alongside areas for improvement such as clearer onboarding guidance and reduced information density. These preliminary findings suggest that syntax-free, culturally responsive AI creation tools may offer promising pathways for widening participation in digital learning. Further research with larger and more diverse samples is needed to evaluate longer-term educational impact. Full article

This concept paper advances stigma power as a central analytical mechanism for understanding how patriarchy, capitalism, white supremacy, and cis-heteronormativity operate with particular intensity against sex workers. Integrating Link and Phelan’s stigma power with Bourdieu’s symbolic violence and Foucauldian productive power, the framework theorises stigma as a mechanism institutionalised through law and enforced by institutions, which produces measurable consequences that include violence, exclusion, and health harms. Analysing the intersecting axes of gender, sexuality, race, migration, and class across three qualitative studies (SWMH, SEXHUM, VICSW), the article demonstrates why labour-rights reforms, including decriminalisation, are necessary but insufficient. Dismantling stigma requires not only removing sanctions but actively contesting the actors exercising stigma power and interrupting the stabilising mechanisms that reproduce it. This requires policy that acknowledges stigma’s existence whilst working to dismantle it, rather than eliding its reality through liberal mainstreaming or strengthening it through criminalisation or rescue frameworks. The framework explains why decriminalisation is associated with better access to rights and health; why all criminalisation including the so-called Swedish model correlates with increased violence; why stigma persists under optimal legal conditions; and how intersecting marginalisations produce differential vulnerability. Policy implications emphasise pairing decriminalisation with peer-led anti-stigma work, institutional reform, migrant rights, and funded support for sex worker self-organisation. Full article