One research programme, and six Smart Ideas projects have been awarded grants through the highly contested fund.
Tauhokohoko: Indigenising trade policy and enabling mana motuhake through Indigenous trade ($14.9m over 5 years)
Associate Professor of the School of Management and Marketing Operations and Associate Dean M膩ori (T奴hoe, Ng膩ti Awa, Whakat艒hea, Ng膩ti Kahungunu) is investigating different ways of doing business to mitigate climate change and environmental harm.
He is head of a M膩ori-led partnership between M膩ori practitioners of Indigenous trade at Te Taumata, and M膩ori, Indigenous, and non-Indigenous researchers at Te Kotahi Research Institute.
On learning about the funding, Dr Mika said:
鈥淜o te mea tuatahi, he mihi ki te Atua, nana nei ng膩 mea katoa. Tuarua, ka mihi ki 艒 t膩tau m膩tua t墨puna, n膩 r膩tau m膩 i taea ai te kawe i ng膩 kaupapa M膩ori p膿nei n膩. Tuatoru, ka mihi ki 艒ku hoa mahi o Te Kotahi me Te Raupapa o te Whare W膩nanga o Waikato, te Whare W膩nanga o Awanui膩rangi, me Te Kunenga ki P奴rehuroa m艒 膩 koutou n膩 tautoko, 艒 p奴kenga an艒 hoki. Tuawh膩, he mihi nui ki Te Taumata, n膩 koutou i taea. T膿nei r膩, e tika ka whakanui i te h艒nore nui nei. Ae, me kai pihikete me te kap奴 t墨. N膩 te mea, hei 膩p艒p艒, ka timata te mahi.鈥�
Together the research team will be looking at approaches where business achievement and prosperity are not measured by individual accumulation, but by the extent of the contributions to the wellbeing of others and the environment. Dr Mika said,
鈥�Everything we now desire in business and society might have been: sustainable and inclusive trade, environmental sustainability, fair and equitable access to opportunity and outcomes. Instead, we鈥檝e been constrained by legacies of believing there was only one right way, and that way was not the M膩ori way,鈥� says Dr Mika.
Using kaupapa M膩ori and Indigenous methodologies, the research seeks to transform trade policy to achieve the aspirations shared by Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples 鈥� a climate-resilient economy that is equitable and produces high-value goods and services from innovative entrepreneurial activity.
鈥淚magine the definition of triple bottom-line performance is mauri (wellbeing).This doesn鈥檛 mean M膩ori entrepreneurs and businesspeople aren鈥檛 interested in making a profit 鈥� profit is important for enterprise viability. It is why and how they do this and who benefits that can be decidedly different,鈥� he says.
The research aims to create a new Indigenous-based framework for international trade that puts the wellbeing of te taiao (the environment) and ng膩 t膩ngata (the people) at the centre.
鈥淲e want pragmatic outcomes from our research. For example, new frameworks, standards, guidance, and practices for trade policy, using the Aotearoa variant of indigeneity found in the notion of te ao M膩ori and te Tiriti o Waitangi.鈥�
It is anticipated that the framework will have multiple positive outcomes.
鈥淏y amplifying the role of Indigenous knowledge of environmentally responsible trade policy our framework will normalise Indigenous perspectives and support the transition to a low-emissions, climate-resilient economy.鈥�
Smart Ideas (each funded for $1m over 3 years)
Physically plausible record-shattering drought events in a warming Aotearoa
Climate change scientist will look at data from climate models, coupled with guidance from historical observations and m膩tauranga M膩ori, to identify drought events capable of occurring over Aotearoa within the next three decades. In a country reliant on primary industries the research is a crucial step towards ensuring our economy remains resilient to a rapidly warming climate.
Safe, solid-state hydrogen storage technology 鈥� Enabling New Zealand鈥檚 zero-carbon emissions target
Associate Professor of Engineering will lead a team to deliver optimised high-entropy alloy hydrogen storage materials and technologies that meet weight, volume, thermodynamic, kinetic, and safety requirements. This research will enable the use of hydrogen for transportation and stationary energy storage uses, to help establish a working low-carbon economy.
High-capacity, responsive thermal storage for coupling mismatched energy supply and demand
Dr Fei Yang and Dr Murray McCurdy (GNS Science) will work together to lead a team to develop a new thermal energy storage technology to couple renewable heat sources, such as geothermal, biomass and solar, to heat demand in process heat and electricity generation. This will reduce the need for fossil fuels in our primary processing sectors, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It will also mean carbon charges can be avoided so increases to the cost of electricity and food products will also be avoided.
Probiotic Inoculants for Seaweed Hatcheries and Aquaculture
Associate Professor of Marine Science and Aquaculture, will identify and assess seaweed microbiomes that stimulate growth and development and/or disease resistance in seaweeds. The aim is to select seaweed probiotics to improve the performance of seaweed produced in hatcheries for aquaculture.
Microwave Brain Scanner for Early Alzheimer鈥檚 Disease Detection
Professor of Engineering and biomedical imaging expert, Dr Yifan Chen will lead a highly skilled, multi-disciplinary team that is developing a novel, non-invasive, low-cost microwave scanner to aid 鈥榩oint of care鈥� testing for Alzheimer鈥檚 Disease (AD). AD is the most common cause of dementia, the seventh leading cause of death among diseases worldwide.
Smart-antigens for ovine antiviral hyperimmune milk production
Applied immunologist , in collaboration with structural biologist , and biotech innovators Ruakura Technologies will develop milk with enhanced immune protection against norovirus. The science mimics nature and can be compared to the way a mother鈥檚 milk protects a newborn baby from disease causing pathogens.
糖心Vlog Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research, Professor Bryony James, says these results are fantastic for Waikato, in what is a notoriously competitive research funding environment.
鈥淭he work that goes into preparing and submitting high quality applications is significant and I would like to acknowledge all those involved.鈥�
