Treasuring future generations: Māori and Hawaiian ancestral knowledge and the wellbeing of Indigenous children

This article examines ‘ōlelo no‘eau and whakataukī (ancestral proverbial sayings), for messages relating to the positioning of Māori and Hawaiian children and the relationship of that to traditional child-rearing practices.  In doing so, the authors explore whakataukī and ‘ōlelo no‘eau as a means to bring forward knowledge gifted to us by our ancestors that can inform our contemporary experiences as Indigenous Peoples.

Tupuna Wahine, Saina, Tupuna Vaine, Matua Tupuna Fifine, Mapiạg Hạni

From various parts of Te Moana Nui a Kiwa, we have come together as Indigenous scholars to weave stories of our grandmothers in the archives. From our own sea, land and skyscapes to the diasporic realities of generations of movement, migration and contact with ourselves and outsiders, we trace some of the stories and lineage, emanating from our grandmothers, that have led us into the archives. In distinctive ways we acknowledge our grandmothers’ guidance, presence, and inspiration for the research that we do. But we also see that their presence in and beyond the archives can challenge the very notions of what an archive is and how it is imagined from Indigenous worlds. In this article, we navigate from the centre to the edges of our research, attending to the paths we follow and forge as Indigenous researchers inspired by our grandmothers

He wahine māia, he wahine toa: A Gathering of Reflections on the Work of Haunani-Kay Trask

In 1985, Haunani-Kay Trask visited Aotearoa contributing critical perspectives to a Pacific studies conference at the University of Auckland. Observing the disturbing absence of Indigenous women speakers at the conference, Dr. Trask finished her keynote early, giving her remaining time to two Māori women, Atareta Poananga and Titewhai Harawira. As a group of Indigenous Pacific women negotiating our own place in the academy, this conscious political act is one of many forms of Haunani-Kay Trask’s activism that has inspired us. From various parts of Te Moana Nui a Kiwa, we come together to weave stories of our engagements in the intellectual and activist work of Haunani-Kay Trask. In distinctive ways, we acknowledge Dr. Trask’s legacy and reflect on the inspiration and insight that her work has provided for us as Native daughters of the Pacific and as emerging scholars. Drawing on our own unique sea, land, and skyscapes, our histories of colonialism and resistance, and our creative and intellectual journeys, we share the multiplicity of ways in which Haunani-Kay Trask’s work speaks to our hearts and minds. Reflecting on her work as a scholar, poet, and activist, we weave together our words of respect, love, and admiration, and we consider the ways in which her scholarship continues to have ongoing relevance to us all