Floating marae among designs by rangatahi showcased at science fair
Photo:
RNZ / Libby Kirkby-McLeod
A group of rangatahi have designed a marae that is able to rise above floodwaters and shown their work at New Zealand's only science fair that
celebrates the intersection of Mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) and science
.
Te Tūkohu Ngāwhā Mātauranga Māori Science and Design Fair took place in Rotorua from 23 - 25 July.
The Rotorua-based science fair is run by Te Arawa Lakes Trust and has grown rapidly over the last five years and for the first time schools from around the country were invited to take part.
Held inside the Rotorua energy events centre, students came up with ecological and climate solutions for tomorrow.
Meremia, Miss-Mei, and Ezra are from Te Rangihakahaka. They designed a model of a marae built on a platform, Ta Waka Noa, which would be able to rise above floodwaters.
They thought through inflation, flotation, and what was needed for survival while waiting for floodwaters to go down, including food and composting toilets.
Hikareia and Kaitlyn from Te Kura o te Whānau a Apanui and their project counting birds at the river of Motu on the edge of Gisborne.
Photo:
RNZ / Libby Kirkby-McLeod
Ezra said he hoped one day a system like it might save lives.
"This is a disaster-relief system. So, when it floats, everyone will be in there, the whole iwi - anyone is allowed to come in here - so it's like a public marae," he said.
Event co-ordinator Keeley Grantham said seeing projects like the one from Te Rangihakahaka was exactly why she was involved with the fair.
"That's a real-life issue that we are looking at with climate change, rising sea levels and marae being on floodplains. That's an amazing solution."
She said most New Zealand science fairs focus only on western science.
"This science fair is all about enabling different types of knowledge, different types of sciences and embodying a te ao Māori lens."
And there was a big focus on the environment, with categories including biosecurity, biodiversity and conservation, sustainability, marine and freshwater environments, Mātauranga Māori, and climate change adaptation and resilience.
One of the fair judges, Te Rika Temara-Benfell (centre) with others from Te Puna Ariki Charitable Trust.
Photo:
RNZ / Libby Kirkby-McLeod
One of the judges, Te Rika Temara-Benfell from Te Puna Ariki Charitable Trust, said the projects gave him hope for the future.
"They're just far beyond anything I was doing at that age. Some of them [are aged] nine and ten and they are researching microplastics and things happening across our environment and community."
An example of that is Hikareia and Kaitlyn from Te Kura o te Whānau a Apanui who counted birds at the river of Motu on the edge of Gisborne.
"We do it to see if the nature is living," Hikareia said.
They found terns, seagulls and plovers currently present in the environment.
Temara-Benfell said he was amazed by the projects he saw.
"It's been beautiful to see some of the solutions for these contemporary issues our rangatahi and children are facing, answered with Mātauranga Māori and not just that but from many different lens across other scientific fields and across community projects."
An earlier version of this story incorrectly named the school as Te Rangihakahaka Wakanoa. The school's name is Te Rangihakahaka, and Te Waka Noa is the name of the project.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scoop
a day ago
- Scoop
Applications Open For 2026 On Farm Support Science Scholarships
Press Release – Ministry For Primary Industries MPI launched the On Farm Support Science Scholarships in 2023. MPIs director of On Farm Support, Vanessa Winning, says applications are now open for next years scholarships. A scholarship programme run by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has started producing the next generation of on-farm advisers to support farmers and growers. Ffion White was one of the inaugural recipients of the On Farm Support Science Scholarship and is now an intern with Ballance Agri-Nutrients in the Manawatū-Whanganui region. 'I'm getting to work on-farm alongside Ballance's nutrient specialists. My role is about helping farmers improve their soil, grow better quality pasture and crops, and become more productive and profitable,' Ms White says. 'The scholarship was hugely beneficial. I had a mentor from MPI's On Farm Support team who invited me to industry field days and events. It helped me meet people in the sector which came in handy when I started looking for a job.' Ms White, who completed a Bachelor of Agricultural Science at Massey University, is one of four scholarship recipients who have secured primary industry advisory roles. Another is Nerissa Edwards, who now works as a farm consultant with Feilding-based KS Agri. 'Every day is different. I find it hugely rewarding working with farmers to create individual plans to drive improvements in on-farm efficiency, profitability, and sustainability,' Ms Edwards says. 'The scholarship enabled me to build connections within the advisory sector. That led to a six-month internship with KS Agri and eventually a role as a consultant.' MPI launched the On Farm Support Science Scholarships in 2023. MPI's director of On Farm Support, Vanessa Winning, says applications are now open for next year's scholarships. 'Six scholarships, worth a total of $30,000, are on offer for the 2026 academic year to tertiary students enrolled in relevant agriculture, horticulture, science, or viticulture degrees,' Ms Winning says. 'We're seeking applications from students who have a genuine interest in pursuing a career in either the agriculture, horticulture, or viticulture advisory sector. Applicants must have completed their first year of study.' Ms Winning says there's strong demand for on-farm advice backed by science and analysis that can support producers to adapt and improve business performance. 'MPI is backing initiatives that support farmers and growers to sustainably boost productivity and profitability, helping to achieve the Government's goal of doubling the value of exports by 2034,' Ms Winning says. Applications for the scholarships close on 15 September 2025. Further information is available on MPI's website:
Newsroom
a day ago
- Newsroom
Geothermal Strategy can be catalyst for transformational change
Opinion: The launch of the Government's draft Geothermal Strategy, 'From the Ground Up – a draft strategy to unlock New Zealand's geothermal potential', a first for our country, is a watershed moment. It signals that geothermal energy is no longer the quiet achiever in our energy system – the revived focus on its potential recognises that geothermal can be central to our national vision for a sustainable, resilient, and economically empowered future. We have worked in the geothermal sector with engineers, scientists, Māori trusts, and industry leaders for decades, here and globally, and it's clear his strategy is welcomed with enthusiasm and optimism. The direction is right. The language is ambitious. And the need is urgent. At the Geothermal Institute at the University of Auckland, we see this as more than a policy milestone – it's a long-awaited catalyst for transformational change. Hearing Ministers Shane Jones, Louise Upston and Shane Reti tell it, educating our young people and providing compelling career opportunities in geothermal needs to be at the heart of it. The importance of signals One of the most powerful aspects of the strategy is what it signals: that geothermal matters. That it has a future that can rival its storied past. That government sees the long-term opportunity and is willing to put its weight behind it. That's no small thing. As any developer or technology innovator will tell you, long-term certainty is the foundation of long-term investment. This strategy builds on tangible commitments already made – particularly in the Government's investment to accelerate research-backed supercritical geothermal technology development. This technology aims to harness extremely high-temperature fluids from deep underground to generate renewable energy more efficiently than conventional geothermal technology. That backing will keep New Zealand at the forefront of technology to tap ultra-hot geothermal fluids to produce radically more energy per well. This is complex science and engineering with high stakes and high rewards. If we get this right, we not only unlock more clean energy, but also more industrial process heat, more energy-dense sites, and more export opportunities for our solidified globally leading expertise. The ripple effects for regional economic development are significant: the creation of highly skilled, highly paid jobs in engineering, geoscience, subsurface modelling, advanced manufacturing and programme and environmental management in regions including Taupō, Kawerau and Rotorua, from Northland to the Central Volcanic Plateau. The students at the Geothermal Institute will be the first to tell you: these are real jobs that future-proof careers and bolster local economies. From field to frontier – the role of innovation, research and education Geothermal is a mature sector, but it's also a frontier sector. What struck me at the New Zealand Geothermal Week in Taupō this year wasn't just the technical excellence on display, but the dynamism. I had conversations with rangatahi curious about career pathways, with iwi-led developers eyeing up direct heat projects, with engineering consultants pitching AI-assisted reservoir models, and with international visitors in awe of the collaborative NZ Inc spirit in the room. Future skills were a strong emerging theme throughout, where the message was loud and clear: the sector is hungry for talent, and young people are hungry for purpose. We need to meet them in the middle – with curriculum pathways, internship pipelines, scholarships targeting local communities and a long-term commitment to Stem education throughout the education value chain. But building a globally competitive innovation pipeline requires sustained support. Training world-class geoscientists and engineers doesn't happen overnight. It needs the right investment and long-term partnerships. And to meet the Government's ambition to double geothermal energy use by 2040 will require scaling up education and training. That's why the strategy's success will ultimately rest not only on the high-level vision of geothermal growth, but also what sits behind it to fuel that growth. Reinforcing New Zealand's global leadership New Zealand already enjoys a stellar reputation in geothermal internationally. Our engineers and consultants are in demand in Southeast Asia, East Africa, North America, Latin America, the Pacific, Europe and beyond. Our training programmes and postgraduate education programmes have produced alumni who now lead geothermal policy development, regulation, production and scientific research on every continent. This strategy, if paired with smart investment and coordinated delivery, could elevate that leadership to the next level. We could be the first country to commercialise supercritical geothermal knowhow. We could be the global centre for geothermal workforce training, standards and certification. We could supercharge the export of integrated geothermal solutions, from power plant designs and drilling capability to stakeholder partnering frameworks, carbon capture innovations, critical minerals extraction, cutting-edge digital modelling and real-time assessment tools, and more. This is the soft power of geothermal – and it's rooted in decades of practical excellence, technical ingenuity, and manaakitanga. A call to action The Government's draft Geothermal Strategy establishes a clear framework for the growth of geothermal. At the launch this week, ministers set a challenge for our geothermal community to turn it into a bold, coherent vision for the future. The geothermal sector is ready – meeting challenges is what we do.
Scoop
a day ago
- Scoop
Raising The Bar Serves Up Fresh Thinking In Auckland Pubs
Raising the Bar is back, pouring the University of Auckland's most fascinating and future-shaping research straight into bars across the inner city. Among the topics on the menu at this year's event on Tuesday 26 August are the power of urban design to create and connect communities, how cutting-edge science is personalising health treatment like never before, the science of safer drug use and why big tech's unchecked AI development is a code red for democracy. With 20 talks held across ten bars in Auckland's CBD on one night, Raising the Bar gives alumni and the general public a chance to directly engage with top academics from the University of Auckland, all while enjoying their favourite drop. 'At its heart, Raising the Bar is about making research real and relevant,' says Mark Bentley, Director of Alumni Relations and Development at the University of Auckland. 'These talks bring important ideas into everyday spaces, sparking conversations about health, technology, culture and more – conversations that extend far beyond the University.' Originally launched in New York in 2013, Raising the Bar is now a global initiative – and the University of Auckland has proudly brought the event to local audiences since 2017. This year's talks will be held at bars across Auckland's CBD, including in Wynyard Quarter, Victoria Park and City Works Depot. Each venue will host two sessions, starting at 6pm and 8pm, with punters free to move from one bar to another to catch their preferred talks. All talks are free, but with the event expected to sell out early registration is recommended. Visit the Raising The Bar website to register your place now. This year's full line-up: Merryn Tawhai – Reimagining healthcare with human digital twins Rhys Ponton – From lab coats to late nights: the science of safer drug use Simon Young – Broken knees, bionic fixes and the rise of robot surgeons David Krofcheck – Out of this world: the smallest and most surprising liquid in the Universe Justin O'Sullivan – Swab, sequence, surprise! How science is personalising your health Mohsen Mohammadzadeh – Robo-rides and city life: what could go wrong? Andrew Erueti – The limits of liberal equality and the future of Māori self-determination Christina Stringer – Closer than you think: migrant exploitation and modern slavery in Aotearoa Olaf Diegel – 3D printing the future Darren Svirskis – The quest to find a cure for spinal cord injury Claire Meehan – Not just jokes: how misogyny online is shaping teen culture Alexandra Andhov – Code red for democracy: when big tech becomes bigger than government Sophie Tomlinson – 'Tragical-comical-historical-pastoral': Shakespeare's Cymbeline Marcelo Rodriguez Ferrere – We know animals are sentient. What does that mean for their legal status? Chris Ogden – Global authoritarianism: how to spot it and how to stop it Joel Rindelaub – Breathing plastic: Aotearoa's invisible pollution problem Antje Fiedler – Rewriting the playbook: how Kiwi businesses can thrive in a changing world Lee Beattie – Beyond buildings: urban design's power to create and connect communities Laura Burn – A human history of looking up: from stargazing to space lasers Tom Allen – A carbon fibre yarn: weaving fossil fuel roots into a sustainable future
