Oxfam NZ executive director Barry Coates pictured with Massey development studies postgraduate
students and event organisers Barbara-Anne Stenson, Anna Baldwin and Fred Odhiambo

Oxfam New Zealand executive director Barry Coates was on campus for a coffee break event run by development studies students for fair trade fortnight.

The fundraiser was held at the Manawatū campus on Wednesday. Development studies master’s student Barbara-Anne Stenson says the event supported Oxfam’s Biggest Coffee Break and coincided with a visit from Mr Coates, who gave a lunchtime talk and afternoon seminar.

“We thought we’d tie it [visit] in, and have a Massey-wide coffee break. All the funds go to Oxfam, and their work in the Pacific and Asia.

“We learn about fair trade and sustainability within our courses so it’s about putting it into practice,” she says. Students baked the tasty treats in-between thesis writing and wanted to raise awareness of what fair trade is, as well as funds.

Miss Stenson says having the head of Oxfam NZ attend and speak at the coffee break was really special” “Mr Coates works for an international NGO in New Zealand and for our students meeting someone who is working in the field is such a wonderful opportunity.”.

Mr Coates called Massey a “preeminent university on development studies” and was happy to support the student-run coffee break. “We have Oxfam coffee breaks to introduce people to fair trade, who may not be aware of fair trade, so it’s a social marketing way of getting the message out.

“We’ve helped drive public awareness, 66 per cent of the public understand what fair trade is, and we’re hoping a lot more people will support it in future.”

Oxfam's Biggest Coffee Break is held each May during fair trade fortnight and is an opportunity for people to get together to taste the fair trade difference and fundraise for Oxfam's work towards a fairer, safer, more sustainable world.

Mr Coates, a former Massey distance learner, spoke on Being good global citizens in an interdependent world during the lunchtime talk and Oxfam’s Behind the Brands campaign in the afternoon seminar.

Deans and lecturers from six Thai universities in Palmerston North for professional development.

Seventeen Thai university lecturers have enhanced their English teaching skills at the Manawatū campus over the past three months.

The group is here to develop their English language skills to be able to teach the language to students in Thailand.

The lecturers are from six Thai universities – Burapha, Thaksin, Naresuan, Rajabhat Rajanagarindra, Mahasarakam, and Muban Chombueng Rajabhat.

Yesterday, the deans of the education faculties within the Thai universities were here to discuss further professional development for their staff.

During the 12-week course, which ends next week, the lecturers participated in a number of workshops, joined in on contact courses with Massey students, and were part of the community by volunteering at school holiday programmes.

Lecturer Nop Naphatthalung teaches curriculum and instruction at Thaksin University. “Thai people cannot speak English well and as teachers we need to be able to speak English to those who want to learn in that language,” he says.

“The course has made me confident to speak and teach in English. I had learned some English before I came here by listening to English radio stations like BBC.”

Institute of Education international administrator Tracey Pinfold says this is the first group of Thai lecturers to take part in this course.

“Talks are underway for other academic groups from Thailand to come to Massey and participate in similar short courses,” she says.

Top, Associate Professor Robin Peace welcomes researchers to the launch of the eSOCSCI interactive website via video conference. Below: Members of the Massey Wellington team, from left, administrator Claire Baker, director Robin Peace, webmaster Richard Allardice, steering group member and network leader Petula Brannelly and project manager Heather Barnett.

Social science practitioners have a new forum for posting and sharing research – an interactive website hosted by the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.

The website, known as eSocSci (engaged social sciences), is a participatory knowledge and information site that hosts a growing number of national research networks, provides a research repository, discussion forums, links to policy issues and other resources for researchers throughout the social sciences and humanities fields.

College regional director Associate Professor Robin Peace says the website is an opportunity to promote dialogue toward joint solutions between New Zealand’s eight universities, and the wider research sector. Māori, Pasifika, new settler and emerging research groups are involved, as are policy agencies and Crown Research Institutes. The website aims to foster public debate and build national and global networks.

“This initiative illustrates the idea that shared knowledge can make a world we better understand and celebrates the collective energy of all involved,” Associate Professor Peace says.

Established as part of a grant made by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment in last year’s science investment round, it was launched last week at the Wellington campus, with staff from numerous New Zealand universities joining online.

For more information: esocsci.org.nz

Hayden Pritchard begins a lift at the recent Oceania Powerlifting Championships in Sydney (picture: Paul Fowler)

Massey graduate Arie Dekker (left) receives his award from Paul Dougherty of Cameron Partners.

Massey University's Dr Claire Matthews presents Mark Butcher with his award.

A Massey finance graduate was among stars of the finance scene honored at the recent Institute of Finance Professionals New Zealand (INFINZ) awards.

Arie Dekker, of Craigs Investment Partners, was named Research Analyst of the Year.

Mr Dekker studied a Bachelor of Business Studies majoring in finance at Massey and graduated with his Master of Business Studies majoring in finance in 1999.

Massey sponsored the Excellence in Treasury category for the best corporate treasury team in New Zealand as nominated by the industry in New Zealand, which was won by Auckland Council.

Dr Claire Matthews presented Auckland Council's Mark Butcher with the award and he will be speaking to third-year finance students on the Albany campus to share his experience.

More than 770 people attended the black tie dinner at The Langham Hotel in Auckland, held to recognise excellence in New Zealand’s capital markets.

Thirteen awards were presented to professionals from across the capital markets and two fellowships.

INFINZ executive director Jim McElwain said the awards focused on actions and individuals who had added value to the economy.

“By highlighting the outstanding players in our industry, we hope to raise standards across the entire market place,” he said.

Toni Chittenden with Mr Rafael Pont, the Cultural Attache of the Embassy of France, Wellington who presented her medal

Design sketches of the new robes for the Chancellor (above) and Vice-Chancellor (below) featuring the Massey University coat of arms on the upper shoulder.

The Vice-Chancellor's robes

Massey University senior officers are wearing new robes at this year’s graduation ceremonies, which embrace New Zealand’s unique identity while respecting ancient traditions that hark back to medieval times.

The expertise of staff from the College of Creative Arts was enlisted to design the gowns worn by the University’s four senior office-holders, the Chancellor, Pro-Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor and University Registrar.

Fashion design programme leader Deb Cumming says the designs reference the mana and prestige of the korowai (Maori cloak) and make the most of pure New Zealand wool, whilst retaining the gravitas of the old regalia.

The design team “absolutely felt the designs had to reflect biculturalism, respect tradition and point to creative futures,” she says.

They also wanted to incorporate the status, cultural pride honour, warmth and spiritual connections to the past that they identified in the korowai.

“We referenced the korowai by giving the gowns flowing, rounded and enveloping lines.”

Part of the design challenge was that the gowns have to work well viewed at a distance, like a stage costume, but must command respect, she says. “The designs look strong from stage, especially with their silver and gold detailing, then when you get up close you see the beautiful subtlety of the woven cloth.”

Professor Ross Hemera, also of the College of Creative Arts, advised the team as they worked through many iterations.

The robes are made of merino wool from Haldon Range farm in Marlborough, soaked in a solution of powdered pounamu (greenstone) from the South Island’s West Coast. The specially designed fabric weave references the concept of poutama, from tukutuku panels, symbolising steps to progress and the endeavour to succeed.

Silver and gold neckbands on the different robes feature an interpretation of the whakarere pattern traditionally found in Maori carvings. Whakarere conveys the notion of having the capacity to take new direction and making changes when needed.

In another striking element - and a link to ancient university tradition - each gown retains the Massey University Coat of Arms, re-stitched in gold thread by fashion senior tutor Robertina Downes.

The new gowns were first worn by the senior officers at Albany and Palmerston North graduation ceremonies ahead of next week’s graduation ceremony in Wellington on Thursday May 30.

Design team: Deb Cumming, Sue Prescott, Mary-Ellen Imlach.
Design Consultant: Professor Ross Hemera.
Additional assistance from: Robertina Downes, Lilian Mutsaers, Kirstin Sutherland.
Final gowns made by: Stuart Wadham.
Regalia bonnets made by: Etude Classique, Auckland.

Prospective students lining up for information at Open Day

The forecast may have threatened rain, but blue skies welcomed prospective students as they arrived on campus for Albany’s Open Day on Saturday.

Several thousand people toured the campus, checking out the variety of study options available and getting their hands dirty with science experiments, theatre workshops and a chocolate fountain provided by the Albany Students’ Association.

Campus registrar Andrea Davies says the high level of public interest shows how Massey is becoming the choice of North Shore and West Auckland students.

“We’re delighted with the turnout and the interest across the board in all our colleges. It’s a great opportunity for prospective students to meet the lecturers and professors and find out just what is on offer. This campus has grown so much in the time I’ve been here, and it’s just going to get bigger and better.”

Many of the lecture sessions for popular subjects had standing room only, and the new Theatre Lab was humming with poetry readings, workshops, story telling and film in action.

Up at the Albany village, the School of Engineering and Advanced Technology hosted a VEX Robotics scrimmage, in association with Kiwibots. There was activity across the entire floor with a sausage sizzle in full swing while musicians played on 3D printed guitars. The CNC machine was running hot creating personalised engraved dog-tags.

At the other end of the building VEX Robotics teams from local schools, including those who competed and won at the World Championships, met for the KiwiChallenge Regionals.

Enrolments are now open for semester two with a number of study options available, including distance learning. For more information, go to the Massey website

IEEE IMS President Mr Jorge Daher with Professor Subhas Mukhopadhyay at the recent conference in the United States.

Dr Joy Panoho at her graduation ceremony.

Māori directors on district health boards (DHBs) are burdened by the responsibility of being the sole advocates for Māori health, according to new research from a Massey University PhD graduate.

Dr Joy Panoho wrote her doctoral thesis on the experiences of Māori directors on district health boards. All but one of the 18 directors she interviewed said that tokenism, stereotyping and political correctness were common.

She says directors felt they were burdened by the responsibility of being the sole advocate for Māori health on their boards and questioned whether this should be the case.

“They described fulfilling the role of ‘a walking Treaty workshop’ – that was in their own words. Regardless of the best intentions of their non-Māori counterparts, enormous gaps in understanding about Māori politics, Māori expertise, and Māori networks exist,” Dr Panoho says.

“Well over half the directors I spoke to recounted incidents of confrontation where they had to educate their non-Māori counterparts about the underlying issues affecting Māori health. While this then led to improved levels of understanding, it can be quite an exhausting burden.”

Dr Panoho says some problems stem from “ambiguous legislation”. The New Zealand Health and Disability Act 2000 provided for regional Māori representation in DHB health governance, but according to Dr Panoho, there are many misunderstandings about what the legislation says.

“Most people believe the Act says there ought to be at least two Māori directors on every board. The wording is actually ‘best endeavours’ so in actual fact there are boards that have only have one Māori director, and some that have had none at all.

“For directors with no other Māori counterparts the situation can be deeply concerning. The appointment process is a top-down one so it’s not particularly transparent and often unpredictable.”

Dr Panoho says the way the Government has organised and identified Māori groupings can also be problematic for representation and does not reflect the contemporary reality of Māori urbanisation and mobility.

“The Government consultation over who should be appointed to directors’ roles is done through a tribal process, which excludes some potential candidates. This can cause friction between manawhenua and pan-Maori groups,” she explains. “For example, I am Ngāpuhi even though I no longer live in Northland. If I wanted to be nominated as a Māori director of a DHB I would have to go back north.”

But the most difficult challenge faced by Māori directors, according to Dr Panoho, comes from the attitudes of other directors.

“Many felt there was little cultural or historical understanding of the damage to Māori health brought about by the process of colonisation. Māori directors have valuable grassroots experience that is an important strategic tool for DHBs. This experiential capital is as valuable a resource contribution as, for example, a law degree or an accountancy degree.”

Despite the difficulties many have experienced as “the Māori representative” on their DHB, Dr Panoho’s interviewees also recognised that without the legislation there would be little or no Māori representation.

“All participants recognised the importance of having a seat at the table even though progress was at times hard to measure. Most felt, overall, they were having a positive impact and there was an opportunity to change attitudes and help turn Māori health statistics around. 

“For that sort of transformation to take place, there needs to be an improved understanding of Māori health issues by all DHB members,” Ms Panoho says. “Everyone at the board table needs to share the burden of improving Māori health.”

Dr Panoho’s doctoral thesis research was largely funded by the Health Research Council through a Māori Health Research PhD Scholarship.

Tina Grant with her children Jaden and Jemma

Days after she handed in her first assignment, Tina Grant’s world crumbled when her husband was killed while serving in Afghanistan. Corporal Doug Grant, 41, was fatally shot in Kabul in August 2011. She had to face life without him, and raise their two children on her own.

Now almost two years on, she has finished her qualification, graduated from Massey University and taken on a new role to help others.

Mrs Grant was an educator in the army and taught soldiers numeracy and literacy skills. She had a primary teaching degree, but enrolled in a Graduate Diploma in Adult Learning and Teaching as an extramural student.

“It was semester two, 2011 and I had just handed in my first assignment on the Monday. He was killed on the Friday,” Mrs Grant says. “Massey was amazing; unbeknown to me, they gave me an extension until the next year.”

She eventually returned to her studies, completing her final paper in semester two last year. “That was so hard, I had a new life as a single mum, and was working fulltime. It was a lot. I really struggled. I had a lot of turmoil going on in my head, I still hadn’t recovered from my loss, and relocating, but it turned out good.”

Mrs Grant, who lives in Auckland, made sure her children knew why she was putting time and energy into her studies. “I’d explain it’s about a better education, it’s about the future, about growing and professional development, and being a better person and to help society. And those are the things Douglas and I stood for.”

Her children, Jemma, 9, and Jaden, 7, were there on Wednesday when she graduated at a ceremony at Palmerston North’s Regent Theatre.

Life is looking up for the family. Mrs Grant has a new role as liaison officer for the Families of the Fallen –a job created after she wrote to the Defence Force with concerns about being forgotten.

"I got to a stage where I felt like I was being forgotten and people didn't remember who I was and they didn't remember who my husband was and that upset me," she says, and when the role was established she put herself forward.

"You can't moan about something if you're not going to get in and change it and I thought I'm the best one for the job because I am currently still serving in the military and I'm a widow and I know what it's like. When somebody falls it touches people's souls and people want to help."

Arrive Supplied, the winning team at Startup Weekend Auckland

The World Champion VEX Robotics teams will converge on the Albany Campus for an exhibition scrimmage to show off their world-beating style, at Open Day on Saturday May 18. The teams were supported and mentored at the World Championships by engineering staff and students from Massey University.

The Open Day is an opportunity for prospective students of all ages to come along, try new things and meet the people who could help them achieve their higher education goals.

On offer are chances to learn about everything from aviation to sciences, jazz to engineering, performing arts to public health and any aspect of business you’ve ever wanted to investigate.

Albany campus registrar Andrea Davies says Open Days are a fantastic way for people to try new things and ask questions about subjects they’re interested in.

“It’s a great experience, because we’re got our awesome staff here ready and able to talk to you about what’s on offer. We’re a fabulously friendly campus, and our small classes mean that people really get to know their lecturers, and feel supported throughout their study.

“We’re Massey’s Innovation campus – we take the best ideas, and we grow them and take them to market; so if you’ve got a business idea, we’ve got the expertise to help you make great ideas fly.”

Prospective students will be able to use a new radio frequency identification (RFID) bracelet, which they can scan when they visit any information stands. Information will then be uploaded to their Facebook page so they can look through it later on. Visitors who pre-register their attendance will go into a draw to win an iPad.

The School of Engineering and Advanced Technology (SEAT) are showing off their new facilities up at the Albany village, next to the Albany Library. There will be a band performing live on 3D printed instruments, a sausage sizzle and the opportunity to watch 3D printers in action. A CNC machine will make personalised engraved dog-tags and fourth year engineering students will talk about their projects.

A free concert by Jazz tutors from Te Kōki, New Zealand School of Music will be held at the Study Centre at 1pm, and there will be performances throughout the day by Jazz students.

The new Theatre Lab will also be open, with performances and activities including drama, poetry readings, storytelling and film. The Theatre Lab is located in the Sir Neil Waters Lecture Theatre Building, in the former Bennetts bookshop space.

Nearby in the new Watson Science Laboratories behind Student Central, Massey’s own Dolphin CSI team will be on hand to talk about their work, and people can check out brain-teasing maths problems, game programming and robot soccer. There will be state-of-the-art interactive displays to show how problems are solved in the sciences, across a number of disciplines.

On the Oteha Rohe campus, off Albany Highway, the Speech and Language Therapy Clinic will be open, offering insights into the varied roles Speech and Language Therapists play in the community.

Liaison staff from Māori@Massey, Pasifika@Massey, the International Office and the Centre for Professional and Continuing Education will also be available.

The campus will be open from 10am to 3pm.

To find out more about Albany Open Day and to download a programme go to: http://www.engine.ac.nz/open-days/#albany-campus