Kia orana, malo e lelei, malo ni, bula vinaka, talofa, kia ora 

This special edition of Rangahau Aranga showcases a selection of short pieces reflecting the richness and depth of research by AUT’s Pacific postgraduate researchers.  

The issue has been coordinated by members of AUT’s Moanaroa, a network of staff and students dedicated to enabling Pacific-led research, provide opportunities for Pacific researchers and cultivate culturally affirming collaborations, advocacy and partnerships.  

Opening with an editorial from network chair Jacoba Matapo and co-chair Dion Enari, the issue features authors representing the people and cultures from throughout the South Pacific and beyond and we are excited to introduce readers to their research. 

The Rangahau Aranga team would like to acknowledge the Moanaroa Pacific Research Network for their championing of the journal and for supporting our authors with their submissions. 

A special mihi to Teena Brown Pulu who was so instrumental in organising our peer reviewers; and to the team of peer reviewers themselves, for doing such a fantastic job within a limited timeframe. 

Emily Parr is the brilliant artist behind our cover art – please read more about Emily below. 

Cover art:

Emily Parr, and so we find them all over the universe now (2023). Clay, cotton, and stainless steel. 35mm photograph courtesy of the artist.

This artwork was commissioned for an external recess of the Hayman Kronfeld Building, the former warehouse of Emily’s great-great-grandfather. Gustav and Louisa Kronfeld, a Jewish merchant and Samoan matriarch, migrated to Tāmaki Makaurau in 1890, raising their ten children in nearby Eden Crescent. This ʻula, or necklace, references their family home, which was named ʻOli ʻUla after a sweet-scented red flower. The ʻula is strung with fabric flowers and hand-moulded ceramic beads, which evoke natural forms in Sāmoa, such as shells, seed pods, stones, sand, and coral. There is a flower or bead for every descendant of Gustav and Louisa, and a special bead hangs at the centre for all those yet to come. The artwork takes its name from a reflection by the Emily’s great-grandfather, Sam, on the familial network extending from Sāmoa to the world. It offers a reminder of the long-embedded stories and presence of Moana peoples in downtown Tāmaki Makaurau.

Emily Parr (Ngāi Te Rangi, Moana, Pākehā) is an artist/researcher living in Tāmaki Makaurau. Her moving-image practice explores relational ecologies of Te Moananui-a-Kiwa. Emily’s recent doctoral research considers the responsibilities she has inherited through her ancestral legacies and, in particular, to her family’s collection held by museums. She is part of the Vā Moana cluster at AUT, a research associate with Tāmaki Paenga Hira Auckland War Memorial Museum, and a 2024 Springboard Award recipient.