title: Rural trajectories: Diversification and farm-community linkages in Whakatane District, 1999-2003

authors: Joseph, Alun E.

subjects: rural communities

abstract: In New Zealand and elsewhere the interdependence of development in farming and the broader rural community can no longer be taken for granted. Five years ago we conducted a comparative analysis of the interrelated dynamics of change in agriculture and rural communities in the Central North Island. The observed trends from this research suggested that: (i) long and short cycles of change affecting the rural sector are promoting greater diversity in agriculture-community relations; (ii) adjustment processes are ongoing; and (iii) current evidence does not point unambiguously to either the decoupling or re-linking of agriculture and the broader rural community. This paper explores further the ambiguity encountered in the earlier research through a follow-up case study grounded in Whakatane District. The key finding is that as a result of individual effort and the will to diversify, the rural economy of Whakatane District is buoyant and farming remains the major economic activity. However, despite the apparent persistence of strong and pervasive agriculture-community linkages, the district remains vulnerable to forces embedded in short and long cycles of change. In terms of short-cycle change, the pressure on dairy farming from price fluctuation and the increasing attractiveness of conversion to horticulture is affecting the agricultural side of the equation, while the proliferation of lifestyle blocks is notable on the community side. In terms of long-cycle change, the influence of a renaissance of Maori rural living is beginning to be felt on the community side, while the effect of climate change and associated weather extremes is beginning to impact on agriculture.

text: Rural trajectories: Diversification and farm-community linkages in Whakatane District, 1999-2003 In New Zealand and elsewhere the interdependence of development in farming and the broader rural community can no longer be taken for granted. Five years ago we conducted a comparative analysis of the interrelated dynamics of change in agriculture and rural communities in the Central North Island. The observed trends from this research suggested that: (i) long and short cycles of change affecting the rural sector are promoting greater diversity in agriculture-community relations; (ii) adjustment processes are ongoing; and (iii) current evidence does not point unambiguously to either the decoupling or re-linking of agriculture and the broader rural community. This paper explores further the ambiguity encountered in the earlier research through a follow-up case study grounded in Whakatane District. The key finding is that as a result of individual effort and the will to diversify, the rural economy of Whakatane District is buoyant and farming remains the major economic activity. However, despite the apparent persistence of strong and pervasive agriculture-community linkages, the district remains vulnerable to forces embedded in short and long cycles of change. In terms of short-cycle change, the pressure on dairy farming from price fluctuation and the increasing attractiveness of conversion to horticulture is affecting the agricultural side of the equation, while the proliferation of lifestyle blocks is notable on the community side. In terms of long-cycle change, the influence of a renaissance of Maori rural living is beginning to be felt on the community side, while the effect of climate change and associated weather extremes is beginning to impact on agriculture.

year: 2004-07

title: Implications of sea-level rise on estuarine benthic biodiversity and ecosystem functioning

authors: Dixon, Olivia Jane

abstract: Estuarine habitats are among the most productive ecosystems around the globe. The macroinvertebrate communities within these habitats underpin ecosystem functioning and therefore the provision of ecosystem services valued by society. Due to their geographic positioning, coastal areas represent a human-ocean interface and are consequently at the forefront of anthropogenic pressure. Sea-level rise (SLR) is one major consequence of anthropogenic climate change that poses a great threat to coastal environments and will result in extensive intertidal area loss. There is an evident bias within coastal SLR research towards the implications for the abiotic environment such as impacts on geomorphology but the ecological implications however, have been largely overlooked despite their likely significance. In this thesis, I aim to address this knowledge gap by investigating how benthic macroinvertebrate communities and their contributions to ecosystem function will respond to SLR within a large temperate estuary. To explore how benthic macroinvertebrate community structure will respond to future SLR, I employed a space-for-time approach. In this study, I considered site depth as a proxy for SLR to gauge how macroinvertebrate communities may shift with increasing depth as sea level is elevated. This study was based on data obtained from 119 unvegetated soft-sediment sampling locations throughout Tauranga Harbour. An initial hierarchical cluster analysis was performed on the macroinvertebrate abundance data to reveal groups of sites that shared significantly similar community structure. Three clusters of sites were identified at a > 34% similarity level with significantly different macroinvertebrate community structure. Clustered groups were generally characterised by different depth ranges that we could consider representative of intertidal, shallow subtidal and deep subtidal habitats. Similarly, depth was identified as the most important environmental variable for predicting variation in macroinvertebrate community structure using distance-based linear modelling (explaining 12%) and gradient forest analysis indicated it is important in explaining rates of compositional turnover (6%). Chl-a, mud content and average current speed were among the next most important predictors explaining variation in community structure (5%, 4% and 2%, respectively) and compositional turnover (6%, 3%, 4%, respectively). Functional trait analysis indicated low functional redundancy for a key intertidal suspension-feeding bivalve (Austrovenus stutchburyi) and the lack of a shallow subtidal functional replacement should intertidal habitats become inundated by SLR. The findings of this thesis strongly suggest SLR and the associated environmental changes will significantly alter estuarine macroinvertebrate communities, indicating implications for ecosystem function and resilience. Key findings of this thesis will complement management strategies of coastal areas and encourage they are not treated as static systems as ecological shifts are predicted to occur with SLR over time. Well- informed management of important estuarine habitats that recognises their spatial and temporal dynamicity will be critical for ensuring ecosystem functions and services they deliver will be conserved for future generations.

text: Implications of sea-level rise on estuarine benthic biodiversity and ecosystem functioning Estuarine habitats are among the most productive ecosystems around the globe. The macroinvertebrate communities within these habitats underpin ecosystem functioning and therefore the provision of ecosystem services valued by society. Due to their geographic positioning, coastal areas represent a human-ocean interface and are consequently at the forefront of anthropogenic pressure. Sea-level rise (SLR) is one major consequence of anthropogenic climate change that poses a great threat to coastal environments and will result in extensive intertidal area loss. There is an evident bias within coastal SLR research towards the implications for the abiotic environment such as impacts on geomorphology but the ecological implications however, have been largely overlooked despite their likely significance. In this thesis, I aim to address this knowledge gap by investigating how benthic macroinvertebrate communities and their contributions to ecosystem function will respond to SLR within a large temperate estuary. To explore how benthic macroinvertebrate community structure will respond to future SLR, I employed a space-for-time approach. In this study, I considered site depth as a proxy for SLR to gauge how macroinvertebrate communities may shift with increasing depth as sea level is elevated. This study was based on data obtained from 119 unvegetated soft-sediment sampling locations throughout Tauranga Harbour. An initial hierarchical cluster analysis was performed on the macroinvertebrate abundance data to reveal groups of sites that shared significantly similar community structure. Three clusters of sites were identified at a > 34% similarity level with significantly different macroinvertebrate community structure. Clustered groups were generally characterised by different depth ranges that we could consider representative of intertidal, shallow subtidal and deep subtidal habitats. Similarly, depth was identified as the most important environmental variable for predicting variation in macroinvertebrate community structure using distance-based linear modelling (explaining 12%) and gradient forest analysis indicated it is important in explaining rates of compositional turnover (6%). Chl-a, mud content and average current speed were among the next most important predictors explaining variation in community structure (5%, 4% and 2%, respectively) and compositional turnover (6%, 3%, 4%, respectively). Functional trait analysis indicated low functional redundancy for a key intertidal suspension-feeding bivalve (Austrovenus stutchburyi) and the lack of a shallow subtidal functional replacement should intertidal habitats become inundated by SLR. The findings of this thesis strongly suggest SLR and the associated environmental changes will significantly alter estuarine macroinvertebrate communities, indicating implications for ecosystem function and resilience. Key findings of this thesis will complement management strategies of coastal areas and encourage they are not treated as static systems as ecological shifts are predicted to occur with SLR over time. Well- informed management of important estuarine habitats that recognises their spatial and temporal dynamicity will be critical for ensuring ecosystem functions and services they deliver will be conserved for future generations.

year: 2022

title: Building bridges - seeking collaboration with a Maori community

authors: Hohneck, Deborah

subjects: Maori community collaboration

abstract: The context for this thesis is the pressing need to help mainstream schools become more proactive and culturally responsive in how they engage with the whānau of their Māori pupils. 
The thesis examines how the author, a facilitator within the Te Kotahitanga Professional Development project, established a responsive and dialogic relationship with a local Māori community, so that the school could more fully support the educational achievements of its Māori students in mainstream classes. She explored ways to build “educationally powerful connections” with whānau. Initially, there was little interaction with Māori families through the traditional formats that this school was employing. She describes her personal journey of learning to engage with whānau members outside of the school context, and to work collaboratively with them to find more effective solutions.
In the first part of the thesis the author examines literature which helps to understand important differences between Pākehā and Māori ‘World Views’, and the reluctance that many Māori feel to engage with Pākehā institutions. She documents how she and whānau members, working together, identified contexts and cultural processes (tikanga) that enabled this collaborative research project to proceed in a culturally responsive way. 
In the second part of the thesis the author examines the particular culturally-grounded learning events and experiences that she encountered along the way. Concurrently with this identification and reporting of events and experiences, she reflects on how these events and experiences impacted on her professional practice, and on her professional and personal identities. The author also considers what implications her collaborative research journey with Māori colleagues and friends and learning might have for school leaders and whānau members in other schools. 
Throughout the thesis, the author sustains a metaphor of bridge building. This metaphor helps to appreciate how, although starting from quite different cultural locations and positions at either end of the bridge, members of both cultures were able to meet in the middle and find respectful and trusting ways of working together.

text: Building bridges - seeking collaboration with a Maori community The context for this thesis is the pressing need to help mainstream schools become more proactive and culturally responsive in how they engage with the whānau of their Māori pupils. 
The thesis examines how the author, a facilitator within the Te Kotahitanga Professional Development project, established a responsive and dialogic relationship with a local Māori community, so that the school could more fully support the educational achievements of its Māori students in mainstream classes. She explored ways to build “educationally powerful connections” with whānau. Initially, there was little interaction with Māori families through the traditional formats that this school was employing. She describes her personal journey of learning to engage with whānau members outside of the school context, and to work collaboratively with them to find more effective solutions.
In the first part of the thesis the author examines literature which helps to understand important differences between Pākehā and Māori ‘World Views’, and the reluctance that many Māori feel to engage with Pākehā institutions. She documents how she and whānau members, working together, identified contexts and cultural processes (tikanga) that enabled this collaborative research project to proceed in a culturally responsive way. 
In the second part of the thesis the author examines the particular culturally-grounded learning events and experiences that she encountered along the way. Concurrently with this identification and reporting of events and experiences, she reflects on how these events and experiences impacted on her professional practice, and on her professional and personal identities. The author also considers what implications her collaborative research journey with Māori colleagues and friends and learning might have for school leaders and whānau members in other schools. 
Throughout the thesis, the author sustains a metaphor of bridge building. This metaphor helps to appreciate how, although starting from quite different cultural locations and positions at either end of the bridge, members of both cultures were able to meet in the middle and find respectful and trusting ways of working together.

year: 2013