title: Te mōhiotangaora: Within the knowing healing begins

authors: Witehira, Tracey Moana

abstract: This thesis investigates the intersection of the colonized self and the Māori self, examining how these dual identities coexist within the same physical, mental, and spiritual space. Grounded in Māori ontology and wellness (Durie, 1998), the study uses an interdisciplinary approach that combines academic analysis, creative writing, pūrākau  (Lee, 2009), journal reflections, and artistic practice to explore two distinct ways of knowing that operate within this duality.
In this academic study, the colonized self is defined as a Māori woman shaped and constrained by the effects of colonization (Gemmell, 2013: Mikaere, 2003). Conversely, the Māori self represents the awakened Wahine Māori who has embraced mātauranga  Māori. She actively learns, embodies, practices, and lives Māori values and traditions as part of her everyday life. However, the Wahine Māori is not entirely free from the ongoing impacts of colonization, given the long history of conflict between Māori and European peoples in Aotearoa.  The colonization of New Zealand, marked by the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, resulted in the systematic loss of cultural markers central to Māori identity (Jackson, 1998, 1995; Walker, 1990). Furthermore, government policies have contributed to the marginalization of Māori culture in areas such as family, education, religion, and loss of language (Pihama, 2001; Smith, 1999).
Through this creative practice research, the practice of raranga whatu is explored using both traditional and contemporary techniques, contributing to the development of mātauranga Māori art forms (Campbell, 2019; Smith, 2019). This study examines how the process of weaving supports one woman’s journey of reclaiming and empowering her Indigenous identity. Whatu raranga serves as a transformative practice, embodying the duality of the self within a uniquely Māori space of being. Within a Kaupapa Māori framework, the process of restoring cultural connections has supported the reawakening of Mana Wahine identity and the reclamation of Māori spaces, as recognized and embodied by kairaranga  (Campbell, 2019; Pere, 1991; H. Smith, 2019; Yates-Smith, 1980).

text: Te mōhiotangaora: Within the knowing healing begins This thesis investigates the intersection of the colonized self and the Māori self, examining how these dual identities coexist within the same physical, mental, and spiritual space. Grounded in Māori ontology and wellness (Durie, 1998), the study uses an interdisciplinary approach that combines academic analysis, creative writing, pūrākau  (Lee, 2009), journal reflections, and artistic practice to explore two distinct ways of knowing that operate within this duality.
In this academic study, the colonized self is defined as a Māori woman shaped and constrained by the effects of colonization (Gemmell, 2013: Mikaere, 2003). Conversely, the Māori self represents the awakened Wahine Māori who has embraced mātauranga  Māori. She actively learns, embodies, practices, and lives Māori values and traditions as part of her everyday life. However, the Wahine Māori is not entirely free from the ongoing impacts of colonization, given the long history of conflict between Māori and European peoples in Aotearoa.  The colonization of New Zealand, marked by the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, resulted in the systematic loss of cultural markers central to Māori identity (Jackson, 1998, 1995; Walker, 1990). Furthermore, government policies have contributed to the marginalization of Māori culture in areas such as family, education, religion, and loss of language (Pihama, 2001; Smith, 1999).
Through this creative practice research, the practice of raranga whatu is explored using both traditional and contemporary techniques, contributing to the development of mātauranga Māori art forms (Campbell, 2019; Smith, 2019). This study examines how the process of weaving supports one woman’s journey of reclaiming and empowering her Indigenous identity. Whatu raranga serves as a transformative practice, embodying the duality of the self within a uniquely Māori space of being. Within a Kaupapa Māori framework, the process of restoring cultural connections has supported the reawakening of Mana Wahine identity and the reclamation of Māori spaces, as recognized and embodied by kairaranga  (Campbell, 2019; Pere, 1991; H. Smith, 2019; Yates-Smith, 1980).

year: 2025-01

title: Microplastics in the marine environment: Sediment contaminant and bioaccumulation rates in bivalves within the Bay of Plenty

authors: Lewis, Anita

subjects: Microplastic

abstract: Microplastic pollution is recognised as a significant anthropogenic issue in coastal ecosystems around the world. The accumulation of microplastics in coastal environments causes both direct and indirect effects on these already vulnerable ecosystems. Limited information was available of the scale of microplastic pollution across New Zealand, including the Bay of Plenty. To enable a greater understanding of microplastic accumulation in sediment and bioaccumulation in bivalves sampling  within the Bay of Plenty area was conducted.
The presence of  microplastic particles was investigated from sediment and shellfish samples collected across the Bay of Plenty, from Waihī Beach in the West, to Ōpōtiki in the East. Three species of shellfish were collected that differed in their functional feeding modes (filter feeder vs deposit feeder): tuangi (cockle: Austrovenus stuchburyi), hanikura (wedge shell: Macomona liliana), and tuatua (surf clam: Paphies subtriangulata). Microplastic particles from sediment and bivalves were separated from the sediment and shellfish samples in the laboratory and identified using visual light stereomicroscopy. Microplastic particles were identified and quantified into three categories: fragments, fibres, and films. 
Significant numbers of fibres, as well as some fragments and films were found to be present in the sediment throughout all sampling locations. The highest density of microplastic particles in sediment (up to 11,087.9 per m²) were observed at sites that were closed to municipal sewage outfalls and populated areas, and the lowest densities were observed at Matakana Island (63 particles per m²). Sites in Ōhiwa Harbour showed an average of 504.6 particles per m² at the high tide zone and 477.6 particles per m² at the intertidal zone in the sediment. Ohiwa Harbour showed similar levels of microplastic accumulation in sediment compared to Tauranga Harbour. However, higher levels of microplastic particles were found in the sediment at open coast sites.
All shellfish sampled had at least one microplastic particle found in their tissues. The highest number of microplastics in shellfish were found in the wedge shell (23 particles), with the least from the cockles (1). Statistical analysis reveal that the deep burrowing deposit feeder (Macomona liliana) demonstrated an elevated amount of microplastic particles ingested relative to the shallow burrowing suspension feeding cockle (Austrovenus stutchburyi). A notable amount of microplastic particles were also found at all sampling locations for the culturally important tuatua (Paphies subtriangulata). However, comparing all three bivalve species, the deposit feeding M. liliana, ingested higher amounts than both the A. stutchburyi and P. subtriangulata, which could be related to their different functional feeding modes in the marine environment. This research provides baseline information to assess the extent of microplastic pollution in sediments and the potential for bioaccumulation in bivalve species with differentiated feeding modes and functional roles in the marine environment. 
The problem with microplastics is a global emerging contaminant. Preventing the problem of plastic wastes in New Zealand will require change across all aspects of society, along with policy regulations to mitigate the issue of microplastic pollution.

text: Microplastics in the marine environment: Sediment contaminant and bioaccumulation rates in bivalves within the Bay of Plenty Microplastic pollution is recognised as a significant anthropogenic issue in coastal ecosystems around the world. The accumulation of microplastics in coastal environments causes both direct and indirect effects on these already vulnerable ecosystems. Limited information was available of the scale of microplastic pollution across New Zealand, including the Bay of Plenty. To enable a greater understanding of microplastic accumulation in sediment and bioaccumulation in bivalves sampling  within the Bay of Plenty area was conducted.
The presence of  microplastic particles was investigated from sediment and shellfish samples collected across the Bay of Plenty, from Waihī Beach in the West, to Ōpōtiki in the East. Three species of shellfish were collected that differed in their functional feeding modes (filter feeder vs deposit feeder): tuangi (cockle: Austrovenus stuchburyi), hanikura (wedge shell: Macomona liliana), and tuatua (surf clam: Paphies subtriangulata). Microplastic particles from sediment and bivalves were separated from the sediment and shellfish samples in the laboratory and identified using visual light stereomicroscopy. Microplastic particles were identified and quantified into three categories: fragments, fibres, and films. 
Significant numbers of fibres, as well as some fragments and films were found to be present in the sediment throughout all sampling locations. The highest density of microplastic particles in sediment (up to 11,087.9 per m²) were observed at sites that were closed to municipal sewage outfalls and populated areas, and the lowest densities were observed at Matakana Island (63 particles per m²). Sites in Ōhiwa Harbour showed an average of 504.6 particles per m² at the high tide zone and 477.6 particles per m² at the intertidal zone in the sediment. Ohiwa Harbour showed similar levels of microplastic accumulation in sediment compared to Tauranga Harbour. However, higher levels of microplastic particles were found in the sediment at open coast sites.
All shellfish sampled had at least one microplastic particle found in their tissues. The highest number of microplastics in shellfish were found in the wedge shell (23 particles), with the least from the cockles (1). Statistical analysis reveal that the deep burrowing deposit feeder (Macomona liliana) demonstrated an elevated amount of microplastic particles ingested relative to the shallow burrowing suspension feeding cockle (Austrovenus stutchburyi). A notable amount of microplastic particles were also found at all sampling locations for the culturally important tuatua (Paphies subtriangulata). However, comparing all three bivalve species, the deposit feeding M. liliana, ingested higher amounts than both the A. stutchburyi and P. subtriangulata, which could be related to their different functional feeding modes in the marine environment. This research provides baseline information to assess the extent of microplastic pollution in sediments and the potential for bioaccumulation in bivalve species with differentiated feeding modes and functional roles in the marine environment. 
The problem with microplastics is a global emerging contaminant. Preventing the problem of plastic wastes in New Zealand will require change across all aspects of society, along with policy regulations to mitigate the issue of microplastic pollution.

year: 2021

title: Texts written in English and Chinese by expert and novice writers: A genre-based study and its implications for the teaching of writing

authors: Huang Wu, Hsiao-Li (Ellen)

subjects: genre

abstract: This thesis aims to contribute to the design and implementation of genre-based academic writing courses intended for learners of English in Taiwan by (a) examining the ways in which Taiwanese speakers of Chinese as a first language (both experienced and novice writers) typically structure texts, in both Chinese and English, in response to prompts intended to elicit one of four discourse modes (recount, argument, explanation and classification) and (b) comparing the structuring of their texts with (i) prototypes relating to each of the four discourse modes that are based on a sample of published academic articles, and (ii) texts written in English by experienced and novice writers who are speakers of English as a first language. In response to one of four prompts, each intended to elicit a different discourse mode, experienced and novice writers - Taiwanese citizens whose first language is Chinese - were asked to write texts of between 200 and 250 words. They produced 240 texts, of which 120 were written in Chinese and 120 in English. Analysis of these texts indicated that, in terms of both overall rhetorical structure (often referred to as ‘schematic structure’) and internal discourse structure (the occurrence and co-occurrence of particular discourse relations), the texts written in both Chinese and English by the experienced writers were (a) very similar to one another, and (b) also very similar to texts written in English by experienced writers for whom English is a first language. Although the structuring of the texts written by the novice writers was less consistent overall, the texts written in Chinese by these writers were structurally closer than were the texts written in English to (a) the texts written in both English and Chinese by the experienced writers, and (b) texts written in English by experienced writers of English for whom English is a first language. Furthermore, analysis of 60 texts (20 written in Chinese and 20 written in English by expert/ experienced Taiwanese writers and 20 written in English by New Zealand teachers for whom English was a first language) revealed a marked tendency, in all cases, towards simple linear or complex linear textual development, with cyclic development being evident in only one of the 60 texts. There is a widespread belief that experienced writers whose first language is Chinese and experienced writers whose first language is English tend to structure texts in very different ways. So far as the writers involved in this study are concerned, this would appear not to be the case. It may therefore be that the difficulty that learners of English in Taiwan often experience in relation to the structuring of texts in English has less to do with their cultural and linguistic heritage than it has to do with the complexities that are inevitably associated with attempts to structure texts in a language in which one has limited proficiency. If this is the case, it has implications for the ways in which genre-centered writing programs intended for learners of English in Taiwan are organized and implemented.

text: Texts written in English and Chinese by expert and novice writers: A genre-based study and its implications for the teaching of writing This thesis aims to contribute to the design and implementation of genre-based academic writing courses intended for learners of English in Taiwan by (a) examining the ways in which Taiwanese speakers of Chinese as a first language (both experienced and novice writers) typically structure texts, in both Chinese and English, in response to prompts intended to elicit one of four discourse modes (recount, argument, explanation and classification) and (b) comparing the structuring of their texts with (i) prototypes relating to each of the four discourse modes that are based on a sample of published academic articles, and (ii) texts written in English by experienced and novice writers who are speakers of English as a first language. In response to one of four prompts, each intended to elicit a different discourse mode, experienced and novice writers - Taiwanese citizens whose first language is Chinese - were asked to write texts of between 200 and 250 words. They produced 240 texts, of which 120 were written in Chinese and 120 in English. Analysis of these texts indicated that, in terms of both overall rhetorical structure (often referred to as ‘schematic structure’) and internal discourse structure (the occurrence and co-occurrence of particular discourse relations), the texts written in both Chinese and English by the experienced writers were (a) very similar to one another, and (b) also very similar to texts written in English by experienced writers for whom English is a first language. Although the structuring of the texts written by the novice writers was less consistent overall, the texts written in Chinese by these writers were structurally closer than were the texts written in English to (a) the texts written in both English and Chinese by the experienced writers, and (b) texts written in English by experienced writers of English for whom English is a first language. Furthermore, analysis of 60 texts (20 written in Chinese and 20 written in English by expert/ experienced Taiwanese writers and 20 written in English by New Zealand teachers for whom English was a first language) revealed a marked tendency, in all cases, towards simple linear or complex linear textual development, with cyclic development being evident in only one of the 60 texts. There is a widespread belief that experienced writers whose first language is Chinese and experienced writers whose first language is English tend to structure texts in very different ways. So far as the writers involved in this study are concerned, this would appear not to be the case. It may therefore be that the difficulty that learners of English in Taiwan often experience in relation to the structuring of texts in English has less to do with their cultural and linguistic heritage than it has to do with the complexities that are inevitably associated with attempts to structure texts in a language in which one has limited proficiency. If this is the case, it has implications for the ways in which genre-centered writing programs intended for learners of English in Taiwan are organized and implemented.

year: 2011