title: Views on clinical trial recruitment, biospecimen collection, and cancer research: population science from landscapes of the Haudenosaunee (People of the Longhouse).

authors: Haring, Rodney C.

subjects: American Indian

abstract: Biomedical research in culturally distinct communities is often a challenge. Potential barriers to participation occur because science is presented in a format that lacks cultural acknowledgement. Investigations may also fail to showcase beneficial relevance to the communities or include them in true partnership. The history of biomedical research within Native American societies has been complicated by these issues. Historical trauma among many Native groups sometimes transcends into contemporary challenges in both recruitment to and participation particularly in biobanking research. The participants for this study included members of the Haudenosaunee, the People of the Longhouse. Native Americans, including the Haudenosaunee, endure some of the worst health disparities in the country. These include high rates of cancer, obesity, and diabetes which may be linked at least partially to genetic predisposition. Results from a Haudenosaunee urban population shared response on ways to improve recruitment strategies for biospecimen, cancer, and other health-related clinical trials. Mixed methods approaches were used, and community responses indicated the importance of creating trust through respectful partnership; promoting culturally appropriate recruitment materials; the need for a greater understanding of consenting and signature processes; the necessity for concise summary sheets; and a desire to have information that community member understand. Discussion items also include international Indigenous perspectives to biobanking and genetic-related health disparity research.

text: Views on clinical trial recruitment, biospecimen collection, and cancer research: population science from landscapes of the Haudenosaunee (People of the Longhouse). Biomedical research in culturally distinct communities is often a challenge. Potential barriers to participation occur because science is presented in a format that lacks cultural acknowledgement. Investigations may also fail to showcase beneficial relevance to the communities or include them in true partnership. The history of biomedical research within Native American societies has been complicated by these issues. Historical trauma among many Native groups sometimes transcends into contemporary challenges in both recruitment to and participation particularly in biobanking research. The participants for this study included members of the Haudenosaunee, the People of the Longhouse. Native Americans, including the Haudenosaunee, endure some of the worst health disparities in the country. These include high rates of cancer, obesity, and diabetes which may be linked at least partially to genetic predisposition. Results from a Haudenosaunee urban population shared response on ways to improve recruitment strategies for biospecimen, cancer, and other health-related clinical trials. Mixed methods approaches were used, and community responses indicated the importance of creating trust through respectful partnership; promoting culturally appropriate recruitment materials; the need for a greater understanding of consenting and signature processes; the necessity for concise summary sheets; and a desire to have information that community member understand. Discussion items also include international Indigenous perspectives to biobanking and genetic-related health disparity research.

year: 2018

title: Using ultra-small radiocarbon dates to obtain reliable ages on shells affected by hard water

authors: Milson, Catherine Elizabeth

abstract: Radiocarbon dating is used across a wide range of scientific disciplines including archaeology, forensics, and geosciences. Interest in reducing the minimum sample size limit required for obtaining reliable radiocarbon dates has grown over the years as this would offer many new research opportunities. Contamination introduced by the radiocarbon dating process becomes more problematic for samples <0.10 mgC, and in order to reliably radiocarbon date ultra-small samples, contamination is one of the issues that needs to be resolved.

Reducing the amount of sample required for radiocarbon analysis has been specifically applied to an archaeological problem. The Mariana Islands, located in the Western North Pacific, are home to the archaeological site Bapot-1. While the exact date of human arrival is currently under debate, it is thought to have occurred between 3300 – 3500 years ago. Establishing a date of human arrival is important because it represents the longest ocean voyage of its time, more than 2000 km, and is necessary for modelling when Neolithic expansion in Island Southeast Asia occurred.

Obtaining reliable radiocarbon dates from Bapot-1 is difficult as short-lived terrestrial materials, such as charred twigs, are often degraded or scarce. While shell material is abundant, the presence of limestone bedrock hinders its use. As freshwater travels through limestone, it picks up bicarbonate ions depleted in ¹⁴C. This ‘old’ water is discharged into the water at the shore where it is then incorporated into the shells of some, but not all, shell taxa that live close to the shore. This results in older radiocarbon ages for some shellfish. To overcome this problem, it is hypothesized that ¹³C can be used to identify shellfish that have been affected by hard water. However, for shellfish that have a tolerance for both marine and estuarine environments, different ¹³C/¹⁴C values will be obtained depending on where sampling occurs on the shell. To accurately radiocarbon date a single shell that may have been influenced by old ¹⁴C at different times, it is necessary to identify which shell growth bands have been deposited while influenced by the different water sources. This necessitates the ability to date very small samples of shell material. 

To overcome contamination issues associated with radiocarbon dating ultra-small samples, a series of vacuum line and chemical modifications were selected and substituted into current Waikato Radiocarbon Dating Laboratory (WRDL) procedures. To assess the effect of each modification, three standards (of known age) that are used at the WRDL were radiocarbon dated. The radiocarbon dating results from the standards showed that the volume and chemical modifications did not have any significant impact on improving contamination issues for ultra-small samples. However, there were some noteworthy observations. The graphitisation reaction was significantly faster when a quartz tube with “slush” was used instead of magnesium perchlorate. This time reduction has the potential to minimise contamination. Furthermore, the use of a six-decimal point balance for weighing ultra-small samples resulted in more precise CO₂ yields compared to the four-decimal point balance routinely used at the WRDL.

Selected volume modifications were used to radiocarbon date three growth bands from a Gafrarium sp. shellfish from the Mariana Islands. Two results from the same Gafrarium sp. shellfish that were previously radiocarbon dated were incorporated into this thesis, resulting in a representation of three “marine” and two “estuarine” growth bands. Radiocarbon results provided preliminary evidence supporting the hypothesis of a relationship between ¹³C, ¹⁴C, and hard water exposure. Using Chi-square statistics, the five radiocarbon dates were calculated to be statistically distinguishable, a significant result considering the five radiocarbon dates were from the same shell. Furthermore, the pooled radiocarbon age of the “marine” growth bands was statistically distinguishable from one of the estuarine samples, where a difference of 304 ¹⁴C years was observed. Conversely, when the pooled radiocarbon age of the “marine” growth bands was compared to the other estuarine sample, the two radiocarbon dates were statistically the same. The reason for this was hypothesised to be due to variability in old ¹⁴C. The tide, along with wind and storms, results in variable concentrations of marine and fresh water held close to the shoreline by onshore currents, and so these variable conditions result in variability of the concentration of old ¹⁴C in the water.

text: Using ultra-small radiocarbon dates to obtain reliable ages on shells affected by hard water Radiocarbon dating is used across a wide range of scientific disciplines including archaeology, forensics, and geosciences. Interest in reducing the minimum sample size limit required for obtaining reliable radiocarbon dates has grown over the years as this would offer many new research opportunities. Contamination introduced by the radiocarbon dating process becomes more problematic for samples <0.10 mgC, and in order to reliably radiocarbon date ultra-small samples, contamination is one of the issues that needs to be resolved.

Reducing the amount of sample required for radiocarbon analysis has been specifically applied to an archaeological problem. The Mariana Islands, located in the Western North Pacific, are home to the archaeological site Bapot-1. While the exact date of human arrival is currently under debate, it is thought to have occurred between 3300 – 3500 years ago. Establishing a date of human arrival is important because it represents the longest ocean voyage of its time, more than 2000 km, and is necessary for modelling when Neolithic expansion in Island Southeast Asia occurred.

Obtaining reliable radiocarbon dates from Bapot-1 is difficult as short-lived terrestrial materials, such as charred twigs, are often degraded or scarce. While shell material is abundant, the presence of limestone bedrock hinders its use. As freshwater travels through limestone, it picks up bicarbonate ions depleted in ¹⁴C. This ‘old’ water is discharged into the water at the shore where it is then incorporated into the shells of some, but not all, shell taxa that live close to the shore. This results in older radiocarbon ages for some shellfish. To overcome this problem, it is hypothesized that ¹³C can be used to identify shellfish that have been affected by hard water. However, for shellfish that have a tolerance for both marine and estuarine environments, different ¹³C/¹⁴C values will be obtained depending on where sampling occurs on the shell. To accurately radiocarbon date a single shell that may have been influenced by old ¹⁴C at different times, it is necessary to identify which shell growth bands have been deposited while influenced by the different water sources. This necessitates the ability to date very small samples of shell material. 

To overcome contamination issues associated with radiocarbon dating ultra-small samples, a series of vacuum line and chemical modifications were selected and substituted into current Waikato Radiocarbon Dating Laboratory (WRDL) procedures. To assess the effect of each modification, three standards (of known age) that are used at the WRDL were radiocarbon dated. The radiocarbon dating results from the standards showed that the volume and chemical modifications did not have any significant impact on improving contamination issues for ultra-small samples. However, there were some noteworthy observations. The graphitisation reaction was significantly faster when a quartz tube with “slush” was used instead of magnesium perchlorate. This time reduction has the potential to minimise contamination. Furthermore, the use of a six-decimal point balance for weighing ultra-small samples resulted in more precise CO₂ yields compared to the four-decimal point balance routinely used at the WRDL.

Selected volume modifications were used to radiocarbon date three growth bands from a Gafrarium sp. shellfish from the Mariana Islands. Two results from the same Gafrarium sp. shellfish that were previously radiocarbon dated were incorporated into this thesis, resulting in a representation of three “marine” and two “estuarine” growth bands. Radiocarbon results provided preliminary evidence supporting the hypothesis of a relationship between ¹³C, ¹⁴C, and hard water exposure. Using Chi-square statistics, the five radiocarbon dates were calculated to be statistically distinguishable, a significant result considering the five radiocarbon dates were from the same shell. Furthermore, the pooled radiocarbon age of the “marine” growth bands was statistically distinguishable from one of the estuarine samples, where a difference of 304 ¹⁴C years was observed. Conversely, when the pooled radiocarbon age of the “marine” growth bands was compared to the other estuarine sample, the two radiocarbon dates were statistically the same. The reason for this was hypothesised to be due to variability in old ¹⁴C. The tide, along with wind and storms, results in variable concentrations of marine and fresh water held close to the shoreline by onshore currents, and so these variable conditions result in variability of the concentration of old ¹⁴C in the water.

year: 2022

title: Mauri oho, mauri tu, mauri ora: Enhancing Maori health and wellbeing through a critical engagement with social marketing

authors: Ellis, Riri Te Whara

abstract: This PhD research originally explored the efficacy of social marketing as potentially beneficial for Maori health providers involved with Maori health promotion activities. However, as I became conscientised to the potentially assimilist and neocolortial impacts .of functional management disciplines, such as social marketing I turned my attention as a Kaupapa Maori researcher to the task of critique and transformative social action. I also became acutely aware that the future of Maori health advancement lies in the flourishing of Te Ao Maori - a flourishing deemed necessary for the wellbeing of the people and the natural environment .in which Maori live is presented in this thesis. Te Ao Maori is therefore repositioned as a way in which to conceptualise Maori health and wellbeing, based upon holistic and cultural principles of living. 
Based on the transformative aspirations of critical theorists and emerging theories of kaupapa Maori, I incorporate the holistic constructs of Te Ao Maori while minimising the impact of the externally imposed mechanistic and functional metaphors dominating the contemporary formulation of human wellbeing. Using a localised participative methodology called Kaupapa Maori, I have worked collaboratively with four Maori groups and various kaiarahi hauora in Tauranga Moana to examine and articulate a series of collective responses to research issues. As a result of this research, my findings indicate that Maori continue to articulate a desire to live by principles and practices espoused through holistic models of Maori health and wellbeing, nestled into Te Ao Maori. That vision however is affected by continual structural change, limited resources, lack of access to skilled people, the imposition of contractual regulations within the health system, the erosion of Maori cultural systems and the ongoing commodification of Maori health and wellbeing in concert with the principles of market driven economies driving much human activity globally. The experience of Maori in Aotearoa New Zealand is the localised manifestation of the experiences of indigenous people across the globe. We share with them a position of resistance to the values of others and the affirmation of our own values. 
The potential of social marketing to contribute to enhancing Maori health and wellbeing was critiqued within these lived experiences, not those defined by social marketers themselves. In the control of uncritical social marketers, social marketing models are one of many conceptual frameworks that are being used to intensify economic rationality associated with the contemporary form of capitalism and the exacerbation of resource scarcity sanctioned by the existing health services system. Many of the co-participants in this research sought to provide health services and programmes that resembled and encouraged strong Maori cultural practices based upon tikanga Maori that emphasises a commitment to Whanau, Hapu and Iwi. However, the current health system does not help these goals to flourish. Instead, proponents of the system endorsed a regime of health services that operated within the specific constraints of contractual agreements - agreements which require responsibility for outcomes and accountability protocols that consume many resources better spent elsewhere. The opportunity then to engage in the enrichment of Maori health and wellbeing, through a holistic means was reported by participants in this research to be often undermined, minimised and sometimes made impossible. 
This research demonstrates that Maori efforts to enhance Maori health development are negatively impacted upon by an ongoing commercialisation and commodification of health services. Ongoing efforts _must be made to reinvigorate with and within Maori, an enduring commitment to a foundation of holistic health and wellbeing in the future, stemming from our own worldview - Te Ao Maori. The critical and Kaupapa Maori theories that inform this thesis have been used to bring into the open the contradictions and paradoxes Maori health providers in the Tauranga region are facing. The transformational aspirations of these theories would invite attention to be paid to values underpinning Maori communities and the ways in which they are useful to them. As reported upon in this research, those Maori health advocates adopting social marketing will find it difficult to achieve these aspirations. Instead, the assimilist modem colonising practices inherent in social marketing would tum Maori adopters into self colonisers.

text: Mauri oho, mauri tu, mauri ora: Enhancing Maori health and wellbeing through a critical engagement with social marketing This PhD research originally explored the efficacy of social marketing as potentially beneficial for Maori health providers involved with Maori health promotion activities. However, as I became conscientised to the potentially assimilist and neocolortial impacts .of functional management disciplines, such as social marketing I turned my attention as a Kaupapa Maori researcher to the task of critique and transformative social action. I also became acutely aware that the future of Maori health advancement lies in the flourishing of Te Ao Maori - a flourishing deemed necessary for the wellbeing of the people and the natural environment .in which Maori live is presented in this thesis. Te Ao Maori is therefore repositioned as a way in which to conceptualise Maori health and wellbeing, based upon holistic and cultural principles of living. 
Based on the transformative aspirations of critical theorists and emerging theories of kaupapa Maori, I incorporate the holistic constructs of Te Ao Maori while minimising the impact of the externally imposed mechanistic and functional metaphors dominating the contemporary formulation of human wellbeing. Using a localised participative methodology called Kaupapa Maori, I have worked collaboratively with four Maori groups and various kaiarahi hauora in Tauranga Moana to examine and articulate a series of collective responses to research issues. As a result of this research, my findings indicate that Maori continue to articulate a desire to live by principles and practices espoused through holistic models of Maori health and wellbeing, nestled into Te Ao Maori. That vision however is affected by continual structural change, limited resources, lack of access to skilled people, the imposition of contractual regulations within the health system, the erosion of Maori cultural systems and the ongoing commodification of Maori health and wellbeing in concert with the principles of market driven economies driving much human activity globally. The experience of Maori in Aotearoa New Zealand is the localised manifestation of the experiences of indigenous people across the globe. We share with them a position of resistance to the values of others and the affirmation of our own values. 
The potential of social marketing to contribute to enhancing Maori health and wellbeing was critiqued within these lived experiences, not those defined by social marketers themselves. In the control of uncritical social marketers, social marketing models are one of many conceptual frameworks that are being used to intensify economic rationality associated with the contemporary form of capitalism and the exacerbation of resource scarcity sanctioned by the existing health services system. Many of the co-participants in this research sought to provide health services and programmes that resembled and encouraged strong Maori cultural practices based upon tikanga Maori that emphasises a commitment to Whanau, Hapu and Iwi. However, the current health system does not help these goals to flourish. Instead, proponents of the system endorsed a regime of health services that operated within the specific constraints of contractual agreements - agreements which require responsibility for outcomes and accountability protocols that consume many resources better spent elsewhere. The opportunity then to engage in the enrichment of Maori health and wellbeing, through a holistic means was reported by participants in this research to be often undermined, minimised and sometimes made impossible. 
This research demonstrates that Maori efforts to enhance Maori health development are negatively impacted upon by an ongoing commercialisation and commodification of health services. Ongoing efforts _must be made to reinvigorate with and within Maori, an enduring commitment to a foundation of holistic health and wellbeing in the future, stemming from our own worldview - Te Ao Maori. The critical and Kaupapa Maori theories that inform this thesis have been used to bring into the open the contradictions and paradoxes Maori health providers in the Tauranga region are facing. The transformational aspirations of these theories would invite attention to be paid to values underpinning Maori communities and the ways in which they are useful to them. As reported upon in this research, those Maori health advocates adopting social marketing will find it difficult to achieve these aspirations. Instead, the assimilist modem colonising practices inherent in social marketing would tum Maori adopters into self colonisers.

year: 2006