He Kai Kei Aku Ringaringa - A research project about kai & hauora.

Our #EatNZKaitaki Ella Cameron-Smith is a full-time postgraduate student based in Ōtepoti. She shares some background about her BSc Honours research - about the link between food and well-being.

Tēnā koutou katoa,

Ko Maungatautari me Mauao ōku maunga.
Ko Tainui me Takitimu ōku waka.
Ko Waikato te awa, ko Te Awanui te moana.
Ko Waikato me Ngāti Ranginui ōku iwi.
Ko Ngāti Korokī Kahukura me Ngāti Hangarau ōku hapū.

Ko Pohara me Hangarau ōku marae.
Ko Sonny Smith rāua ko Shaun Cameron ōku koroheke.

Ko Denise Smith rāua ko Sonia Cameron ōku rūruhi.
Ko Mason Smith rāua ko Iona Cameron-Smith ōku mātua.

Ko Ari Cameron-Smith tōku tungāne.
Nō reira, ko Ella Cameron-Smith ahau.

The importance of kai for Ella is synonymous with her identity. Ella’s ko wai au (who am I) and nō hea au (where am I from) are the foundations of her understanding of kai (food). He Kai Kei Aku Ringaringa is the title of Ella’s Bachelor of Science with Honours research project that examined the link between kai (food) and hauora (well-being). The study honoured Ella’s whakapapa (genealogy) and utilised pūrākau (cultural narratives), which is taonga tuku iho nā ngā tūpuna (cultural heritage from her ancestors). Te Pūrākau o Whakaotirangi (the cultural narrative of Whakaotirangi) encoded esoteric knowledge of kai and the connection to hauora informed by te ao Māori (Māori worldview). Ella’s research encapsulated Māori aspiration, philosophy, process, and pedagogy to develop a cohesive and comprehensive understanding of kai as a notion with cultural underpinnings tantamount to hauora. Her findings explicated the links between kai and hauora for initiatives and development of strategic health frameworks and policies towards addressing, achieving and sustaining pae ora (healthy futures). Ella's future studies will involve the foundations of this research. She aspires to acquire knowledge and understanding of iwi-specific notions of kai and to develop innovative approaches to hauora through kai reflected in health frameworks and policies.

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See more from Ella over on @ellacameronsmith