Portia Sharp Awarded Te Toi Whakaruruhau o Aotearoa Stipend
- Post by: Portia Sharp
- September 20, 2024
- Comments off
Portia was recently awarded the annual stipend from Te Toi Whakaruruhau o Aotearoa for her Masters research. Te Toi Whakaruruhau o Aotearoa is a Natural Hazards Commission (NHC) Toka Tū Aki (formerly EQC) funded centre for Mātauranga Māori Research Excellence. The Centre’s mission is to build Māori research workforce capability and capacity in the fields of earth science, hazards, emergency management, as well as disaster risk reduction governance, recovery and resilience.
Portia’s research is titled, “Investigating the cascading risks of climate change to the natural domain in New Zealand.”
Her study aims to address the gaps in climate risk assessments by enhancing our understanding of the cascading effects experienced by the natural environment amidst a shifting climate. She discusses how the existing approach may be reshaped to consider cross-domain cascading effects on different ecosystem types and their adaptive capacity following climatic events and stressors.
At the end of last year Portia attended a three-day noho marae in Palmerston North at Tūturu Pumau meeting house on Te Hotu Manawa o Rangitāne o Manawatū marae. The three-day hui consisted of interesting discussion sessions on a wide variety of topics along with field excursions to Te ahu a turanga to hear about the partnership between local iwi and a large government infrastructure project and to see some of the new highway. Along with a trip to the Manawatū River to hear about the awa, wāhi tapu, taonga species, and the leadership and work undertaken by Rangitāne iwi.
Te Toi Whakaruruhau o Aotearoa’s mission involves supporting research capability development and encouraging innovative Mātauranga Māori research across the science, kaupapa Māori and social science disciplines.