Māhina

I Raro i te Atarau Karohirohi: E Whakatere Haere Ana Ngā Waka i Te Moana-Nui-Ā-Kiwa

By the shimmering light of the Moon: (Indigenous) sea vessels are navigating the shared waters and knowledges of the Pacific Ocean

The Māhina International Indigenous Health Research Training Program provides an international 10-12 week health research training opportunity in New Zealand for three undergraduate students and one graduate student who are interested in biomedical, behavioral science, public health and social science health research careers and self identify as being from an Indigenous population.

The Māhina program was developed as the result of a bourgeoning tripartite partnership among the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute (IWRI) at the University of Washington, Department of Native Hawaiian Health at the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawai’i’ and Te Whare Kura and the Department for Maori Health at the University of Auckland in New Zealand.

The Māhina program provides a unique research training opportunity not otherwise provided in traditional biomedical and behavioral research programs. Māhina will focus on the theoretical, methodological, and substantive issues concerning Indigenous health; social, cultural, and historical determinants of Indigenous health; health disparities and health equity; culturally grounded conceptual models; community based participatory/tribal participatory research (CBPR); Indigenous research ethics and protocols; and Indigenous knowledges and research methodologies.

The Māhina program highlights the development and evaluation of culturally-based health promotion and disease prevention interventions that address multiple issues of concern to indigenous communities.

Māhina International Indigenous Health Research Training Program Aims

• Māhina aims to develop a cadre of indigenous undergraduate and graduate students dedicated to entering into biomedical or public health or behavioral science health research careers with Indigenous populations. Māhina is a 5 year project funded by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, T37MD008625-01