University of Auckland - Waipapa Taumata Rau

The ocean has always flowed through us, in the air we breathe, the food we eat, and the climate that makes our lives possible.

Leigh Marine Laboratory is our marine research base at Cape Rodney-Okakari Point Marine Reserve (also known as Goat Island Marine Reserve).

It’s home to the largest boat fleet at any New Zealand University including our 15-metre RV Te Kaihōpara research vessel (able to support six people for up to a week at sea).

Join us at the Institute of Marine Science free open day from 10am to 3pm on Saturday 13 June to celebrate the ocean with talks from researchers, interactive exhibits across the Leigh Lab campus, community and connection.



Find out more and register here: https://www.eventbrite.co.nz/e/dive-into-world-ocean-day-institute-of-marine-science-open-day-2026-tickets-1988802586072

Image credits: 1-4. Paul Caiger, 5. Brady Doak

Research shows sleep problems are overwhelmingly associated with poor teen mental health, and improving sleep can be part of the solution.

Sleep problems are common and biologically influenced, but sleep is modifiable, and even small behaviour changes can make a meaningful difference to well-being.

Research into sleep and teen mental health in Sāmoa and Aotearoa New Zealand has been boosted by a visit from Professor Russell Foster of the University of Oxford.

“We can use sleep solutions for the treatment and prevention of things like depression and anxiety,” says Dr Nicola Ludin, who is a chronobiology scientist in the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences.

Read more about the research here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/06/02/chronobiology-group-hood-fellowship.html

Sāmoan leadership empowering Pacific students to success

For Pacific students, getting into university is only the first step. The ability to thrive in the tertiary environment with confidence and purpose is another journey entirely.

Vaiaso o le Gagana Sāmoa, Sāmoa Language Week in Aotearoa, is a time to celebrate those making that journey possible.

UniBound is a programme supporting Pacific students with care and cultural understanding. Many Pacific students are among the first in their families to attend university, carrying with them the aspirations of their aiga and communities.

Leaders like Sara Toleafoa (Alafua, Sinamoga, Sato’alepai), UniBound manager and alumna, are helping to shape that success.

Her leadership reflects a commitment to ensure Pacific students are supported academically and also experience a genuine sense of belonging.

Alongside Sara is Student Support Adviser Seulele Vine, an emerging leader who reflects the very journey UniBound seeks to support.

Earlier this month, Seulele graduated with a Master of Science in Psychology - a milestone shaped by both academic excellence and cultural insight.

With Sāmoan roots (Lufilufi, Taga, Vailoa Palauli, Salani) her research explores the experiences of Sāmoan undergraduate students, drawing on lived experience to better understand the challenges that shape academic success, the available support, well-being, and a sense of belonging.

Through her research, Seulele reminds us that knowledge itself can be a form of navigation - one that carries stories, honours lived experience, and creates pathways for change.

Their work underscores a powerful truth: language, culture and identity are central to success.

“Language weeks matter because they honour our upbringing and affirm who we are as tagata Pasifika, grounded in our heritage and genealogy. In UniBound, this strengthens students’ sense of identity and belonging, empowering them to step into university spaces with confidence and pride,” says Sara.

Seulele speaks to the importance of strengthening relationships within Aotearoa:
“Part of nurturing the vā, as tangata Tiriti, is recognising that we are privileged to share this land, and to run Pacific-focused programmes here.

Read more about their stories and UniBound here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/06/03/samoan-women-leading-the-way-to-pacific-success.html

Two generations, one goal: getting your future sorted 🎓

Register for Info Evening here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/manawa-mai/info-evening.html

The journey of gagana Sāmoa is a lifelong one, says Fonoiā Professor Sipaea Jemaima Tiatia-Siau (Sālelologa, Taga, Vaimoso, Siumu, Vaigaga, and Fusi Safata).

“E afua mai i mauga tetele manuia o le nu‘u” - from the high mountains are the blessings of the village, is the theme of Vaiaso o le Gagana Sāmoa, Sāmoa Language Week.

The proverb is a reminder that our blessings, knowledge and identity are nurtured and passed down through these “mountains”, guiding and sustaining future generations.

“I’m on the gagana Sāmoa journey, and it comes down to - practise, practise, practise… it does take some courage. But it is such a beautiful language,” reflects Pro Vice-Chancellor Pacific, Tiatia-Siau.

This year, her journey has also taken on a deeply personal dimension. Tiatia-Siau recently received the blessings from the mauga of her malu - the sacred traditional markings worn on the thighs of Sāmoan women.

A month earlier, both Tiatia-Siau and her mother Joyce Tiatia were blessed at the foot of the mauga, and bestowed the chiefly title Fonoiā, from her grandmother’s village of Salogā, in Sālelologa, Savai’i.

“It’s not an adornment - it is a deeply spiritual and sacred blessing to receive from atop the mauga, this measina (treasure) which represents a commitment and service to family, community, village, nation as well as cultural continuity and legitimacy. In honouring my ancestors, I’m committed to acknowledging the sacrifices that were made for me and their descendants every single day.”
Tiatia-Siau has produced an extraordinary body of work, research deeply rooted in Pacific communities.

Tiatia-Siau's work continues to strengthen connections across the Pacific, championing collaboration, Indigenous knowledge systems, and Pacific-led solutions to shared challenges

At the heart of her leadership is a commitment to Pacific ways of knowing, doing and being - alofa (love), tautua (service), reciprocity and the vā (the sacred relational space).

Read more here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/05/28/gagana-samoa-from-the-mountains-come-blessings.html

Our May highlights 🙌

It’s World MS Day on Saturday 30 May, a chance to talk about the symptoms of the condition that often remain invisible to the outside world.

MS (Multiple Sclerosis) is a chronic neurological condition in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the brain and spinal cord.

It’s one of the most common neurological diseases affecting young adults, with most people diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 40, just as people are building careers, families, and futures.

The first signs of MS are often physical and can include vision problems, numbness or burning sensations in the hands and feet, balance difficulties, weakness, or trouble walking. These symptoms are usually what bring people into contact with the healthcare system.

But alongside these visible symptoms, there is a quieter set of effects that are less visible and often less responsive to treatment.

Around half of all people living with MS experience cognitive difficulties, including problems with memory, attention, information processing speed, or concentration at some point during the disease course. Fatigue, anxiety, and mood disorders are also common.

In my research I have focussed on these less visible symptoms since 2009. In many ways, that interest was inspired by my own mother, who lived with MS and experienced significant memory difficulties and “slowness”. As her daughter, I often felt powerless in understanding how best to support her. When someone struggles to walk, you know how to help. But cognitive problems were far less obvious, and the impact of them unfold quietly within everyday family life.

One of the most common cognitive changes in MS is slowed information processing speed. Because communication within the brain becomes less efficient, thinking, responding, multitasking, or keeping up with conversations can require far more time and energy than before.

People rarely die from MS but often live with it for many decades. That reality should push us to set the bar higher than disease control alone, and to help people live as fully as possible.

It means recognising and supporting the parts of MS that so often go unseen.

Because cognitive functioning is not just about memory or attention. It shapes personality, relationships, independence, participation, and identity itself. And that is worth protecting.

---

Excerpt from an opinion piece originally published on Newsroom by Professor Hanneke Hulst, director of Centre of Brain Research, University of Auckland.

Read in full here: https://newsroom.co.nz/2026/05/29/the-ms-symptoms-that-get-far-less-attention/

What if failure became something to celebrate?

A huge congratulations to Fine Arts doctoral student Brittany Walker Smith, the first recipient of the Collin Post Sculpture Award and Longveld Plinth Award. Her winning concept "One Foot in the Grave, the Other on a Banana Peel", will be transformed into a bold yellow steel sculpture and installed in the Elam gardens.

The award also includes a residency with UAP in Brisbane, where Brittany will develop her design alongside leading experts in public art and fabrication, before the final piece is brought to life by Longveld in Hamilton.

Combining humour, glamour and a nod to everyday mishaps, Brittany’s work celebrates the inevitability of failure and the creativity that comes with it.

With thanks to Longveld and UAP (Urban Art Projects) and ‘DMC Art’ for their partnership in supporting emerging artists.

Read more here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/05/29/snazzy-steel-banana-peel.html

Josephine Davis is the first Māori to be Head of School for Nursing, marking a historic moment for nursing leadership. Davis (Ngāti Kopaki, Ngāti Manu, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei) was also one of the first Māori practitioners in the country.

“I learned early on just how important visible Māori leadership was for Māori health equity.”

Her career has spanned clinical practice, nursing leadership, education, workforce development and Māori health equity. For Davis, she says her new role is about care.

“It’s about caring for the staff, ensuring we are responsive to the changing needs of the sector, supporting students to be successful in achieving their aspirations, and working collaboratively across the faculty,” she says.

Davis says nurses remain one of the most important workforces in the country and need to be heard, valued and better supported.

“Nurses need to be acknowledged. They are our biggest health workforce, interacting every day at the bedside with our most vulnerable people. Nurses bring such a wealth of experience, expertise and lived knowledge into conversations at all levels.”

Read more here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/05/25/first-maori-josephine-davis.html