Mihi | Greeting
Tēnei te ruru, e koukou mai nei. Kīhai mahitihiti, kīhai marakaraka, te upokonui o te ruru terekau: he pō, he pō.
Tahuri ana au ki te tihi o te mauka e kīa nei ko Aoraki. Nahana ko Pukaki te roto, nahana ko Waitakitaki te awa. Tēnā koutou.
Kai te mihi ki a koutou te manawhenua o tēnei motu, ko Te Waka o Aoraki. Ki kā kairakahau maha, tēnā hoki koutou.
Nau mai, tahuti mai ki tēnei paetukutuku.
Here is the Ruru (Morepork) which calls here, now; Whose head does not bow from side to side, nor up and down; The head of the Ruru is steadfast on its shoulders as it calls from the darkness.
I now turn to the summit of Aoraki, the mountain standing steadfast; to whom belongs Lake Pukaki and Waitakitaki River; they greet you all.
Greetings to you all from the manawhenua of this land called te Waka o Aoraki (the canoe of Aoraki); To the many knowledgeable people;
Welcome! Come! Gather here to weave together the many layers of people and knowledge.
Overview
The Centre for Sustainability is a premier research centre of the University of Otago, with an international reputation for its innovative interdisciplinary research.
Ko te whaika: Toitū te oraka, te taiao me te tāhū o kā hapori me ō rātau taiao
Our vision is: Communities and their environments are healthy, sustainable and resilientKo te koromakika: Te whakapiki ake o te oraka, te whakawhanake ake o kā pūkeka mā te rakahau, mā te whakaako, ā, mā te tui hoki i te taura takata
Our mission is: Improving wellbeing and building capability through our research, teaching and partnerships
We work across a number of fields including aspects of kaitiakitanga, climate change mitigation and adaptation, sustainable food and agriculture, resilient communities, natural hazards, energy, mobility and biodiversity.
We are guided by an Advisory committee and our strategic plan.
Our work generally aligns with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals:
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
The rationale for the Centre is that human demands are exceeding environmental capacities, and that the wellbeing of current and future generations of humans and non-human species are seriously threatened. Human society will also be increasingly exposed to natural hazards, including from earth system processes and climate change. Significant changes are required to systems of production and consumption, and in human expectations, practices and relationships with the environment.
Our research seeks implementable solutions to these issues by incorporating social along with technical and/or physical sciences, as well as mātauranga and local/experiential knowledge.
The Centre was established in 2000 and is part of the School of Geography within the Division of Humanities. Centre researchers and research associates are from a wide range of disciplines including from Science, Commerce, Health and Humanities Divisions. Centre personnel comprise full-time and part time researchers, support staff, postgraduate students (mainly PhDs) and emeritus professors.
We also frequently host summer scholarship students, interns, visiting scholars on research leave from elsewhere at the University of Otago, and visiting international academics and PhD students for short or extended stays.
Tā mātau mahi | What we do
Te rakahau ko utua nō mōwaho, ko aro pū ki te Māori | Externally-funded, Māori-focused research
Our primary activity as a Centre is undertaking externally-funded research, delivering excellent academic publications and translating our findings into user-relevant insights. Māori-focused research has always been an important part of the Centre's activities, totalling around 25 per cent of the Centre's total externally funded research over 2010–2019. Research staff based at the Centre lead or contribute to bid preparation, research delivery, and communication of research findings.
As a research-focused Centre, we seek opportunities to inform, shape and influence positive change at many levels.
- Within the Centre, we build capacity and capability amongst our postgraduate students and staff
- Within the University, we help build sustainability-related knowledge and collaborations within the University's academic and general staff and students
- Within Otago, we engage with and help support local runaka, the Dunedin public, councils, businesses and Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) on sustainability issues
- Nationally, we develop strategic relationships with government, Māori communities and organisations, businesses, NGOs and sector groups to understand the issues they face, develop research collaborations, and influence change
Through our research and outreach generally we seek to assist Aotearoa New Zealand to become more sustainable and more resilient. We also seek to be internationally influential through our research collaborations, conference presentations and publications.
Many projects emerge from relationships developed with stakeholders such as iwi, communities, councils, businesses and government agencies and most involve collaborations with other researchers based elsewhere across the University or in research institutions in Aotearoa New Zealand and internationally.
Postgraduate supervision
Another key focus is on postgraduate students undertaking research degrees in topics aligned with the Centre's mission. We are regularly approached by prospective students, and are limited only by the capacity of research staff at the Centre to supervise students.
Tō mātau ahurea | Our culture
While each of our research staff has an excellent foundation in a specific discipline or disciplines, our particular point of difference is our commitment to interdisciplinarity and collaborative research. Our interdisciplinary research is demonstrated by collaborations between Centre researchers and people located in other departments and institutions.
We value diversity and are committed to inclusiveness supporting and encouraging one another and celebrating our successes.
Māori concepts and perspectives are woven into our organisational culture, and are central to many of our research programmes. We welcome the insights that come from bringing together different ways of understanding the world and we support the development of new and emerging Māori researchers.
The quality of our research is supported by the culture of the Centre as a community of researchers and support staff who are passionate about sustainability, who value openness and are committed to the sharing of ideas. We appreciate the mix of perspectives brought from having people from many countries, disciplines and cultures. We are a flexible workplace and recognise the wider context of people's lives, including the importance of their families.
As well as our research, we take a lead in stimulating thinking and action about sustainability within the University and in Society more widely. We provide opportunities for learning and discussions, we model sustainable behaviour, and we contribute to media and events where sustainability issues are discussed.
Our work is enriched by the genuine committed relationships that have developed with people who have spent time at the Centre as researchers, visitors and students; with other researchers at the Otago campus, elsewhere in Aotearoa New Zealand and globally; and with the communities, iwi, businesses and government agencies with whom we work. These long-term relationships are an important part of our identity.
Te āpōpō | The future
The operating environment for the Centre is evolving. The University of Otago is now committed to a sustainability agenda, and key stakeholders such as councils, businesses, iwi and government are increasingly aligning themselves with sustainable, resilient and low-carbon futures. Our experience and track record stand us in good stead here. The 2019 Review of the Centre was strongly supportive of the Centre and provides guidance on key areas for future development, which are incorporated into this Strategic Plan.
The impact of COVID-19 from early 2020 will have ongoing repercussions for society, the economy, and the Centre's operating environment, but creates an opportunity for Aotearoa New Zealand to shift to a sustainable pathway.
With these emerging opportunities we seek to become even better at developing solutions to complex problems, including through applying scientific expertise; Māori knowledge and worldviews; incorporating traditional, practitioner and local knowledge; undertaking interdisciplinary research; incorporating new and emerging perspectives that support just transitions; developing transdisciplinary approaches; working at the nexus of different fields of study; and developing innovations in theory as well as practice.