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Christina McKercharAssociate Professor in Māori Health

BCApSc, MSc with distinction, PhD

Email christina.mckerchar@otago.ac.nz
Tel +64 3 364 3638

Department of Public Health
University of Otago, Christchurch
PO Box 4345
Christchurch 8140

Background

Christina is of Ngāti Kahungunu, Tūhoe, and Ngāti Porou descent. She trained as a nutritionist and worked for a number of years for Te Hotu Manawa Māori, a national Māori Health provider, before her academic career. Her research has focused broadly on the right to healthy food. She has researched the food environment, especially food availability and marketing, food security and food sovereignty, and other aspects of public health that impact hauora Māori, including alcohol, transport, and housing.

Christina is a member of Climate Health Aotearoa, and is on the Food Expert panel for Health Coalition Aotearoa. She also chairs the Māori Research Advisory Rōpū, to support Māori Health Advancement at the University of Otago, Christchurch.

Teaching

Research interests

  • Public Health Nutrition
  • Food security
  • Māori Health

Current projects

Completed projects

Current supervision

  • Nicki Williams, PhD
  • Cara Meredith, PhD
  • Els Russell, Master of Public Health (Thesis)
  • Tom Worters, Master of Public Health (Thesis)

Completed supervision

Publications

Peniamina, R. L., Gray, A. R., Signal, L., Iosua, E., Cleghorn, C., Teng, A., McKerchar, C., & McNoe, B. M. (2026). Public support for policies to create a healthier food environment in Aotearoa New Zealand: Findings from a national survey. New Zealand Medical Journal/Te ara tika o te hauora hapori, 139(1641), 26-36. doi: 10.26635/6965.7536 Journal - Research Article

Pearson, A., Cunningham, E., Kane, J., Troughton, R. W., Pearson, J. F., Lewis, L. K., Woodcock, E., Pemberton, C., McKerchar, C., & Patu, M. (2026). Hauora Manawa mō ngā Kaumātua me ngā Whānau: A co-designed community-based cohort study of cardiovascular health among older Māori in Canterbury, New Zealand: A study protocol. BMJ Open, 16(8), e120784. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2026-120784 Journal - Research Other

Fitt, H., Curl, A., Stevenson, J., Dares, C., McKerchar, C., Kingham, S., & Williman, J. (2026). Access to food, healthcare, and social connection for residents of social housing in Ōtautahi Christchurch [Research report 01/2026/v2]. (pp. 1-49). Dunedin, New Zealand: Transport, Society & Environment Group, University of Otago. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10523/49174 Working Paper; Discussion Paper; Technical Report

Sims, E., McKerchar, C., Curl, A., Bidwell, S., Martin, G., Russell, E., & Crossin, R. (2026). “It's such a luxury, we may as well get something we really want”: A qualitative exploration of public perceptions of health and public health implications of on-demand delivery. Social Science & Medicine, 405, 119545. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2026.119545 Journal - Research Article

Clark, M. t. R., Jordan, J., Summers, N., Clarke, R., & McKerchar, C. (2026). Enacting policy: Mapping Kaupapa Māori aspirations onto the New Zealand Eating Issues and Eating Disorders Strategy. New Zealand Medical Journal/Te ara tika o te hauora hapori, 139(1635), 68-80. doi: 10.26635/6965.7275 Journal - Research Article

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