When Māori and Pacific Ways of Knowing Rewrite How the Library Behaves.
Tracks
Ballroom 2 - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
| Tuesday, October 13, 2026 |
| 11:50 AM - 12:20 PM |
| Ballroom 2 |
Overview
Fay Nanai & Mia-Mae Taitimu-Stevens & Veronika Iloilo, Waipapa Taumata Rau - University Of Auckland
Three Key Learnings
1. Dedicated Māori and Pacific spaces are created through relationships and practice, not simply by allocating space or furniture.
2. When Māori and Pacific communities shape how learning spaces are used, libraries can become places of belonging and cultural safety.
Indigenous‑led space‑making quietly disrupts colonial norms and affirms Māori and Pacific ways of learning as legitimate and valuable.
Presenter
Ms Veronika Iloilo
Programme Lead - Leadership Through Learning
Waipapa Taumata Rau, University Of Auckland
When Māori and Pacific Ways of Knowing Rewrite How the Library Behaves.
Presentation Overview
This session will cover how dedicated Māori and Pacific spaces are more than just chairs around a table. It draws on sustained, Indigenous‑led work with Māori and Pacific tauira within the University of Auckland Library at Waipapa Taumata Rau, where spaces such as the Fa’anānā Efeso Collins Space and Hinemoana have taken shape through relationship, cultural practice, and everyday presence.
This work emerged from deliberate engagement with Māori and Pacific tauira to understand how they experience the library, where distance is felt, and what supports learning grounded in identity, culture, and wellbeing.
At the heart of this kaupapa is the relational labour involved in bridging the gap between Māori and Pacific communities and an institution shaped by colonial systems, and the ongoing work required to hold space in ways that feel familiar, safe, and real. Across this floor, learning is lived through weaving, talanoa, waiata, shared kai, visual and archival storytelling, exhibitions, hui, fono, and laughter that feels like you’re at home again.
These are not one‑off moments, but part of the rhythm of the space. Knowledge is shared through talanoa, presence, and connection, shaped by relationships rather than rules.
Māori and Pacific communities, kaimahi, and tauira shape how these spaces are used and cared for. This work quietly disrupts inherited expectations of how libraries should behave, making room for Māori and Pacific ways of knowing to be visible, heard, and courageous.
This session offers a grounded account of Indigenous‑led space‑making within a university library, highlighting the cultural and relational labour involved in sustaining spaces where our people can learn as themselves - loudly, collectively, and without having to leave who they are at the door.
This work emerged from deliberate engagement with Māori and Pacific tauira to understand how they experience the library, where distance is felt, and what supports learning grounded in identity, culture, and wellbeing.
At the heart of this kaupapa is the relational labour involved in bridging the gap between Māori and Pacific communities and an institution shaped by colonial systems, and the ongoing work required to hold space in ways that feel familiar, safe, and real. Across this floor, learning is lived through weaving, talanoa, waiata, shared kai, visual and archival storytelling, exhibitions, hui, fono, and laughter that feels like you’re at home again.
These are not one‑off moments, but part of the rhythm of the space. Knowledge is shared through talanoa, presence, and connection, shaped by relationships rather than rules.
Māori and Pacific communities, kaimahi, and tauira shape how these spaces are used and cared for. This work quietly disrupts inherited expectations of how libraries should behave, making room for Māori and Pacific ways of knowing to be visible, heard, and courageous.
This session offers a grounded account of Indigenous‑led space‑making within a university library, highlighting the cultural and relational labour involved in sustaining spaces where our people can learn as themselves - loudly, collectively, and without having to leave who they are at the door.
Biography
Ms Fay Nanai
Pacific Engagement Lead
Waipapa Taumata Rau - University Of Auckland
When Māori and Pacific Ways of Knowing Rewrite How the Library Behaves.
Presentation Overview
This session will cover how dedicated Māori and Pacific spaces are more than just chairs around a table. It draws on sustained, Indigenous‑led work with Māori and Pacific tauira within the University of Auckland Library at Waipapa Taumata Rau, where spaces such as the Fa’anānā Efeso Collins Space and Hinemoana have taken shape through relationship, cultural practice, and everyday presence.
This work emerged from deliberate engagement with Māori and Pacific tauira to understand how they experience the library, where distance is felt, and what supports learning grounded in identity, culture, and wellbeing.
At the heart of this kaupapa is the relational labour involved in bridging the gap between Māori and Pacific communities and an institution shaped by colonial systems, and the ongoing work required to hold space in ways that feel familiar, safe, and real. Across this floor, learning is lived through weaving, talanoa, waiata, shared kai, visual and archival storytelling, exhibitions, hui, fono, and laughter that feels like you’re at home again.
These are not one‑off moments, but part of the rhythm of the space. Knowledge is shared through talanoa, presence, and connection, shaped by relationships rather than rules.
Māori and Pacific communities, kaimahi, and tauira shape how these spaces are used and cared for. This work quietly disrupts inherited expectations of how libraries should behave, making room for Māori and Pacific ways of knowing to be visible, heard, and courageous.
This session offers a grounded account of Indigenous‑led space‑making within a university library, highlighting the cultural and relational labour involved in sustaining spaces where our people can learn as themselves - loudly, collectively, and without having to leave who they are at the door.
This work emerged from deliberate engagement with Māori and Pacific tauira to understand how they experience the library, where distance is felt, and what supports learning grounded in identity, culture, and wellbeing.
At the heart of this kaupapa is the relational labour involved in bridging the gap between Māori and Pacific communities and an institution shaped by colonial systems, and the ongoing work required to hold space in ways that feel familiar, safe, and real. Across this floor, learning is lived through weaving, talanoa, waiata, shared kai, visual and archival storytelling, exhibitions, hui, fono, and laughter that feels like you’re at home again.
These are not one‑off moments, but part of the rhythm of the space. Knowledge is shared through talanoa, presence, and connection, shaped by relationships rather than rules.
Māori and Pacific communities, kaimahi, and tauira shape how these spaces are used and cared for. This work quietly disrupts inherited expectations of how libraries should behave, making room for Māori and Pacific ways of knowing to be visible, heard, and courageous.
This session offers a grounded account of Indigenous‑led space‑making within a university library, highlighting the cultural and relational labour involved in sustaining spaces where our people can learn as themselves - loudly, collectively, and without having to leave who they are at the door.
Biography
Fay Nanai is the Pacific Engagement Lead at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland, working directly with Māori and Pacific tauira to understand how they engage with library spaces and learning environments. Her work focuses on strengthening relationships between Māori and Pacific communities and the University Library, addressing historical barriers to belonging and access. Fay has led the activation of Level 1 spaces, including the Fa'anānā Efeso Collins Space and Hinemoana, supporting tauira‑led learning through talanoa, storytelling, waiata, art, and collective practice. Her work prioritises Indigenous pedagogy, wellbeing, and Indigenous‑led approaches to learning environments.
Miss Mia-Mae Taitimu-Stevens
Academic Engagement Adviser, Māori
Waipapa Taumata Rau | University Of Auckland
When Māori and Pacific Ways of Knowing Rewrite How the Library Behaves.
Presentation Overview
This session will cover how dedicated Māori and Pacific spaces are more than just chairs around a table. It draws on sustained, Indigenous‑led work with Māori and Pacific tauira within the University of Auckland Library at Waipapa Taumata Rau, where spaces such as the Fa’anānā Efeso Collins Space and Hinemoana have taken shape through relationship, cultural practice, and everyday presence.
This work emerged from deliberate engagement with Māori and Pacific tauira to understand how they experience the library, where distance is felt, and what supports learning grounded in identity, culture, and wellbeing.
At the heart of this kaupapa is the relational labour involved in bridging the gap between Māori and Pacific communities and an institution shaped by colonial systems, and the ongoing work required to hold space in ways that feel familiar, safe, and real. Across this floor, learning is lived through weaving, talanoa, waiata, shared kai, visual and archival storytelling, exhibitions, hui, fono, and laughter that feels like you’re at home again.
These are not one‑off moments, but part of the rhythm of the space. Knowledge is shared through talanoa, presence, and connection, shaped by relationships rather than rules.
Māori and Pacific communities, kaimahi, and tauira shape how these spaces are used and cared for. This work quietly disrupts inherited expectations of how libraries should behave, making room for Māori and Pacific ways of knowing to be visible, heard, and courageous.
This session offers a grounded account of Indigenous‑led space‑making within a university library, highlighting the cultural and relational labour involved in sustaining spaces where our people can learn as themselves - loudly, collectively, and without having to leave who they are at the door.
This work emerged from deliberate engagement with Māori and Pacific tauira to understand how they experience the library, where distance is felt, and what supports learning grounded in identity, culture, and wellbeing.
At the heart of this kaupapa is the relational labour involved in bridging the gap between Māori and Pacific communities and an institution shaped by colonial systems, and the ongoing work required to hold space in ways that feel familiar, safe, and real. Across this floor, learning is lived through weaving, talanoa, waiata, shared kai, visual and archival storytelling, exhibitions, hui, fono, and laughter that feels like you’re at home again.
These are not one‑off moments, but part of the rhythm of the space. Knowledge is shared through talanoa, presence, and connection, shaped by relationships rather than rules.
Māori and Pacific communities, kaimahi, and tauira shape how these spaces are used and cared for. This work quietly disrupts inherited expectations of how libraries should behave, making room for Māori and Pacific ways of knowing to be visible, heard, and courageous.
This session offers a grounded account of Indigenous‑led space‑making within a university library, highlighting the cultural and relational labour involved in sustaining spaces where our people can learn as themselves - loudly, collectively, and without having to leave who they are at the door.
Biography
Mia-Mae Taitimu-Stevens (Te Rarawa, Sāmoa, Tokelau) completed a Master of Indigenous Studies in 2024, where her research, “If you’re Māori then it’s your birth right” – Kauae Expectations on TikTok, explored to what extent historical contexts and digital spaces impact perceptions of kauae expectations for wahine Māori today. She brings over ten years of experience working in tertiary education with a focus on Māori and Pacific spaces, engagement, and retention at the Waipapa Taumata Rau, the University of Auckland.
