Ember Innovations Research Grants 2025
Ember Innovations is delighted to announce that two amazing research proposals have been awarded this round.
In the words of Ember Innovations’ Tumu Whakarae, Anya Satyanand comments: “Both proposals stood out for the strength of their thinking, its grounding in lived experience, and its potential to make a tangible difference for people, whānau and communities. It speaks directly to the kind of future-focused, courageous work that Ember Korowai Takitini was established to champion”.
Please join us in congratulating the winners!
Wellbeing Innovation Research Grant
Mental health, addiction, and holistic wellbeing category
Researchers: Emma Brown and Rebecca Mackenzie, in partnership with Māia Collective.
Puāwai Noho – Supporting Māmā Takakau to Flourish
This research aims to strengthen support for matua takakau (solo parents), with a particular focus on Māori and Pacific māmā takakau. In Aotearoa, sole parents report lower wellbeing outcomes such as mental health, life satisfaction, and housing quality.
Further, those experiencing disadvantage are more likely to be young, be Māori or Pacific, and have more than three children. In light of the varied pathways into, and challenges experienced within solo parenthood, a single approach cannot adequately meet specific needs. Tikanga-informed, strengths-based models are essential. The project is being carried out in partnership with Māia Collective, a Kaupapa Māori organisation that empowers wāhine through holistic wellbeing initiatives, including Puāwai Noho—a resilience retreat designed to uplift and support solo mothers. The research has been co-designed with Māia Collective staff and programme participants to ensure cultural alignment and relevance.
The study has two phases. Phase One will use Growing Up in New Zealand data to develop a detailed profile of Māori and Pacific māmā takakau. Through wānanga with Māia Collective, key indicators of wellbeing, cultural connection, and support structures will be selected. Descriptive and regression analyses will then identify needs and any modifiable factors that can inform programme improvements.
Phase Two will involve a noho wānanga with previous Puāwai Noho participants. Through whakawhanaungatanga, discussion, and rāranga, wāhine will share their lived experiences and their responses to Phase One findings. Their insights will guide future research priorities and programme refinement, with thematic analysis shaping recommendations.
The project will produce academic publications, printed and digital summaries, programme resources, and social-media content. Ultimately, it aims to enhance intergenerational wellbeing, strengthen a valued Kaupapa Māori support model, and build research capability within Māia Collective and among early-career Māori researchers.
Lived Experience Research Grant
For research in any discipline/category led by a researcher with personal experience of mental distress or substance, or non-substance harm.
Researcher: Dave Burnside
An enquiry into the impact of exposure to people with lived experience in facilitating a journey of addiction recovery and desistance from criminal offending.
This research investigates how lived experience influences recovery from addiction and desistance from criminal offending. The project is grounded in the researcher’s own history of mental health distress, addiction, homelessness, and long-term involvement in the criminal justice system, followed by more than 17 years of active recovery. Previous Master of Laws research showed that recovery and desistance were often sparked by contact with someone who had lived experience of addiction and offending—highlighting the transformative potential of peer connection.
The central research question asks: “How does exposure to people with lived experience facilitate a person’s journey to recovery and desistance?” To explore this, the study will use autoethnography alongside interviews with others who share similar backgrounds. This approach will provide deep insight into how, where, and when lived experience inspires change. Analysis will combine Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis and Thematic Analysis to uncover the meaning and mechanisms of peer influence.
A key goal is to clarify the role of lived experience within addiction, mental health, and criminal justice settings. Despite growing recognition, peer roles are often poorly understood, tokenistic, or reshaped to fit institutional needs, leading to burnout, lack of credibility, role confusion, and high turnover. This research seeks to restore the emancipatory intent of peer work by defining its value and offering guidance for peers, practitioners, and agencies.
The findings have significant implications for policy, service design, and professional training across justice, health, and social sectors. They aim to inform system reform, strengthen the peer workforce, and amplify the voices of people with lived experience. Results will be shared widely through conferences, publications, and events, supported by an experienced supervisory and advisory team with expertise in addiction, criminology, law, Māori and Pacific knowledge, and cultural practice.