Deborah Heke
Dr Deborah Heke (Ngā Puhi, Te Arawa) is a Research Fellow with Taupua Waiora and Senior Lecturer with the Department of Public Health (AUT). She is currently research co-ordinator for the HRC funded project – Te Maramataka: restoring ‘health’ by reconnecting with te taiao – led by Dr Isaac Warbrick. She has a background in the fitness industry and community mental health. Her PhD explores the identities of physically active Māori women that connect them to characteristics of atua wāhine (feminine representations of the natural environment).