Source: Ministry for Culture and Heritage
“I am delighted to announce this year’s Ngā Kōrero Tuku Iho Piki Ake! Kake Ake! recipients,” says Leauanae Laulu Mac Leauanae, Secretary for Culture and Heritage.
12 grants totalling $101,075.00 are being awarded for this round of Ngā Kōrero Tuku Iho New Zealand Oral History Grants.
“This year was a particularly difficult selection process for the assessment panel. What’s clear is that each of the successful awarded projects bring to the fore stories that are yet to be told.
“The projects cover themes from the experiences of the Deaf community to survivors of abuse in care, Korean intergenerational storytelling to ice skating, and Pacific women in Porirua to kaumātua of Te Taiao (environmental guardians).
“Both Selwyn Kātene’s work on religious leaders from all denominations and Ruth Greenaway’s oral history with Jocelyn Armstrong, an interfaith leader, have been funded.
“A history of queer homemaking and houses in Aotearoa, the experience of those involved in assisted dying, and the Filipino community’s role in nursing and caregiving are also receiving grants in 2025.
“For over thirty years, Ngā Kōrero Tuku Iho has supported community projects, and we are continuing to see an increased breadth of topics, areas and applicants. I’m excited for these lesser-known histories to be shared.
“We’re really proud of this round of Ngā Kōrero Tuku Iho. I can’t wait to see these histories join Aotearoa’s extraordinary canon of oral histories,” says Leauanae.
Ngā Kōrero Tuku Iho grants are selected by an external panel of experts. Manatū Taonga administers the grants, which were established by the Australian Sesquicentennial Gift Trust in 1990 to honour 150 years since the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The grants support community-based oral history projects that reflect diverse identities and perspectives.
Each year around $100,000 is divided between approximately 12 grants.
The 2025 Ngā Kōrero Tuku Iho New Zealand Oral History grant recipients are:
- Emily Anderson, Assisted Dying in New Zealand – Three Years On, $10,000
- Grace Bateman and Paul Garbett, Ice Skating in New Zealand, Part 2: 1980s onward, $8,000
- Matilda Bercic, “Matakite: Ko taku whanautanga tenei – Seer: It is my birthright”, $6,000
- Little Acres Survivors Group, Little Acre Survivors Oral History Project, $15,822
- Ruth Greenaway, A life dedicated to interfaith dialogue – Jocelyn Armstrong, $5,000
- Selwyn Katene, Religious Leaders in New Zealand, $9,354
- Lori Leigh, “Homo Sweet Homo”: The History of Queer Houses in Aotearoa, $8,000
- Sarah Lipura, Pangangalaga (Care) at Pamilya (Family): Filipino Nurses and Healthcare Workers’ Perspectives, Experiences and Aspirations in Aotearoa New Zealand, $7,500
- SignDNA – Deaf National Archives, SignDNA: Preserving Deaf Stories for the Future, $10,000
- Jenny Taotua-O’Carroll, P.A.C.I.F.I.C.A Inc: Commemorating 50 Years of Pacific Women’s Allied Council in Porirua, $5,500
- Maree Tapu, Pūkōrero Ani Martin: Rukuhia Te Puna O Te Roto Ōmāpere, $10,000
- Joonseob Yi, Voices Across Generations: An Oral History of Korean New Zealanders, $5,899.
Further information about the grants, including how to apply, can be found on the Manatū Taonga website.
