Associate Professor Byron Rangiwai has been selected as a fellow for Animistic Variations: Philosophy and Religion in and beyond the Pacific, an international research project hosted by the University of Auckland and the University of Leeds, and sponsored by the John Templeton Foundation.

The highly competitive fellowship attracted 38 applicants, with only 10 scholars selected. It recognises Associate Professor Rangiwai’s expertise in Māori and Indigenous theology, relational ontologies, and Indigenous approaches to spirituality.

While he is currently best known for his world-leading research on Māori adults and ADHD, Associate Professor Rangiwai’s academic background also includes extensive work in religious studies and theology. His second PhD focused on Indigenous theology and religious thought, an area that continues to inform his research practice.

His work explores how relationships between people, whenua, ancestors, spiritual beings, and the natural world shape belief, ethics, and wellbeing. This includes a particular focus on Māori Christianity, syncretism, and Indigenous theological methods. He has an extensive record of peer-reviewed publications and is well known for developing the Atuatanga framework—a research methodology for Māori theology grounded in relational understandings of the divine and the more-than-human world.

Running throughout 2026, the fellowship involves a year-long virtual programme of monthly seminars. Fellows will engage with animistic philosophies and relational worldviews across Pacific, Indigenous, and global contexts, with each fellow facilitating one seminar discussion based on a selected reading.

In February 2027, fellows will gather in Auckland for an in-person workshop. Associate Professor Rangiwai will present a research paper aligned with the project’s themes, which will then be revised for inclusion in a special academic journal publication scheduled for mid-2027.

The project brings together scholars working across Indigenous, Pacific, and non-Western philosophies, as well as those examining animistic ideas within religious traditions, environmental thought, and contemporary ethical debates. Associate Professor Rangiwai’s participation contributes to Unitec’s international research profile and reflects the strength of Māori and Indigenous research leadership at Ngā Wai a Te Tūī.