Sir Mason Harold Durie (born 4 December 1938) is a New Zealand professor of

Māori Studies New Zealand studies is the academic field of area studies of New Zealand. Subfields: *History of New Zealand * Literature of New Zealand * Politics of New Zealand *Economy of New Zealand *Culture of New Zealand Institutions in New Zealand: *Vict ...

and research academic at

Massey University Massey University ( mi, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa) is a university based in Palmerston North, New Zealand, with significant campuses in Albany and Wellington. Massey University has approximately 30,883 students, 13,796 of whom are extramural or ...

. He is known for his contributions to

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

health. In 2020, he was appointed to the

Order of New Zealand The Order of New Zealand is the highest honour in the New Zealand royal honours system, created "to recognise outstanding service to the Crown and people of New Zealand in a civil or military capacity". It was instituted by royal warrant on 6 F ...

, the highest honour in New Zealand's royal honours system.

Early life and family

Durie has affiliations with the

Rangitāne Rangitāne is a Māori people, Māori iwi (tribe). Their rohe (territory) is in the Manawatū-Whanganui, Manawatū, Horowhenua, Wairarapa and Marlborough Region, Marlborough areas of New Zealand.Ngāti Kauwhata and

Ngāti Raukawa Ngāti Raukawa is a Māori iwi with traditional bases in the Waikato, Taupo and Manawatu/Horowhenua regions of New Zealand. In 2006, 29,418 Māori registered their affiliation with Ngāti Raukawa. History Early history Ngāti Raukawa reco ...

tribes of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. He grew up in

Feilding Feilding ( mi, Aorangi) is a town in the Manawatū District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is located on State Highway 54, 20 kilometres north of Palmerston North. The town is the seat of the Manawatū District Council. Feilding has w ...

and attended

Te Aute College Te Aute College (Māori language, Māori: Te Kura o Te Aute) is a school in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand. It opened in 1854 with twelve pupils under Samuel Williams (missionary), Samuel Williams, an Anglicanism, Anglican missionary, and n ...

in Hawke's Bay. John Mason Durie was his grandfather, and he is the older brother of former High Court judge and chief judge of the

Māori Land Court The Māori Land Court (Māori: Te Kōti Whenua Māori) is the specialist court of record in New Zealand that hears matters relating to Māori land. Māori Land Court history The Māori Land Court was established in 1865 as the Native Land Cou ...

, Sir

Eddie Durie Sir Edward Taihakurei Durie (born 18 January 1940) was the first Māori appointed as a judge of a New Zealand court. He is of Rangitāne, Ngāti Kauwhata and Ngāti Raukawa descent; Mason Durie (1889–1971) was his grandfather. Early life and ...

. He married Arohia Kōhere, granddaughter of

Rēweti Kōhere Rēweti Tūhorouta Kōhere (11 April 1871 – 9 August 1954) was a New Zealand Anglican clergyman, newspaper journalist and editor, farmer, writer, historian. Of Māori descent, he identified with the Ngāti Porou iwi. Early life and edu ...

. One of his daughters, Awerangi, is married to politician and radio personality

John Tamihere John Henry Tamihere (born 8 February 1959) is a New Zealand politician, media personality, and political commentator. He was member of Parliament from 1999 to 2005, including serving as a Cabinet minister in the Labour Party from August 2002 to ...

, while his eldest son, Meihana, is working on producing a movie about Rēweti Kōhere's brother,

Hēnare Kōhere Hēnare Mōkena Kōhere (10 March 1880 – 16 September 1916) was a New Zealand farmer and soldier. Of Māori, English and French descent, he identified with the Ngāti Porou iwi. He was born in Te Araroa, East Coast, New Zealand, on 10 Marc ...

. His wife and their children are also descendants of Gisborne founding father Thomas Halbert and his fifth wife, Kaikiri.

Education

Durie graduated from the

University of Otago , image_name = University of Otago Registry Building2.jpg , image_size = , caption = University clock tower , motto = la, Sapere aude , mottoeng = Dare to be wise , established = 1869; 152 years ago , type = Public research collegiate u ...

with a

Bachelor of Medicine Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

and

Bachelor of Surgery Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

in 1963. He has a Postgraduate Diploma in Psychiatry from

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

, Canada, and was Director of Psychiatry at Palmerston North Hospital before his appointment to the Royal Commission on Social Policy from 1986 to 1988.

Achievements

For over 40 years, he has been at the forefront of a transformational approach to Māori health and has played major roles in building the Māori health workforce. His efforts have been recognised by the

Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) is the principal organisation representing the medical specialty of psychiatry in Australia and New Zealand and has responsibility for training, examining and awarding the qual ...

, the Public Health Association of New Zealand, the Māori Medical Practitioners Association, the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand, and the Polynesian Society. In addition to a lifelong commitment to Māori health, Durie also championed higher education for Māori. As Deputy Chair of Te Wānanga o Raukawa, Professor of Māori Research and Development, and more recently Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Massey University, he continues to provide national academic leadership for Māori and indigenous development and regularly assists

Iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, an ...

and Māori communities to realise their own aspirations for socio-economic advancement. Apart from serving on the Boards of

Te Papa The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. ''Te Papa Tongarewa'' translates literally to "container of treasures" or in full "container of treasured things and people that spring fr ...

and the Foundation for Research Science and Technology, Durie has been Chair of the Guardians Group for the Secondary Futures project, and a Commissioner for the New Zealand Families Commission. He chaired the Ministerial Taskforce on

Whānau Ora Whānau Ora (Māori for "family health") is a major contemporary indigenous health initiative in New Zealand, driven by Māori cultural values. Its core goal is to empower communities and extended families () to support families within the comm ...

and was also Chair of Te Kāhui Amokura, a Standing Committee of the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors' Committee. In 1990, Durie was awarded the

New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal The New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal was a commemorative medal awarded in New Zealand in 1990 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, and was awarded to approximately 3,000 people. Background The New Zea ...

. In 2002, he was awarded a Doctor of Literature from Massey University and in 2008 received an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Otago University. Professor Durie is a Fellow of the

, a Fellow of the

Royal Society of New Zealand Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

, and a Fellow of the

Humanities Council of New Zealand Academy Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the tim ...

. He has published widely and has regularly presented keynote addresses at Iwi, national and international conferences. Mason Durie ONZ investiture

In the 2001 New Year Honours, Durie was appointed a

Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant (document), royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Monarchy of New Zealand, Queen of New Zealand, "for those ...

, for services to Māori. In the

2010 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2010 were announced on 31 December 2009 in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Cook Islands, Barbados, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Saint Lucia, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Christopher and NevisSaint Christ ...

, he was promoted to Knight Companion of the same order, for services to Māori health, in particular public health services. In the

2021 New Year Honours The 2021 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebration ...

, Durie was appointed to the

for services to New Zealand. In 2012 the

Royal Society Te Apārangi The Royal Society Te Apārangi (in full, Royal Society of New Zealand Te Apārangi) is an independent, statutory not-for-profit body in New Zealand providing funding and policy advice in the fields of sciences and the humanities. History The R ...

inaugurated the Mason Durie Medal awarded to a leading social scientist in his honour.

Current work

Durie is Emeritus Professor of Māori Research & Development at

Publications

* * * * * *

References

External links

Massey University, University Management
{{DEFAULTSORT:Durie, Mason New Zealand psychiatrists Massey University faculty Knights Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit Living people 1938 births Theorists in psychiatry McGill University alumni University of Otago alumni People educated at Te Aute College New Zealand Māori academics Rangitāne people Ngāti Raukawa people Psychiatry academics People from Feilding Fellows of the Royal Society of New Zealand 20th-century New Zealand medical doctors 21st-century New Zealand medical doctors New Zealand Māori medical doctors Halbert-Kohere family Māori and Pacific Island scientists Members of the Order of New Zealand

Mason Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cut ...