Lay summary
This Māori community-based research project aims to contribute to generating an evidence base around improving health outcomes for tamariki Māori through enrichment and best use of primary school natural envionments. The study will investigate how to maximise the use of kura outdoor spaces for optimal nature exposure and health gain; and connectedness between the domains of taiao, whānau and community, teaching and learning, health and wellbeing and cultural identity. The research will be located at the interface between mātauranga Māori and Western science and apply a case study design with four participating kura communities including kura kaupapa Māori and kura auraki with high Māori rolls in the Eastern Bay of Plenty and Hawkes Bay. The research will contribute to the development and scaling up of kura-based interventions for tamariki and their whānau that lead to improved health outcomes throughout life in areas of substantial ethnic inequalities.