Our mission is to accelerate and increase Pacific people’s participation in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM). We show young people the value of science skills and highlight career pathways through collaboration with local STEAM businesses, researchers and engineers.
Our vision is for Pasifika students to be leaders in STEAM and to build the capacity of Pacific STEAM in west Auckland and beyond. We champion education and innovation through community-focused, project-based learning.
WeSTEM is an initiative of Te Hononga Akoranga COMET and is funded by the Ministry of Pacific People’s Toloa Community Impact funds.
WHAT WE OFFER #
We fund innovative projects that give west Auckland young people new opportunities to experience science and technology through hands-on activities and collaborative research. The WeSTEM project fund supports community-based STEAM research and design projects. We offer:
- Funding grants of up to $10,000 (ex GST)
- Advice and in-depth support to develop your funding application
- Connection with educators, STEAM professionals and community partners
- Ongoing project support
- Learning and networking opportunities for WeSTEM project participants
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR #
We support research projects that are:
- Growing the capacity of Pasifika STEAM – projects must involve primarily Pasifika students or community participants and/or be relevant to Pasifika cultures and communities.
- Community-driven - projects are locally relevant and involve community members
- Connected with the STEM industry – young people work collaboratively with STEAM professionals and practitioners, making the most of their local and technical knowledge to generate new scientific and/or technological outputs. We support all areas of STEAM including kaupapa Māori and Pasifika-led research and mātauranga Māori.
- Educational - projects offer enduring educational value for the young people involved and two-way learning between the wider community and science partners.
If you’re a STEAM expert and are interested in supporting a WeSTEM project, you can find out more here.
APPLICATION PROCESS #
Anyone in the west Auckland local board areas can apply for project funding. We can support you to connect with educators, STEM experts and community partners in your area.
Project funding is limited, so get your application in early for the best chances of being funded.
Not based in west Auckland? Te Hononga Akoranga COMET also runs the Curious Minds participatory science platform in south Auckland. The platform offers similar project-based learning opportunities. Find out about Curious Minds South Auckland here.
Get in touch with the Te Hononga Akoranga COMET STEAM team today to find out more!
OUR STORIES #
It might not seem obvious, but a lot of maths and chemistry goes into baking the perfect chocolate cake. That’s what the junior students at Kelston Girls College have discovered in their WeSTEM Pico Project, Kitchen Chemistry, an integrated research project investigating the everyday chemistry processes that occur during cooking.
This transdisciplinary project integrated English and chemistry topics to inspire students through fun, hands-on experiments while developing their numeracy, literacy and scientific skills. Check out the video below or the full story here.
The WeSTEM 2021–2022 Project Showcase is an exhibition of the projects that we funded during 2021 and 2022, as well as the outcomes our programme has achieved so far.
The showcase also highlights the use of art as an effective tool for qualitative evaluations in determining the outcomes of STEAM projects. Art can be a simple and fun way for younger ākonga to share their learnings from participatory science projects and for teachers and whānau to reflect and evaluate learnings.
