'Watching you watching me' | Photo by Elaine Donovan. Elaine's photo, taken during fieldwork in Malawi for her doctoral dissertation, won the 2014 AAS/ANSA Photography Competition.

Kākano Fund

The Kākano Fund was established in 1985 by funds gifted by Dame Joan Metge and is administered by the Association of Social Anthropologists of Aotearoa/New Zealand. In 2009 a bequest from the estate of Raewyn Goode was added to the fund.

The Kākano Fund primarily assists Masters students with a major in Social or Cultural Anthropology who are completing theses or dissertations. Consideration will also be given to BA Hons and PhD students if funding permits.

Kākano Fund Awards

Applications are invited from students enrolled in the current year in a Masters degree course in Social or Cultural Anthropology. Consideration will also be given to BA Honours and PhD students if funding permits. Students must be enrolled in a Social or Cultural Anthropology graduate programme at a New Zealand university and are encouraged to become members of ASAA/NZ (if they are not already).

Students are eligible for an award if their course requires the completion of a single thesis, a dissertation, or a research portfolio, and if the date of final submission of their work falls within the current academic year.

There will be two funding rounds in 2024. Round Two is open to students whose submission date falls within the period of 1 October 2024 to 31 March 2025. This is the final round for 2024.

The fund provides financial assistance towards one or more of the following:

1. Thesis production costs, e.g. printing, photocopying, and thesis binding;

2. Costs involved in attending and presenting a paper at a conference, such as travel, conference registration, and accommodation.

The maximum amounts awarded are $300 per applicant. The actual amounts awarded may be lower, depending on funding levels and number of applications. Applications for costs incurred retrospectively will be considered. Students may be granted an award once only as a Master’s student and once only as a doctoral student.

Deadline for applications and letters of support:

Round One applications closed on Monday 27 May 2024.
Round Two applications are due on Monday 14 October 2024.

Applications must be made on the application form and include:

• Personal and contact details (including postal address)

• Thesis details: title and abstract (half a page); planned date of submission; name of supervisor(s)
  OR
  Conference paper details: title, abstract, name of conference and hosting organisation, dates

• Budget: providing the total amount of assistance sought and the purpose for which the funds will be used, supported by quotations, receipts or price lists for all budget items

• Letter or email of support from supervisor/s with a clear statement of the merit of the thesis/conference paper and of the application. This must be included with the application. Without it, the application is incomplete.

Email your completed application to Emeritus Professor Julie Park, Chair of the Kākano Committee.