Distributive Justice in Health
From Aristotle to John Rawls, Rev. Professor Upolu Lumā Vaai – and even philosopher/artist Bob Marley “none but ourselves can free our minds” – our seminar explored theories of justice across worldviews, generations, and lived realities. Our Te Poutoko Ora a Kiwa (Centre for Pacific and Global Health) and New Zealand College of Public Health Medicine (NZCPHM) seminar on Distributive Justice in Health has now finished — and we want to thank everyone who joined us, in-person and online, for making it such a meaningful, grounded, and thought-provoking event.
The kōrero reminded us that:
- Pacific perspectives are essential leadership, not marginalised add-ons.
- Land, environment, and place are inseparable from justice and wellbeing.
- Systems must reflect the realities, values, and needs of the communities they serve.
Seminar Title: Distributive Justice in Health
Date and Time: Tuesday 15th July 1:00pm – 2:30pm
Venue: Fale Pasifika (20-26 Wynyard Street City Campus, Waipapa Taumata Rau, the University of Auckland) and Online via Livestream
With deep gratitude to our speakers:
✨ Associate Professor Monique Jonas
✨ Rob Campbell, CNZM
✨and also our Co-Director Sir Colin Tukuitonga who facilitated.
Associate Professor Monique Jonas opened the session by grounding us in the philosophical roots of justice. She drew on Aristotle’s classic idea — “equals should be treated equally, and unequals unequally, in proportion to their relevant differences” — and Rawls’ concept of fairness as justice, especially the protection of the least advantaged. These frameworks helped us ask: what does a fair health system look like — and for whom is it currently working or failing?
Rob Campbell, CNZM challenged the existing health system in Aotearoa, pointing out how Pacific peoples have been marginalised within it. Yet he emphasised that we have so much to learn from our Moana Nui a Kiwa, where Pacific peoples are not marginalised. Instead, we are part of a collective Oceania — a shared identity and wisdom that must be recentralised in health, justice, and environmental protection conversations.