Reflections on community academic partnership in health research with the Niue community using the Matalili‑Aga Gahua (Matalili Wellbeing Framework)

Abstract Community-academic partnerships are essential for addressing health inequities and ensuring public health research reflects the values and priorities of communities. This study presents reflections from community and academic researchers in a collaborative research project conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic to explore the wellbeing of the Niue community in Aotearoa New Zealand. The research was guided by the Matalili Wellbeing Framework, a model developed from Niue cultural values and traditional knowledge, with the principles of Vahā Loto-Agaaga Ofania (Spirit of Care), Fakafetuiaga (Inclusive Relationship), and Fakamalolo (Empowerment). Using a collaborative autoethnographic approach, both community and academic researchers contributed written reflections spanning all stages of the research process. The reflections in this study described how community members were involved in the broader health research project, contributing to its initial conceptualisation and design and participating in data collection, interpretation, and dissemination. The reflections also highlighted the importance of trust-building, flexibility, and integrating traditional knowledge and lived experience. Informal and inclusive settings, supported by technology and collaborative practices, facilitated active participation and mutual learning. The partnership successfully navigated tensions between institutional procedures and community practices, demonstrating how culturally inclusive, community-led research can yield outcomes that are academically rigorous and socially meaningful. The study offers contextually grounded implications for practice that may inform effective community-academic partnerships in future community health research and public health policy development involving the Niue community, as part of the wider Pacific communities. The findings reinforce the importance of co-design and relational accountability in public health research.