Paikea: the Life of I.L.G. Sutherland

Examining the life of one of 20th-century New Zealands leading academics, this biography of Ivan Sutherland also casts light on the development of race relations and biculturalism in New Zealand. Active in a host of progressive community initiativesincluding establishing New Zealands first childrens psychological clinic, attacking the rise of the eugenics movement, and campaigning for public radioSutherlands commitment to social psychology drew him into the world of the Ngati Porou Maori tribe and led to his meeting prominent Maori politician Apirana Ngata, who would become a mentor and life-long friend.

The book explores how this relationship shaped Sutherlands stance against what he considered the prevailing racialism among New Zealanders of European descent and his staunch commitment to a bicultural New Zealand. It also examines Sutherlands relationship with Karl Popper while the two were professors of philosophy at Canterbury University College, detailing how they worked together to bring Jewish war refugees from Hitlers Germany to New Zealand.

This impressive biography reveals Ivan Sutherland as a sensitive, compassionate man, an enthusiastic and far-sighted advocate for Maori self-determination, and, ultimately, an individual worthy of the honorific granted to him by the Ngati Pouro: Paikea, the name of one of their legendary ancestors. See more