Joined November 2018
- Tweets 1,783
- Following 1,059
- Followers 1,559
- Likes 3,239
526 Photos and videos
Pinned Tweet
23 Jun 2023
My PhD is about investigating the Samoan traditional diet to see if it can prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes in Samoan women living in New Zealand.
I hope this knowledge will help Pacific families live healthier and longer lives
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8 Dec 2025
I went to an international conference in America expecting to feel behind.
Instead I realised New Zealand researchers are doing world-class work with almost nothing.
We are not behind. We are just under-resourced.
Big difference.
#STEM
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8 Dec 2025
For everyone who feels caught between two cultures.
Not Samoan enough. Not Kiwi enough. Not anything enough.
I made these for you.
stan.store/samoanscientist
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo
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8 Dec 2025
I grew up not knowing if I was Samoan enough.
So I created resources to help people like me reconnect with our culture.
The Samoan Seasonal Calendar. Myths and Origins of Samoan Foods. Knowledge that belongs to us.
stan.store/samoanscientist
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo
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8 Dec 2025
Nobody tells you that a PhD is not just about research.
It is about learning to communicate complex ideas simply.
That skill transfers everywhere.
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo #STEM #phd
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8 Dec 2025
Traditional knowledge was never meant to be locked in universities.
I spent years in academia learning about Samoan foods, seasons, and stories.
Now I am giving it back.
stan.store/samoanscientist
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo
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8 Dec 2025
Hot take: Science communication is not a side skill.
It is THE skill.
If you cannot explain your research to someone outside your field, you do not understand it well enough.
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo #STEM
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3 Dec 2025
Lō (April)
Aperila was Lō — named after the shoaling of small fish arriving in abundance.
The ocean was our seasonal calendar.
Learn more: stan.store/samoanscientist
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo
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3 Dec 2025
Taumafa Mua (November)
Novema was Taumafa Mua — the first of plenty.
Abundance, feasting, first-fruit celebrations.
Explore the calendar: stan.store/samoanscientist
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo
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3 Dec 2025
Fa’aafu (March)
Mati was Fa’aafu — the withering of the yam vines.
Plants turning “like shells” signalled seasonal change long before Western calendars.
See more stories: stan.store/samoanscientist
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3 Dec 2025
Palolo Mua (July)
Iulai was Palolo Mua, the season of the first palolo rising.
One of Samoa’s most iconic natural events.
More stories: stan.store/samoanscientist
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo
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3 Dec 2025
Toeutuvā (February)
Fepuari was Toeutuvā — digging the yams again to raise storms.
Our ancestors understood weather shifts deeply through food cycles and planting rhythms.
Full calendar here: stan.store/samoanscientist
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3 Dec 2025
In old Samoan time, Ianuari was Utuvamua — the season of first yam digging. Storms were explained through the story of two brothers, Utuvamua and Utuvamuli, fleeing a war in the heavens.
Connecting story, land, and season.
Explore more: stan.store/samoanscientist
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2 Dec 2025
If I make it to New York to meet Gary V, I am taking all of you with me in spirit.
I will carry your questions, your ideas and your dreams into that room. If I win, we all win.
stan.store/samoanscientist
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo
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2 Dec 2025
In Samoan tradition, food didn’t come from “resources.”
It came from ancestors, winds, tides, plants, and animals with genealogy and spirit.
stan.store/samoanscientist
#garyveestanchallenge #stanvideo
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2 Dec 2025
To be in the top 10 of the Gary V Stan Challenge I need to earn 198,734 USD in 11 days.
Big number. Big dream.
If I make it to New York to meet Gary V, I am taking our community with me through behind the scenes and shared learnings.
stan.store/samoanscientist
#stanvideo
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