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Tupa’ilevaililigi Ridvan Firestone is a Professor in the Centre for Public Health Research at Massey University. She holds a Bachelor of Speech and Language Therapy from the University of Canterbury and a PhD from Massey University, with a thesis on obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome among taxi drivers. Her research focuses on social and cultural health inequalities, particularly among young Pasifika people with non-communicable diseases, and she employs co-design approaches to develop community-based interventions with Pasifika and Māori communities.
Firestone was promoted to Associate Professor in 2021 and full Professor in 2025. She previously worked in sleep science at Massey’s SleepWake Research Centre before shifting to public health. Key appointments include Pacific Strategy Leader for the A Better Start National Science Challenge and roles in the Healthier Lives challenge. She received the New Zealand Health Research Council’s Sir Thomas Davis Te Patu Kite Rangi Ariki Health Research Fellowship in 2014, a Marsden grant in 2020, and a Fulbright Scholar Award for youth-focused type 2 diabetes prevention research at UCLA. She was appointed Chair of the Lottery Health Research Committee in 2020 and has contributed to editorial and committee work in her field.
Professor Tupa’ilevaililigi Ridvan Firestone of Massey University has been awarded a Fulbright Scholar Award to advance youth-focused type 2 diabetes prevention at UCLA, addressing critical health needs in Pacific communities.
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