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Throughout her career Claudia Orange has brought the Treaty of Waitangi to a broad audience.
The author of a surprise bestseller on the Treaty in the 1980s says she was bequeathed a passion for the subject by her university role model.
Ruth Ross, a historian from North Auckland,
had done a lot of research on the Treaty before she fell ill with a terminal disease in the 1970s.
She knew that Dr Orange, who was studying at Auckland University, was interested in the topic and advised her to continue the research for her PhD.
"She handed the baton over to me, I suppose," Dr Orange said.
Her The Treaty of Waitangi became one of the most read books on the Treaty in New Zealand, still selling one copy a day nearly 20 years on.
She later expanded the book and produced an illustrated version, and hopes to begin revising the copy into a shorter version for secondary schools.
Well-known in academic circles for her work on The Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, Dr Orange says she is beginning to move away from it to work more on the Te Ara online encyclopaedia.
"The internet is a great way for people to access information about New Zealand history," she said.
Dr Orange, who is director of history and Pacific culture at Te Papa, is also organising museum exhibitions on Pacific Islanders and Scottish immigrants in New Zealand in the twentieth century.
"What people don't realise is it takes years of planning to get these exhibitions organised. But they are always getting more exciting. The new exhibitions, especially, will be rich in film, covering a wealth of stories."
Anthropologist Dame Joan Metge said Dr Orange was delving into primary research at a time when no-one else was interested. "She is someone who is passionate about the Treaty, and realised the importance of the research."
Since beginning her work on the Treaty, Dr Orange said MMP had been one of the most interesting developments: "There is now a greater appreciation of working together to build a coherent nation."
The downfall of Dr Orange's job is it leaves her little time to visit her children, who live abroad, or to read crime novels, particularly those by Patricia Cornwall and P.D. James.
"New Zealanders should be proud of the Treaty," said Dr Orange. "It's the touchstone for the two major mainstream groups who are working together to come to a resolution. It's what makes us unique as a country."
