By building a ‘bot to crack a back-breaking task, Dr Shen Hin Lim gives hope to our asparagus industry. Our horticulture sector is facing a labour crunch and asparagus growers are particularly hard hit. Workers must walk fields daily to spot spears of the required height and then stoop to pick them, making it one…
As the perils of plastic production and pollution rise, Scion/AgriSea spies a solution in seaweed. Nanocellulose is considered to be a sustainable alternative to petroleum-based plastics and can be used in a vast range of products including adhesives, batteries, biomedical supplies and cosmetics. It’s widely available, biodegradable and biocompatible but the bulk of the world’s…
Chris Duggan’s bi-lingual science kits for primary schools have grown from a one-city wonder to a nationwide phenomenon. Observing a downward trend in our primary level science results and knowing that a lack of teacher confidence was part of the problem, accomplished science educator Chris quit her teaching job to start ‘House of Science’, a…
Outstanding leaders in terrestrial ecology, Professor Bruce Clarkson and Dr Bev Clarkson have dedicated their careers to understanding and protecting our special landscapes. Collectively, the Clarksons have attracted approximately $26 million in research funding, written nearly 200 peer-reviewed papers, supervised over 25 postgraduate students, supported many major community environmental/conservation advisory organisations and provided senior leadership…
From sewage to sea-level rise, Dr Rob Bell has devoted his professional life to protecting New Zealanders from water-related hazards. Principal Scientist and Programme Leader at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), Dr Bell’s remarkable career began with a series of engineering projects to clean up wastewater outfall discharges into our coastal…
Greta Dromgool’s teaching and contributions to the Science Learning Hub have boosted science education regionally and nationally. Greta is hugely committed to growing a love for science, sharing her enthusiasm for the discipline with her students (currently as Head of Science at Berkley Normal Middle School) and with her peers through her role as a…
A genuine star in NZ’s artificial breeding world, Neil Standley provides critical support for LIC’s laboratories. Each spring, LIC dispatches up to 140,000 straws of bull semen per day to New Zealand farms. Neil Standley is responsible for seeing that this happens without a hitch. As well as taking care of production lab technicalities and…
Dr Ian Kusabs has proven that a traditional Māori fishing method stacks up scientifically for monitoring the health of lakes and streams. Tau kōura uses bundles of bracken tied to submerged ropes, which provide an attractive habitat for native crayfish. Kōura is a keystone species in our freshwater ecosystems and function in Dr Kusabs’s words…
Dr Nina Scott’s research brings Mātauranga Māori to medicine, tangibly improving health outcomes for Māori. A leading expert in the use of kaupapa Māori methodologies for health research with more than 30 peer reviewed articles to her name, Dr Scott’s latest achievement is the Harti Hauora Tamariki Study. Designed using the He Pikanga Waiora Framework…
Tiny keys to big global environmental questions – past, present and future – are Dr Adam Hartland’s specialty. A Senior Lecturer at the University of Waikato, Dr Hartland’s focus is on the interaction between natural organic matter, nanoparticles and trace elements in soil, water and minerals. He has unravelled clues to climate change in stalagmites…