Issue 13- Monday 22 July 2019
HeadSup
Kia ora koutou
Welcome to Semester 2, the big run to the end of the year! It’s great to see all the activity around campus. Please give a warm welcome to all our new and returning students, and especially keep an eye out for the lost ones. Starting out at Uni can be a daunting experience; your friendly greeting can make a big difference.
It’s consultation time. The faculty has kicked off its annual strategic planning exercise and we have 4 weeks to submit our school 3-year Strategic Plan. This plan sets out our objectives and resourcing requirements. Over the next two weeks the Chairs of the various committees and Academic Programme Heads will be drawing together material for the draft plan that will be circulated for comment to staff and PG students in the next edition of P-cubed. There then will be a one week opportunity for consideration and feedback after which the plan will be finalised for submission on 16 August. If you would like to contribute to the 2020 plan, please engage via committees and/or disciplinary groups, or send individual comments directly to me. For reference, our 2019 plan is here.
In developing the strategic plan, we would like to include a short mission/values statement, one that we can develop further over the next 12 months. If you are interested in contributing to this, please see below for further information.
Now is the time to think about short projects or qualifying purchases that need some $$ and which can be receipted before 31 December. If the budget is looking flush as we get late into the 3rd quarter we will start funding these items. ‘Underspend proposals‘ are open to all committees, disciplinary groups (incl. student experience committee) and individual staff. Please see here for details.
Have a great week!
Ngā mihi – JR
For Your Diary
| Deadlines | Date & Location |
| ENV morning tea – farewell for Vanessa | Wednesday 24th July, 10.30am, Level 6 common space |
| FRDF grants -contact RPC Ivana Mlinac i.mlinac@auckland.ac.nz for more information. | Wednesday 24th July |
| NZ Association of Scientist Medals | Wednesday 31 July, 2019 |
| Draft content for ENV strategic plan to JR please, Values content/ideas to Larry please | Friday 2 August |
| Promotion applications (excluding Professorial applications) – send to JR- Discussion with JR before the deadline is required | Thursday 15 August |
| Proposals for short-term funding (Underspend proposals) due to JR | 16th August |
| UOA Teaching Excellence Awards | Due Friday 6th September |
Whakawhanaungatanga – communities
Shaping our vision and values
The School of Environment sits within a broader organisation with defined missions and values; our mission and values must map onto these broader frameworks, though they can reflect our unique identity.
- What is our mission
- What are our values?
Larry is building a short mission/values statement for the 3-year strategic plan, one that we can develop further over the next 12 months. If you would like to contribute ideas or opinions, please get in touch with him before Friday August 2. l.murphy@Auckland.ac.nz
The University’s core values are:
- Excellence in teaching, learning, research, creative work and administration
- Respect for each other and for our shared commitment to excellence, collegiality, academic freedom, equity, and the principles of the Te Tiriti ō Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi).
- Service by our staff, students and alumni to high quality learning, the advancement of knowledge and to our local, national and international communities
DRAFT FACULTY OF SCIENCE VALUES
Our Mission: Excellent science – local impact – global leadership
We undertake excellent scientific research and education that are valued for their contribution to evidence-based global discourse and for the way they underpin and support New Zealand and New Zealanders to:
- Understand the processes that shape our physical, natural and social environments and their implications;
- Be responsive and responsible in addressing challenges that might affect them or their environments;
- Live lives that are healthy in mind and body in habitats that are rich and diverse;
- Transform our economy to one that is environmentally and socially sustainable and which is founded on evidence-based research
- Grow a population that irrespective of background is well educated in science, including mātauranga Māori, and its ethical application;
- …and which, through our local actions, provide global leadership.
Our Values
Within this framework we are committed to:
- Quality – valuing quality over quantity in our teaching, research, relationships and cultures.
- Te Tiriti ō Waitangi – respecting its principles, and meaningfully engaging with Māori and Pacific approaches and values in all that we do.
- Equity – supporting all students and staff to reach their potential, irrespective of background.
- Inclusivity – providing an inclusive work and study environment that promotes wellbeing and celebrates diversity.
- Pedagogy – ensuring our teaching programmes respond to international best practice and to the diverse and changing needs of our students.
- Research – promoting thriving research communities, including those based on interdisciplinary collaboration.
- Stakeholders – strengthening our engagement with, and our relevance to, our stakeholders and their communities.
- Sustainability – investing in sustainability in its broadest sense: ethical, emotional, environmental and financial.
- Professionalism – encouraging core values: Integrity, Efficiency, Credibility, Compassion, Passion, Helpfulness.
Promotion Applications 2019 (excluding Professorial applications)
If you are considering applying for promotion, please make sure you are familiar with the content of the Academic Promotions webpage (it contains links to all promotions forms, policies and the standards) and email Samantha (Samantha.huang@auckland.ac.nz ) to schedule a meeting to discuss with JR before submitting your complete applications to her. The deadline of submitting applications is Thursday 15 August. Click here for more details.
Space
Multi-use Laboratory Room 302-586
The ‘document’ lab has been reconfigured to provide a multi-use facility that is suitable for microscope work or small meetings/seminars. Several specialist microscopes are positioned on the back/side walls. Window screens, fold-up chairs and a large smart TV are available.
If you want to book this room please see Farnaz or Lynnette in the main office, Level 6. They will record your booking and have a key that you can collect when you need it. All staff and PG students can book this space.
The space is available for use without a booking but obviously bookings take precedence.
IMPORTANT:
The new release of the University Health, Safety and Wellbeing (HSW) Policy:
The H&S policy is now the Health, Safety and Wellbeing (HSW) policy, and replaces all previous versions. The HSW policy includes Governance and Leadership statements, breaks down responsibilities by role, and describes how we manage HSW at The University.
All staff should make themselves familiar with section 6 “All Staff” responsibilities, and those other responsibilities that apply to their particular role. All students need to make themselves familiar with their responsibilities as per section 7 “students”.
Accident and near miss reporting:
You should be reporting injuries, near misses, potential incidents, vehicle incidents and anything else of concern. If in doubt, ask one of the HSW committee members. Reporting from the School has been a bit slow over the last few months, but we have had a couple of interesting potential incidents reported.
- A cheeky seagull has been stacking pebbles on the 302 L6 building ledge. This has the potential to cause some harm if one fell off and hit someone below. This was reported, investigated and is now sitting with property services to rectify (bird netting? Scarecrow?)
- A couple of live shotgun shells were accidentally sent back to the School with some field equipment. Reported, and shells dropped off to the police.
Reporting procedure can be found below. Pretty easy, fill in the form and send to a member of the School HSW committee.
Events
Farewell
Morning Tea for Vanessa Castro’s farewell – 10:30am, 24 July, L6 Breakout Space
Cumberland Lecture
Save the date! The Cumberland lecture will be on 22 August, 5 pm, PLT2. Kennedy Warne – Writer, Photographer, and co-founder of New Zealand Geographic – is our Cumberland lecturer. Further details coming soon.
The Earth Sciences Bickie briefing
The Earth Sciences Bickie briefing runs every Thursday morning at 10.30am in the Level 6 Breakout space- B302. All post grads and staff welcome.
Volcanology, Geochemistry, & Petrology Research Group
The volcanology, geochemistry, & petrology research group (VGP) meets every other week during the semester. Our next meeting will be on 25 July from 12 to 1 in 302-130. (Note the time and location change from last semester!) Geoff and Jan will be giving talks about his recent experimental work in Munich and the Resilience to Nature’s Challenges- Urban Phase 2 research programme, respectively. For more information, please see our website: vgp.blogs.auckland.ac.nz See you soon!
FoS Postdoc Society
The Faculty of Science Post-Doctoral Society is a society for Postdocs and Early Career Researchers within the Faculty of Science that has the following objectives:
- a) To promote excellent science by providing a community for FoS postdoctoral staff and early career researchers that facilitates networking and collaboration both in and out of the lab.
- b) To facilitate training and career development amongst FoS postdoctoral staff and early career researchers; and
- c) To promote the interests of and provide a voice for FoS postdoctoral staff and early career researchers within both the School and the University of Auckland.
We are always open to new committee members so if you know any postdocs or early career researcher who are passionate about helping other postdocs/early career researchers and interested in becoming committee members or if you are that person, please contact us at fos-res-fellows@auckland.ac.nz. Alternatively, if you would like to find out what it is like being a committee member, please come along to any of our committee meetings held on the first Tuesday of each month at 3pm in the Building 302, 6th floor breakout space (next one is Tuesday 6th August).
Unfortunately, we don’t currently have an automatic notification when a new postdoc joins the Faculty. We manually add a new person to our emailing list when we can identify one, but it is tricky to track everyone. So please let us know by emailing at fos-res-fellows@auckland.ac.nz if you would like to be on our mailing list. We run a range of events throughout the year ranging from panel discussions to skills workshops and use this list to advertise events and let you know what’s going on within the society as it happens.
Best regards,
Lena Weissert
Student Levy Consultation
The Student Levy, or Compulsory Student Services Fee, is open for consultation from Monday 1 July – Friday 2 August. There is five $50 Westfield Shopping vouchers to be won.
Complete the Student Levy Survey and tell us how you think the compulsory fee should be spent at the University in 2020. The survey can be found here
Please find the Flyer here
Open Day 2019 – ambassadors
UOA is looking for 200-odd student ambassadors (including UniGuides) to help for a full day on Open Day, doing tasks such as transport coordination, help desks, lecture support, SkyBus help and other misc. tasks. As a thank you for volunteering your time and support, you will be provided with lunch on the day and a Westfield voucher.
More information and sign up form for students: https://forms.gle/aQUr7vCWB66ncKSy5
Datamine graduate recruitment information evening:
Wondering where your degree in science, statistics, computer science or technology can take you? Datamine is on the search for Auckland University students and near-graduates to join their growing team.
Date: Tuesday 6 August
Time: 5pm
Place: 23 Symonds Street, MedChem Lecture Theatre, Science Building.
Spaces are limited. Please book your spot through our website or by contacting Datamine at grads@datamine.com.
Please find the Flyer here
Thank you!
INCREDIBLE SCIENCE DAY
We would like to thank all of our outreach volunteers from AUGA, DEVORA, QuakeCore, Rū, and UOA geography who helped with several tables at The University of Auckland’s Incredible Science day on July 2nd. There were over 500 students, teachers and parents from around the Auckland region. It was a successful day enjoyed by all. Anna and Shannen.
Rangahau – Research
PhD student Kate Cocker working with Phil Shane using the electron microprobe at Victoria University in Wellington last week. She is analysing crystals in andesites from Ruapehu volcano. The aim to understand how magma ascends to the surface.
Financial Reports
The Budget Availability Report (BAR) sent to researchers each month will be retired at the end of July. An enhanced report is available through Strategic Management Report (SMR) research dashboards.
The dashboard provides detailed reports of the HOD and RDA accounts and all research projects that you are a PI on. It has updated data from the previous working day.
An eLearning module entitled ‘Research Funding Dashboards for Researchers’ has been created – with a PI specific view.
The school’s RPCs can help if you have any questions, how to access and interpret the dashboard.
Meetings, seminars and events
Registrations for Exposure 2019 open 29 July
Get ready for Exposure 2019! The University’s biggest postgraduate research expo is back this October. Whether you want to compete in the Poster Session or Oral Presentation Session, prepare your abstract and be ready to submit when registrations open on 29 July.
In 2018, Science students won first and second place in the poster competition and won second place in the oral presentation.
With a total prize fund of $7,500, can you afford to miss it?
Find dates, details and resources at auckland.ac.nz/exposure.
‘Ken Cumberland and Historical Geography – (or why I’m an ambivalent social scientist)’
Tuesday 6th August at 4.00pm in the Ontology Lab on Level 5 of Building 302
Speaker: Professor Michael Roche, Massey University, Palmerston North
Please find the flyer here.
Research Ideas Seminar – Our World and Universe
You’re cordially invited to the second in the series of Our World and Universe seminars on Wednesday 14 August at 2-4pm.
The focus of the seminar will be for YOU to present YOUR current research project ideas – whether it be for MBIE, Marsden, industry or for internal funding. Any project idea is welcome, no matter how new or developed it may be! The main aim is for all of us to share our interests and connect to others outside of our immediate disciplines.
$$$$! – Anyone who gets involved in the session and presents will be eligible to receive SEED MONEY for their project idea: There are two prizes worth $4K (for research staff) and two prizes worth $2K (for postgraduate research students).
And if the money isn’t enough of an incentive, we will have free food and drinks too!
Any topic that relates to the theme in any aspect is welcome. As a reminder, the theme has three main focus areas:
- Earth. The study of our oceans, climate and geological systems; Life and it’s development, from mitochondria to megafauna.
- Space. Remote sensing and space technology; Exploration of the stars, galaxies and supernovae; All things ‘Astro’.
- Fundamental Questions. The origins and evolution of life; The philosophy of biology and enaction; Complex networks and machine learning.
The format of the session will be for you and other members come by, create a quick write up of your idea on a whiteboard on the day, and present these to the room. We ran this format in April in a similar session, and had a great response – if you’d like to take a look, click here to find out more about the talks.
Please RSVP to this email to sign up, with a few words that describe your idea/talk.
Journal Editors Workshop – Auckland Monday 26 August
The Journal Editors Workshop will be held across 2 locations: (View online)
AUCKLAND
Monday 26 August
9.00am – 11.30am
Auckland University of Technology
WELLINGTON
Tuesday 27 August
9.00am – 11.30am
Victoria University of Wellington
Featured speaker: Dr Anthony Dona
What you will discover at the workshop:
- Journal Selection Criteria and Improving your Publication – Understand how journals are selected and analysed in Web of Science.
- Enhancing your Impact Factor and the State of Open Access – Understand how to use the Impact Factor Metric, and its limitations. Learn about other valuable bibliometric indicators and the trends of these in open access journals.
- Find Peer Reviewers and Publons Profiles – Discover where academics are editing and reviewing journals like your own.
Please register here.
Marine Geosciences Talk
Wed 24/7, 1-2 pm
CAG01/114-G01 (Commerce A)
Fish predators maintain estuarine biodiversity and benefit a critical ecosystem engineer
Joseph Reustle
Smee Marine Ecology Lab
Texas A&M University
A Prognosis on Privacy: Are We Equipped for Emerging Challenges?
David Swanlund is a visiting PhD Candidate from Simon Fraser University in Canada. He will be giving a talk on modern Geo Privacy issues and solutions next week. David’s excellent work has been published in Progress in Human Geography and the Annals of the AAG, and his has most recently won an award for his talk at the Spatial Knowledge and Information conference in Canada.
The abstract for his talk is as follows:
Whether it’s Cambridge Analytica, revelations about government surveillance, or the seemingly endless breaches of corporate databases, privacy is often marked by scandal. As a result of this constant exposure, surveys show that members of the public are increasingly worried about their privacy and are feeling less confident that they understand how corporations and governments are collecting, analyzing, and sharing their data. But what exactly is privacy anyways, where are its edges, and why do privacy scholars so often disagree over these seemingly basic questions? Moreover, why might we look at privacy through an explicitly spatial lens (i.e. geoprivacy), and what does spatial data reveal about us that other forms of data do not? Finally, what can we as researchers do to better protect the spatial privacy of the individuals in our datasets? This presentation will explore each of these questions, and in doing so will outline emerging problems in the study, protection, and even conceptualization of privacy.
Hope you will be able to join us in the Ontology Lab for a talk that is sure to be of interest for all of the school of environment as we all have data that requires security and has privacy considerations. If you think others outside of the school would be interested, please feel free to invite them as well. There will be cookies!
Details:
Thursday, July 25.
Talk 2-2:30, discussion thereafter.
Ontology Lab,B302, Level 5. Rm. 551
Funding Opportunities
RSNZ Rutherford Foundation 2019
The objectives of the Rutherford Foundation Fellowships and Scholarships are to support the education and development of promising excellent early career researchers with the potential to excel in a research environment.
Due to Funds & Submissions by 5pm Tuesday 23 July 2019.
Information and guidelines : Rutherford Foundation
FRDF
The updated documents for the 2019 Round are now available on the Faculty of Science intranet
https://www.sciencestaff.auckland.ac.nz/en/about/research/faculty-research-development-fund.html
Applications are due by 5pm on Wednesday 24th July and should be submitted via the RFM – contact your RPC Ivana Mlinac i.mlinac@auckland.ac.nz if you have any queries.
Vice-Chancellor’s Strategic Development Fund (VCSDF).
Applications must support the University’s Strategic Plan and have sufficient impact to justify immediate funding. Applications can be made by any individual staff member or group of staff, academic unit or service division.
VCSDF applications close at 5pm on Friday 16th August.
More information and an application form are available on the staff intranet at Vice-Chancellor’s Strategic Development Fund 2019
New publications
- Simon-Kumar, R., Collins, F.L. & Friesen, W. (eds) (2019) Intersections of inequality, migration and diversification: the politics of mobility in Aotearoa/NewZealand. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Friesen, W. (2019) ‘Quantifying and qualifying inequality among migrants’ in R. Simon-Kumar, F.L. Collins, & W. Friesen (eds), Intersections of inequality, migration and diversification: the politics of mobility in Aotearoa/NewZealand. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 17-42.
- Shirley, G., Wylie, E., & Friesen, W. (2019) ‘The branding of post-conflict tourism destinations: theoretical reflections and case studies’, in A. Neef and J.H. Grayman (eds), The tourism-disaster-conflict nexus. Bingley, UK: Emerald Publishing Ltd, pp 119-139.
- Underhill-Sem, Y, Marsters, E., Bedford, R., Naidu, V. & Friesen, W., (2019) Are there only winners? Labour mobility for sustainable development in the Pacific. New Zealand Institute for Pacific Research, Auckland. 48 pp.
- PhD student Megan Tuck has just published a paper in Geology. The paper has been covered by various media organisations. Link to one piece below.Tuck, M. E., Kench, P. S., Ford, M. R., & Masselink, G. (2019). Physical modelling of the response of reef islands to sea-level rise. Geology.https://www.stuff.co.nz/science/114265809/some-islands-get-higher-migrate-as-sea-levels-rise-storms-intensify-auckland-university-researchers
Ako – Teaching and Learning
Teaching Excellence Awards
Applications are being called for The University of Auckland Teaching Excellence Awards. There are five Teaching Excellence Awards available, in the following categories:
- Sustained Excellence in Teaching (two awards)
- Early Career Excellence in Teaching (two awards)
- Leadership in Teaching and Learning (one award)
- In the 2019 round, applications are invited for formal leadership in teaching and learning*
In a particular year, if an award is not made in one or more of the categories, an award may be re-assigned to another category if the next best ranked application in that category is of sufficient merit. The Awards are contestable across the University and carry with them a medal and a monetary prize of $6,000.
Selected recipients of University of Auckland Teaching Excellence Awards will usually be considered for nomination by the University for the national awards. The University, however, reserves the right to approach other staff to nominate for the national awards.
The ‘Information to applicants’ and application forms are available on the University’s Teaching and Learning website at:
http://www.auckland.ac.nz/uoa/excellence-innovation/
For guidance and advice on preparing a teaching portfolio, potential applicants can:
– view the portfolios of the University’s national Tertiary Teaching Excellence Award winners as an example of best practice
– consult the online resources available on the Centre for Learning and Research in Higher Education (CLeaR) website
– submit a request for a consultation with CLeaR
The closing date for applications is Friday 6 September 2019 with the Teaching Excellence Awards Secretary, Susan McDowell-Watts, s.mcdowell-watts@auckland.ac.nz
For any enquiries – contact Claire Walters, Academic Reviews Manager, Office of the Vice-Chancellor, c.walters@auckland.ac.nz
Classifieds
Free 3-seater sofa
In great condition, except for the cat damage to the arms and the base :-(. Don’t take it if you’re allergic to cats. But, if you need a couch for the flat this could be a goodie. Email JR.
Are you good at graphics? Want some work?
If you make great visual posters and want some paid work, I’m keen to have a chat to you. Email JR.
Copy deadline for next edition of P-cubed: Friday 12:00 2nd August, to Farnaz: f.sheikh@auckland.ac.nz
