Issue 97 – Monday 27 March 2023
Contents
HeadsUp
Pink leafless belladonna lilies seem to be popping up everywhere. The nights are cool but, mercifully, the sea is still warm. Autumn is emphatically here.
With the imminent end of daylight saving, it feels like the gritty business of the semester is upon us. I enjoyed a block of undergraduate teaching and was heartened by the attendance.
But hold on tight, there’s always something new. Curved balls as they say in baseball. Like ChatGBT – thanks, Marie, Larry and Larissa for a great workshop unpicking some of its implications last week. It’s a brave new world. More questions than answers…
On a less perplexing note, we had Wiki 1 of the Te Akoranga Kairangi course run by Alison Jones and Vikki Demant. It is hugely encouraging that such a large cohort from Environment has committed to this enriching opportunity.
And speaking of opportunities, I’ve recently been to my first HoS training sessions. I guess that means my 23 months as a total amateur are up!
Looking ahead, a few dates and processes to note:
- I’ve been asked to spread the ADPR and TUPU processes over more of the year so when Patricia makes contact please respond generously for an appointment.
- With the promotions round coming up mid-year, please make contact for a conversation should you be planning on applying.
- In the lead-up to the 2026 PBRF round, estimated scores have been prepared and are now with me for comment. They all seem pretty accurate to me and will be available to research-active staff soon. These indicative scores should serve as an incentive for maintaining or seeking to improve research performance. (while attributed to individuals, remember we collectively benefit from a strong school performance).
- Graduation is coming up on 4th May. Please plan on the attending the ceremony (phew, its not an evening one again!).
And, on the good news front:
First, very big congratulations to Environment PhD student Michaela Dobson who has been awarded a scholarship to intern with NASA in California.
And, second, congratulations too to the Geographers who have achieved 42= among global universities for their QS subject ranking!
I am sure there is more good news to keep us buoyed in these shortening days of autumn. Be sure to let me know.
Robin Kearns
General Announcements
Public Lecture by Prof Kannan: Pet dogs and cats as sentinels of human exposure to environmental chemicals
Date: Tuesday 28th March 2023
Time: 11 am to 12 pm
Venue: 423-340, Conference Centre Building 423, 22 Symonds Street
Speaker Bio: Dr. Kurunthachalam Kannan is a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, New York University School of Medicine. Dr. Kannan’s research interests are understanding sources, pathways and distribution of persistent organic pollutants in the environment. Recent research is focused on human biomonitoring and exposure assessment. Dr. Kannan is one of the top 5 most highly cited researchers (ISI) in Ecology/Environment in the world (h-index: >150).
Taiao Tutor Community of Practice – Ako Innovation Committee
The Taiao Tutor Community of Practice is underway for 2023! The next workshops in the series are:
Zoom Teaching Skills Workshop – Teaching online is a very different experience to teaching in-person. This session focuses upon the basic practical skills to use Zoom for teaching, and will also offer tips, tricks and troubleshooting suggestions. Please note, this is an interactive session so bring a device to access Zoom. Morning tea will be provided!
Presentation Skills Workshop – Public speaking and presentation skills may not come naturally however are an important part of your tutor skillset. In this session Ingrid Ukstins, will provide some practical tips and tricks to developing your presenting skills through interactive activities. Come along to join in the lunch to also celebrate making it to the mid semester break!
Internal Seminar Series
PhD proposal presentation by Dacey Zelman-Fahm – Modelling Local and Temporal Risk Exposure Using Fused Geographically Weighted Land Use Regression
Date: Thu 6th April 2023
Time: 2pm
To read more about the proposal and to access the Zoom link, click here DaceyZelmanFahm_Seminar Flyer_internal_phd_2023
Vision Mātauranga Hui
As part of the Vision Mātauranga support for researchers within Te Whare Pūtaiao Faculty of Science, the Māori advisors’ team will be running a two hour Vision Mātauranga Hui:
Date: Thursday 20 April 2023
Time: 9:00 – 11:00am
Venue: Building 119-G30
Link: Responsiveness to Maaori tool v1.3
We understand that the timing may not work for everyone and unfortunately, we will not be recording this session. This will be an in person session only.
So we have an idea of the numbers attending, could you please complete the registration form: https://auckland.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bDFImD8R8XeKrWe
In advance of the session, please find attached a document to help map out your proposal ideas and how they connect with Māori aspirations, build Māori capability and capacity, and look at how you can ensure your research is reaching Māori communities. Although we will not be focused on this document, it may help you as you look to see how your research can be responsive to Māori, and you are welcome to bring it with you to the session.
Kind Regards,
Dianne Sennoga, Research Programme Coordinator
Ethics Applications
The Ethics and Integrity Team invites researchers intending to submit an ethics application to training sessions ( held fortnightly) exploring the process for creating and submitting applications at the University of Auckland.
Training sessions discuss core ethical concepts and policies which should be considered during an application’s creation, as well as provide an in-depth review of the online Infonetica Ethics RM platform used during submission.
Please see the links below for information and to sign up to a session:
https://research-hub-preview.auckland.ac.nz/event/research-ethics-workshop
https://uoa.csod.com/ui/lms-learning-details/app/event/266d7c0e-2db1-4c98-a933-25423d26e847
Training_Sessions_timetable_2023.pdf (ctfassets.net)
Field trip student payments
Just a reminder that since the Student Centre closed a couple of years ago, student payment for field trips are made through the Science University Store page https://store.auckland.ac.nz/science-faculty/ (nb the webpage is currently being updated). You can upload the Field trip to the store via the UOA Store Product Upload Request FS-54 form.
Kia ora Everyone,
A few things:
1/ A reminder I have PhD Advisor office hours everyone Monday at 4pm. Either in my office 302-735 or on zoom https://auckland.zoom.us/j/91470429035?pwd=amkxWm51ZDJWWTc1anBGTFU3SWpYQT09. You are also very welcome to email or catch me at other times.
2/ The School of Environment has a morning tea every Wednesday at 10.30 am in the Level 6 tearoom. This is a great opportunity to mix and mingle so please make this part of your routine! I generally try to go so it is also a good chance to catch me (except when like tomorrow I’m at a first aid refresher etc).
3/ Particularly for the more Earth Science/Geology amoung you (but all welcome) Thursday 16th March is Hector’s Day and time for our annual Geobake again! See attached. Come and share any geology inspired baked goods entries at 10.30 am Thursday in the 7th floor tearoom!
4/ SGS send out the Doctoral News on Fridays (see below). Hopefully you get (and read) these as they are great to point out possible development opportunities. If you aren’t on the list for some reason and want to be please let me know.
5/ If it has been more than a year since you have done a annual report or continuation review please check in on Wahapu and catch up on your overdue continuation review milestones as having these done makes it easier to help if/when you need it re suspensions, extensions etc.
Regards,
Jennifer, School of Environment PhD Advisor
Doctoral Supervision Matters
PhD Applications are now administered through Student Services Online and you will need access to see the application and all its associated documents. The timelines around University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarship rounds are tight so if you have never served in a service role that required this please request access in advance of needing it (i.e. now) at https://uoaprod.service-now.com/sp?id=sc_cat_item&sys_id=f5046f59dbe710102bd110a01496191f&sysparm_category=4d08f12bdb59730029f117564a9619ef. The process will ask who you need access similar to – say Ludmila Adam.
Ever had a good PhD applicant where their previous institution ruined their GPE conversion or made a lot of work getting theses assessed? The list of equivalent institutions is being reviewed and changed to the top 500 on any of the Shanghai Ranking, Times Higher Education or QS lists. However this may still not include some discipline favourites (particularly for young universities) and will see some of the current UoA list drop off. Email j.eccles@auckland.ac.nz for a copy of the spreadsheet if you want to have your say about where else may need to be on the list!
SGS have had a huge amount of staff turnover recently and are trying their best to come up to speed and get on top of the back log. So that they don’t resign and we go back to scratch again please keep all comms polite and patient. If something is urgent please let PhD advisor Jennifer Eccles know so she can contact someone directly; emailing the hub every day expecting a quick result is just adding to the inbox backlog they are wading through.
Ngā mihi,
Jennifer
Meet Visiting Scientist Dr. Beth Lawrence
Who: Beth is an ecosystem ecologist interested in wetland restoration, plant communities, and biogeochemistry. She is an Associate Professor at the University of Connecticut (USA), Department of Natural Resources & the Environment, and Center for Environmental Science & Engineering. Learn more about her research here: https://lawrencelabuconn.weebly.com/
What: Beth is a visiting scientist in the School of Environment hosted by Dr. Luitgard Schwendenmann
When: She’s visiting Aotearoa for six months and will be here until early July 2023
Where: She’ll be on campus a few days a week this semester. If you see her wandering the halls of 302 please stop and introduce yourself!
CapEx Requests for 2024
Applications are now open for 2024 CapEx requests. We have decided to give a longer time frame than usual, so more staff have the opportunity to submit. This link will remain active until April 15th 2023.
If you have an item that isn’t on the list for this year (P2) then please submit a request so we know its still needed. Blair will email those staff directly.
Please direct any questions to Blair.
https://auckland.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bJXjoluewgiVizs
Whakawhanaungatanga – Communities
Sign up and join the student association RTEA and the Compass programme
1/ Please do encourage your students to join our student association RTEA. The new roster of officers is planning exciting activities for this year and they welcome support and contribution from fellow students. To encourage students to join just use the QR codes for the Facebook page and a Google form to formally sign up: https://rtea.auckland.ac.nz/
2/ Do encourage your PG students to also join our Compass programme. Larissa and her team of captains have planned regular activities to foster students’ wellbeing throughout the year.
3/ The Student Experience Committee (SEC) offers a small budget to course coordinators who would like to order some kai to share with their class (max. NZD100.00 per course per semester). Reach out to JC should you be interested.
3k writing grant available for students
Funds are available to support students writing up their thesis as publication(s). Each grant is worth $3000 (120 hours at 25$ all included). There is no deadline to apply. Applications are evaluated as they come by members of Rangahau (2 weeks turn over max.), until we use all the funds available.
Do you have a good candidate in mind? Please complete this form and submit to melanie.kah@auckland.ac.nz.
Proposal development support
The Rangahau Committee has a small fund set aside to help with proposal development (e.g. writing support, support to scope proposals etc). If you have an idea that fits within this scope please get in touch with Kelly Kilpin to discuss further.
Undergrad research experience
We are now recruiting undergrads who would like to gain a research experience with a post-grad student in our School (30-40 hours, they get paid $800). The aim is to promote research and increase enrolment in our research programmes. Feel free to make an announcement in your courses and collect nominations. We have 10 places. We are hoping to match students by the end of the month.
If you would like to nominate an undergrad student who could be part of this programme, please email their name and research interest to melanie.kah@auckland.ac.nz
ENV Masters research seminars 6 June 2023 (rm 302-140)
The seminars are an opportunity for students to present their research and for members of our school to give feedback. To help develop a school culture, staff and students are encouraged to attend. The sessions are grouped loosely by topic.
Phil Shane (DGA)
| (6 June) | Chair Nick Richards | |
| 9.00 | Ema | Nersezova |
| 9.15 | Kerensa | Jennings |
| 9.30 | Amy | Barclay |
| 9.45 | Shreya | Gounder |
| 10.00 | Fei | Guo |
| 10.15 | Niamh | Galligan |
| 10.30 | Kaiqi | Li |
| 10.45 | Sophie | Mansell |
| 11.00 | Saima | Sakik |
| 11.15 | Laurence Lorenza | Suarez |
| 11.30 | Georgia | Woodside |
| 11.45 | Samuel | Scott |
| Chair: George Perry | ||
| 1.00 | Olivia | Avery |
| 1.15 | Hannah | Sussex |
| 1.30 | Charlotte | Ko |
| 1.45 | Grace | May |
Fame and cash for sharing your best School of Environment mini vlog (videos)
The ENV Outreach Committee is looking for exciting, funny and engaging mini vlogs (i.e. video collage) to upload to the soon to launch School of Environment Instagram account. We would love to receive mini vlogs from studies of our environment and people, field work, lab experiments, data analysis or a mix of it all!
Videos from students, academic and technical staff are all welcome!
Think of the mini vlog as “A day in the life of …” related to school of environment research or careers. Of course you could record material over several days. Here is an example -of many- on how to make a mini vlog (you can also make them directly in the Instagram or TikTok apps).
Prizes (prezzy cards):
1st place: $200
2nd place: $100
3rd place: $75
4th -10th place: $ 30
Rules:
– The mini vlog has to be under 15 seconds.
– If filming others, make sure you don’t see their faces or you have their consent (model consent form). Avoid having under 18-year olds in the video.
– You don’t have to be in the mini vlog if you don’t want to, neither do you have to talk.
– Keep all mini vlogs G-rated as they may be made public. This includes no swearing or alcohol consumption, and also conforming with all University regulations.
– Some guidelines are found here, including the use of music.
Submissions may be uploaded (with credit) to the School of Environment Instagram account.
Please email env-comms@auckland.ac.nz that you have submitted. Submit the mini vlog by April 28th to this google drive link.
Shanice, Thomas and Mila
Are you actively researching in energy or decarbonisation?
The university if compiling a list of researchers working on energy and decarbonisation that they will share with government, industry and communities.
If you are interested to be listed please send Mila Adam a one line description or keywords of your research.
Funding
| Rutherford Discovery Fellowships | |
| Rutherford Discovery Fellowships (RDF) are to support the development of future research leaders, and to assist with the retention and repatriation of New Zealand’s talented early- to mid-career researchers. The scheme will support early- to mid-career researchers to develop a strong track record, allowing them to compete with the best researchers in New Zealand and the world for mainstream research funds. | |
| Value/Duration: | Internal Deadlines: |
| 10 Fellowships, up to $160,000 p.a. each for 5 years in length will be awarded in 2023 | 5pm Monday 17 April 2023 |
| Further Information (funding call, guidelines, registration info):
If interested, please also inform your FIRST team (Franca, Dianne or Kelly) |
|
The Kate Edger Educational Charitable Trust has a new award: Women in Science Award in Memory of Sylvia Tredwell of $2000.
“This award in memory of Sylvia Tredwell was made possible by a generous donation from her family, who wish to pay tribute to her determination in pursuing her career despite the barriers she faced, and to support other women to pursue the qualifications and career of their choice. The Award is intended to help support a woman studying towards an undergraduate or postgraduate science degree at a tertiary institute in the Auckland or Northland regions. The funding may be used for fees or living costs.”
Further details are at: https://www.academicdresshire.co.nz/Academic%20Awards/Discipline%20Specific%20and%20Other%20Awards?mv_pc=3238
| Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga Matakitenga Research Round | |
| The NPM Matakitenga research fund supports impactful research that contributes to their vision of building the foundations for flourishing Māori Futures. This is a Request for Proposals for multi-institutional Māori led research that contributes to specific outcomes and the overall mission of the CoRE | |
| Value/Duration: | Internal Deadlines: |
| •The funder expect to support up to 10-12 projects valued between NZ$10,000-60,000 (out of a total funding pool of NZ$600,000).
Applicants must be prepared to spend their fully allocated budget by 31st December 2024 and complete all project objectives. |
5pm, Wednesday, 22 March 2023. |
| Further Information (funding call, guidelines, registration info):
· Website If interested, please also inform your FIRST team (Franca, Dianne or Kelly) |
|
| Climate Impacts Awards | |
| The aim of the Climate Impacts Awards is to make the impacts of climate change visible across a wide range of physical and mental health outcomes in order to drive urgent climate policy and practice change at scale. This scheme will fund transdisciplinary teams to deliver short-term, high-impact projects, combining evidence generation with communications and/or public engagement. | |
| Value/Duration: | Internal Deadlines: |
| • Project duration is up to 3 years.
• Funding level is up to GBP2.5M (circa NZD4.6M). • Indirects for the UOA will be limited to 15% of the direct research costs. |
5pm Wednesday 5 April 2023. |
| Further Information (funding call, guidelines, registration info):
If interested, please also inform your FIRST team (Franca, Dianne or Kelly) |
|
| RSNZ- Catalyst Fund Seeding | |
| Catalyst: Seeding facilitates new small and medium pre-research strategic partnerships that cannot be supported through other means, and with a view to developing full collaborations that could be supported through Catalyst: Strategic over time. Funding is for research exchanges, research activities, and expenses related to hosting workshops for new strategic research partnerships with international collaborators. | |
| Value/Duration: | Internal Deadlines: |
| A maximum of NZ$80,000 (excl. GST) is available per proposal for projects lasting up to two years. | 5pm Wednesday 12 April 2023. |
| Further Information (funding call, guidelines, registration info):
· Website To register to apply, please email the following information to the Funds Advisor Team via submissions@auckland.ac.nz: title (e.g. Dr, A/P, Professor), full name, email address, faculty and department or click the above button to get registered to the portal. Also inform your FIRST team (Franca, Dianne or Kelly) |
|
| RSNZ- Catalyst Leaders | |
| Catalyst: Leaders supports incoming and outgoing targeted international fellowships for exceptional individuals that cannot be supported through other means. The following funding schemes are open in Round 1:
International Leader Fellowships (up to 3 awards) Supports exceptional individuals from any country outside New Zealand to catalyse science and innovation capability and capacity development in New Zealand for a minimum of 4 weeks per year for up to 3 years. JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowships (up to 4 awards) Supports excellent post-doctoral researchers to do research in Japan for 12-24 months. New Zealand – China Scientist Exchange Programme (up to 10 Awards) Supports the development of research linkages with China by enabling New Zealand researchers to visit Chinese research organisations for 2-6 weeks. |
|
| Value/Duration: | Internal Deadlines: |
| International Leader Fellowship
Up to $50,000 per annum for up to three years. New Zealand – China Scientist Exchange Programme NZ$3,000 travel grant JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowships •Round trip air-ticket + approx. $6690 allowances
|
5pm Wednesday 12 April 2023. |
| Further Information (funding call, guidelines, registration info):
· Website To register to apply, please email the following information to the Funds Advisor Team via submissions@auckland.ac.nz: title (e.g. Dr, A/P, Professor), full name, email address, faculty and department or click the above button to get registered to the portal. Also inform your FIRST team (Franca, Dianne or Kelly) |
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| Ministry for the Environment – Plastics Innovation Fund Round 2 – Te Tahua Pūtea mō te Kirihou Auaha | |
| The Plastics Innovation Fund supports projects that will minimise plastic waste and its harm on the environment. They are seeking to fund projects that find ways to use less plastic and make what we do use reusable or recyclable. It should be noted that applicants are required to secure at least 50% co-funding. | |
| Value/Duration: | Internal Deadlines: |
|
· EOI deadline from 1 November 2022 to 30 June 2023
· The Funds Advisor team will accept EOIs at any time during this period for a QA check provided that you allow at least 7 working days before final submission to the funder. |
| Further Information (funding call, guidelines, registration info):
Please register or make contact with FIRST (Kelly, Dianne, Franca) if you wish to make a submission. |
|
| Toka Tū Ake EQC University Research Programme (URP 2024-26) | |
Since the 1990s, Toka Tū Ake EQC has provided funding to tertiary institutions across New Zealand. This funding has helped to support research capability in natural disaster risk reduction. From 2020, Toka Tū Ake EQC funding introduced a three-year University Research Programme for tertiary institutions focused on:
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| Value/Duration: | Internal Deadlines: |
| · Projects can be up to a maximum duration of 36 months
· The award is up to NZD150,000/annum |
· EOI Deadline: 5pm Wednesday 2 November 2022.
· Full Proposal Deadline: Wednesday 22 March 2023 |
| Further Information (funding call, guidelines, registration info):
Please register with FIRST (Kelly, Dianne, Franca) if you wish to make a submission. |
|
Rangahau – Research
Python for Research Science
The Rangahau/Research Committee has organized “Python for Research Science course”.
Dr. Irene Wallis will be delivering the course, which will run for five consecutives Mondays and it will be divided in two parts:
- Five lectures that include discussion and code-along components
- Five tutorials.
The dates are the following:
1st Monday: 27/March
2nd Monday: 03/April
BREAK-Eastern April 10/April
3rd Monday: 17/April
4th Monday: 24/April
5th Monday: 01/May
There are 5 sessions. Each session starts with a lecture/discussion/code-along (1.5 – 2 hrs) followed by a tutorial during which participants can work on their own data or specific issues they are having. The lecture can be hybrid (in person and with video conference for remote attendees). However, Tutorials will ideally be in-person only because it allows for a more fluid setting focused on the participants’ interest (unless our covid levels change).
The room is booked from 9:00 to 13:00 h. Not every session will take this long, but it allows for flexibility.
It is open to postdoc, staff, and also last-year PhD students.
If you are interested, send me an email and a short motivation letter at joa.paredes.marino@auckland.ac.nz. There are few spots left and they will assigned on a first-come, first-served basis
Do not hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions.
Health, Safety and Wellbeing
February Health, Safety and Wellbeing E-Update
Find the latest Health, Safety and Wellbeing E-Update here
Publications
- Bowen, M.M., Fernandez, D., Gordon, A.L. et al. Tides regulate the flow and density of Antarctic Bottom Water from the western Ross Sea. Sci Rep 13, 3873 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-31008-w
- Auckland landslides. Some recent commentary on legal and planning aspects of the recent landslides by Martin Brook in 2 further articles in The Conversation, as well as an appearance on “The Lentil Intervention” podcast discussing the same issues: