Issue 35-Monday 22nd June 2020
Contents
HeadSup
Kia ora koutou
I’d like to extend a big thank you to all the facilitators who helped run our remote ENV staff retreat last week and all participants for contributing to the various sessions on offer. We had an excellent turn-out! I would be very pleased to receive feedback on the day and suggestions for additional workshops that we could timetable through the semester as upskill options. You can find a largely unedited summary of contributions to ‘Framing the 2021-23 ENV Strategic Plan’ here. If you have further thoughts that you would like to contribute to this topic please email me before the end of this week. PG Students: I will invite comment from you on the school plan in due course.
I would like to invite expressions of interest for the service/leadership roles of Chair, Rangahau (currently held by Giovanni Coco) and Director, Comms & Marketing (a new role). Both roles provide opportunity for strategic development and school-wide leadership and thus are particularly opportune for those who may be building leadership portfolios. The Comms & Marketing role will be supported via a casual contract subject to Faculty approval. If you feel energised at the thought of positively impacting the School through either of these roles please get in touch with me directly.
Congratulations are in order for Tom Baker (VC Early Career Research Excellence Award) and Michael Rowe (newly appointed FOS Research Theme Leader, Our World and Universe). Well done to you both!
We are in the final stages of confirming our revised budget following a ~$200k reduction in spend. All committees and platforms now should have reconfirmed budgets and can recommence spending. If you are running a subcommittee and are not sure of your budget, please get in touch with your platform leader (Karen, Robin or Giovanni). All staff eligible for professional development funding are now able to start spending and it would be appreciated if you could make an effort to spend at least some of your entitlement before the end of 2020.
May I remind all PG research students and supervisors to send any documents requiring my signature to env-pgadmin@auckland.ac.nz. Do not send documents to me directly (they will be lost under a 1000 emails never to be seen again).
Many of us took our desktop computers and other equipment home in the 2-day run up to lock-down. On the assumption that we will remain at Alert Level 1, please start returning them to the School. I would like all items returned before the start of Semester 2 please. And of course, we need to make the adjustment to life back on campus. Guidelines for blended-working arrangements are under development for professional staff and the FOS HODs are discussing guidelines for academic staff. A presence on campus will remain integral to our expression of community.
It’s time for a gathering! I would like to invite all PG Research students and Staff to a ‘welcome back’ function from 4-6 pm, Thursday 30th July in the Level 6 common room. Samantha will be seeking RSVPs presently. It will be great to see you all there.
Ngā mihi
JR
Whakawhanaungatanga – communities
Who’s who in ENV: committees and service roles
The current list of committees, committee members and service/leadership roles can be found here. We will keep this list up-to-date and post it in the top bar of p-cubed from the next edition. If you spot errors or omissions please let JR know. If there are committees that you would like to join in the future please advise JR.
New hire: X-ray Technologist
The technical team is happy to welcome Tania Rico Malacara who will be joining us later this year (if the country is open!).
After an extensive 6-month search we have appointed Tania to look after our x-ray facilities alongside David Adams (Microprobe) and Andres (ESP). Tania will be making the move from Mexico City, where she studied at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, undertaking a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry and a Master’s degree in Earth Science with an Environmental Geochemistry specialization. Tania will bring some much needed expertise to our XRF facilities and will be able to get our equipment running beautifully.
You can also find her LinkedIn profile here https://www.linkedin.com/in/tania-rico-malacara-798226161/
Leave Plus
Applications for cashing up 1 week of leave are closing 26 June
The Leave Plus scheme on the staff intranet now has updated information about the process for applying for ‘cashing up’ one week of annual leave. The information about the process can be found here.
You can only apply to purchase leave once per year, within the first three weeks before the 1st pay period in July. For 2020, the applications for Leave Plus will be from 4 June 2020 to 26 June 2020 and then every subsequent 12 months. The Leave Plus balance will be applied to your leave balances in Employee Self-Service after the first pay of July. Applications can be submitted by checking the eligibility criteria below and by completing the Leave Plus Purchase Form.
Please note, in line with the Vice Chancellor’s communication to all staff, you are encouraged to reduce your annual leave and time off in lieu (TOIL) balances to a maximum of 2 weeks by the end of January 2021. Hence, you are encouraged to incorporate the purchase of an additional week of leave (if eligible and approved) in this leave plan. Leave Plus balances won’t be carried into the next Leave Plus purchase period. If a Leave Plus balance hasn’t been used by the first pay of July 2021 the balance will be cashed up and paid back in the next pay period at the same rate it was purchased at. You will be able to purchase a new week for the following Leave Plus period.
EAP Flyer
Please find the latest EAP e-Flyer. Click here to view.
Topics in this edition include;
- Men’s Health Week – 15th June -21st June
- Why do I feel angry?
- Mood boosting tips
- How we can prevent bullying in Aotearoa
Academic Promotions 2020
Please take the time to review the information on the Academic Standards and Promotion policy to ensure that you are familiar with what is required as this is a step that many applicants overlook. Information on eligibility and changes made to the Academic Career Portfolio are provided below:
Eligibility
It is important to note that to be eligible to apply for promotion, if your case for promotion rests in part on teaching, you must have been employed and your performance evaluated for at least four teaching sessions (semesters, summer school, quarters) at the University of Auckland. This specification relates to the range and duration of teaching activities necessary to demonstrate sustained performance, not to the duration of employment. For research only staff, you must have been employed for at least 12 months before being eligible for consideration for promotion.
If you are unsure about eligibility please talk to your academic head in the first instance.
Academic Career Portfolio (ACP) changes
Changes were made several years ago to the teaching section of the ACP so it is important to ensure that all appropriate sections of the application are completed and as per Appendix 1, evidence to support statements made about teaching in the ACP are provided.
For more information and documentation please refer to Academic Promotions
Professorial applications – please note:
- ‘Electronic copies of your five nominated publications must be sent in a separate file along with your application’.
- Where a publication is large, as in a book or an extensive report, applicants are requested to supply a ‘link’ to the electronic version of the specific publication where that is available, but in the absence of a ‘link’ an electronic version must be provided in a manageable zipped file in an appropriate format.
- These must be in a file that a potential overseas referee, who may not have a University server available, can access. They can be PDF’d together but must be separate to the HR9 & 94.
- Books in hard copy will not be accepted.
Promotions Seminar – 24th June 2020
If you would like to understand more about the promotions process and what to include in your application, Professor Doug Elliffe, Deputy Dean and Chair of the Faculty Staffing Committee will facilitate a Promotions seminar.
The seminar will be held on in Room 303-G15, Wednesday 24th June from 10-11am.
COVID-19 – Impact on Academic Promotion applications 2020
Academic Promotions process will go ahead in 2020 with the following amendments for all promotion points including Professor:
- Staff whose promotion applications are successful will be awarded new academic titles effective 1 February 2021 and will be able to use their new titles from this date
- The salary increment for 2020 promotions will be delayed until at least 1 July 2021 and increases will not be backdated
- If staff do not feel that they are in a position to agree to these terms, then they will be requested to defer their application to 2021.
Other things to note:
If you are considering applying for promotion, discuss your intention to apply with your Academic Head before submitting. An early discussion can help determine whether your application is timely and what you may wish to include or consider. It is too late to do this on or after the deadline.
If you have a co-appointment with another department, you will need to provide your application to both Academic Heads.
You can expect to receive a letter with the outcome of your application via email to your official University email
address on 8th December 2020.
ENV First aid training
The School is looking to run some first aid training sessions in the near future (once we can organise a facilitator and confirm dates).
If you are interested please send an email to b.sowman@auckland.co.nz nothing which course you need to attend; a full course or a revalidation (you have 6 months after your cert expires).
- First Aid Certificate (comprehensive) $150pp
- First Aid Refresher (revalidation) $90pp
- Minimum numbers are 10 per class.
If you can charge this to an external research project then please let Blair know the appropriate charge codes.
Students; this will be charged to your school account.
Orbit Travel Refund Process
If you have booked travel through Orbit which has subsequently been cancelled due to Covid-19 you may be due a refund – however to get the refund you need to initiate it with Orbit!
Please email Orbit at travel.uoa@orbit.co.nz using the following subject line “Booking Reference COXXXXXX – Cancellation Required” to claim your refund.
Note: Every booking should have a CO+6 digit number
Any questions about this, please contact the STC through the portal using the “Purchase-related Queries” option or Orbit via travel.uoa@orbit.co.nz.
News from the IT Committee:
Semester 2 computer lab. images and FlexIT:
- images will be rolled over. If you require any changes please log a request through the staff service centre.
- You may also be able to use FlexIT for computer-lab. assignments. Be aware that due to license restrictions, the software is not identical to the what is offered in the images and that students may have access to different software than staff. It is possible to request specific software to be accessible via FlexIT for specific classes. Please contact log a request through the staff service centre.
Centre for eResearch: CER had a brainstorming session on Tuesday regarding future research needs. CER are already providing an impressive range of computer related services, including:
- Virtual machines. Ideal if you would like to do work that requires a bit more crunch-power than a desktop
- Nectar research cloud: An Australian-led research computing cloud that we have joined in 2017. More powerful than individual VMs, ideal for external collaboration.
- NeSI access: New Zealand’s supercomputer(s) for heavy-duty number crunching.
- You can also request data storage capacity.
These services are generally free for us. Check it out: https://www.eresearch.auckland.ac.nz/
Future of Geoscience Virtual Summit
The Geological Society (of London) recently hosted the above online summit (via Zoom), attended by over 3000 delegates globally. This was in response to record low numbers of students choosing to study geological or Earth sciences at A-level and university in the UK, possibly due to perception, awareness, diversity and accessibility issues. Arguably, Geoscience is integral to achieving the 17 UN SDGs (2015-), the targets of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030), and the targets of the Paris Climate Agreement (2015-), among other challenges we face as a planet. Geoscience is quite literally our past, present and future. The link to the 3 hour Summit is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-PbVAOyADc&t=8091s
Prof. Iain Stewart’s contribution on Geology 2.0 from 2:05:00 is particularly pertinent to our School.
High School Outreach via Wonder Project
Staff may wish to get involved with Wonder Project. In a previous incarnation it was Future in Tech, run by Callaghan Innovation
Its aimed at school years 9-10 to try and get the students to continue taking science subjects. Its also an excellent outreach opportunity for our School.
You can become an ambassador, where you go into schools and talk about your uni studies/career and career opportunities in your subject area (i.e. probably best not to focus on recommending an academic pathway; rather, roles such as an enviro, planner, geographer, geologist etc etc – career pathways that are achievable for many). It might suit particularly those staff who have spent time working professionally outside of the University system.
The other roles they are looking for are mentors in the Rocket Challenge – you spend a 1 hour/week for 6-8 weeks with a school. All details are on the above website.”
Call for Applications: 2020 Science Medals (NZ Association of Scientists)
The closing date for all applications is Friday 31 July 2020.
Full guidelines are available at: https://scientists.org.nz/2020-awards-applications.
How to apply
Interested applicants should apply directly, rather than seek a nomination.
Please email application to: awards@scientists.org.nz and to buchananp@LandcareResearch.co.nz by 31 July, 2020.
An applicant can be considered for only one NZAS Medal each year, but may also be a member of a team for a second Medal application.
Applications submitted in previous years will remain valid for five years from the original submission date (except for Hill Tinsley Medal applicants if the 15 year post-PhD limit is exceeded), but a previously submitted application should be updated annually using the current format.
Meeting, seminars and events
Impact through Culture Change’ webinar series
About this Event
A Treaty-based approach to creating impact: aligning the expectations of individual researchers and their organisations to achieve collective impact.
The ‘Impact through Culture Change’ webinar series will focus on the achievement of impact from the perspective of organisational change and the important role senior leaders can have in effecting this change. To our first event of the series we have invited Dr Andrea Byrom, Co-Director, Biological Heritage National Science Challenge and Melanie Mark-Shadbolt, Director Māori, Biological Heritage National Science Challenge to share their experiences and the challenges they have faced whilst leading impact within their organisations.
Time: 12.30pm – 1:30pm
Date: Monday 6 July
For further reading please click here.
Introductory R Workshop information: July 9th & 10th
The first Introductory R Workshop for 2020 is being run on Thursday 9th and Friday 10th July. This will be led by Daniel Barnett and Avinesh Pillai, from the Statistical Consulting Centre, in the Department of Statistics. As per our previous Introductory R workshops, the cost is $300 for UoA students and staff. You can pay using your PRESS account, research grant, or other UoA account. You can also opt to use a debit/credit card (however we will have to also add GST for this type of payment). The payment authorisation form for UoA participants paying from a UoA account is attached. The cost for non-UoA attendees is $500 + GST, and if you contact me I will let you know re payment options. Card payment is preferred, however if an invoice is required this can be done if your institution is able to provide a PO number and is registered in the Faculty of Science finance system (e.g. all DHBs are set up within this system). We will be sending out a pre-workshop information email the week prior to the course, however here are some of the details:
Location
We will be in room 302.190. Building 302 is on the corner of Symonds St and Wellesley St. The room we will be using is on level 1, room 190.
Time and schedule
The approximate schedule for both days is attached (since this is the schedule from our previous course, it may yet be altered very slightly). We will start at 9am and finish at 5pm. Morning and afternoon tea will be provided and there are cafes handy nearby for lunch.
Computers
We will be using a Faculty of Science computer lab. You are also welcome to use your own laptop, however please make sure that you have downloaded R and RStudio onto your machine before the workshop (they are free to download). We will also include some instructions re how to do this in our pre-workshop information email.
Access to computers and internet
We will arrange access to the lab computers for all non-UoA participants. We will also have a guest wireless password for non-UoA participants who are bringing their own laptops. UoA staff and students will be able to access the FoS computers using their normal UoA upi and password.
For more information please contact Joei Mudaliar <j.mudaliar@auckland.ac.nz>.
Photography Competition June 2020
All members of the Geoscience Society of New Zealand are invited to show off their photographic talent!
THE CATEGORIES
1. Milankovich: Geological Cyclicity
2. Macro- and micro-scale geoscience
3. New Zealand Geoscience
SUBMISSION
To enter, please send the following to geosocietynz@gmail.com by Friday 3 July:
Contact details (full name, email address)
Image details (category, title, location, year)
Image caption (maximum 50 words)
Your image (minimum 72 dpi, 3 MB)
For further reading please click here.
Ako – Teaching and Learning
Faculty Teaching Development Fund
As mentioned in the Faculty meeting on Wed 10 June, the Faculty of Science has established a new Faculty Teaching Development Fund which offers two distinct pathways for funding projects related to teaching: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Grants, and Teaching Development Grants.
Important dates:
* Application Deadline: June 30 2020
* Notification of success: July 14 2020
Note that grants awarded in this round must be used in the 2020 calendar year. We are aware that this is a tight deadline, both for project planning and delivery. A call for applications for 2021 projects is expected later this year and might be more suitable for projects that required longer lead time.
The webpage and form for online submission of the grant application should be available next week on the Teaching and Learning section of the Science staff intranet:
https://www.sciencestaff.auckland.ac.nz/en/about/teaching-and-learning.html
If you have any further questions that are not addressed in the document attached, then please send them directly to me: a.luxton-reilly@auckland.ac.nz
Meeting, seminars and events
Title: Using Virtual Landscapes for Remote Teaching
Date: Wed, Jul 1, 2020 5:00 AM – 6:00 AM NZST
Register: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/6837257389718161163
Pandemic, pedagogy and education 3: Teaching and learning remotely
Monday 29th June 2-3pm
https://auckland.zoom.us/j/98483634365
The COVID-19 lockdown has posed considerable challenges and opportunities for educators. This zoom is designed showcase pedagogies, innovations and tools to assist and enrich remote learning within the Faculty of Science at the University of Auckland. We will begin with three short presentations (approx. 10 minutes) followed by the opportunity for audience participation. Ideally this will spark a collective conversation that is ongoing, the second in an online series with future opportunities for staff to showcase pedagogical insights and innovations. The presentations are as follows:
Title: Level one, job done…..? COVID-19 reflections from a departmental Tuākana programme; Presenters: Brendon Dunphy, Sarah Davis
Title: Supporting student wellbeing on enhance learning*; Presenter: Kerry Gibson
Title: Student feedback on their experience of remote learning during Semester 1 2020* ; Presenters: Murray Ford and Mel Wall
*Please note these are interim titles
Ako Innovation Workshop: Field Trips to the Digital Realm
Date and time: Wednesday 1st July, 11am
Zoom: https://auckland.zoom.us/j/92574224546
Presenters: Michael Martin, Lorna Strachan, Jon Tunnicliffe
This workshop is designed to showcase online teaching innovations within the School. The presenters will share their teaching developments which emphasis the potential to enhance student learning through fieldtrips in the virtual space.
Tools to enhance the blended learning experience: Ako Innovation Committee Workshop
Presenters: Joe Fagan, Karen Fisher, JC Gaillard
Date and time: Friday 26th June, 10am
Zoom: https://auckland.zoom.us/j/93490337343
Short description:
Teaching remotely during the Covid‐19 lockdown has seen staff seeking ways to
enhance student engagement. Online learning research emphasises the
importance of peer‐to‐peer collaboration, instant responses and rapid feedback to
improve student learning. This workshop seeks to showcase the following tools
which can assist with both online and on‐campus learning including Kialo, Mural,
Socrative, Kahoot and Menti.
Rangahau – Research
Expressions of Interest for the Ngā Rākau Taketake – Risk Assessment & Ecosystem Impacts Research Team
Tēnā koe,
We are reaching out on behalf of the Ngā Rākau Taketake – Risk Assessment and Ecosystem Impacts theme of the Biological Heritage National Science Challenge seeking Expressions of Interest (EOIs) to participate in our work planning and research team.
Ngā Rākau Taketake is the programme within the Challenge to address myrtle rust and kauri dieback. Building on work from the Ngā Rākau Taketake scoping group and the kauri dieback and myrtle rust science strategies, we have been developing a draft three-year research plan (2020/21 – 2022/23) to understand the impacts of the diseases and perform risk assessments to support management and research priorities. Now we are refining the work plan and forming the team to achieve our goals.
For further reading please click here.
Meeting, seminars and events
Coastal Group Meeting/Seminar
The next Coastal Group meeting/seminar will be held on Wednesday June 24th at 12:00 to 1:00 pm in the Coastal Lab (or Zoom option)
News will be shared and short talks include:
- Who Cares? Future Sea Level Rise and House Prices – The Case of Kāpiti Coast (Olga Filippova from the Department of Property)
- Building resilience to climate change through modelling managed retreat in a coastal setting (Ashton Eaves) – 3 min speed talk
- Current coastal research in the Resilience to Nature’s Challenges National Science Challenge (Emma Ryan) – 3 min speed talk
All welcome to attend – please email Emma Ryan at e.ryan@auckland.ac.nz if you wish to attend and don’t have the calendar invite already.
GSA/NAGT Digital Field Tools for Teaching Webinar Series
Title: Using Gigapan for Remote Teaching
Date: Wed, Jun 24, 2020 5:00 AM – 6:00 AM NZST
Register: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/3427553084728968459
Research and Funding Opportunities
Te Tahua Taiao Ngā Taonga – Lottery Environment and Heritage grants
Lottery Environment and Heritage grants are available for projects that will help protect, conserve or care for our natural, cultural and physical heritage, or allow us to better understand and access these resources. Grants are for plans, reports and one-off projects that will protect, conserve and promote New Zealand’s natural, cultural and physical heritage.
Grant Value
- Small projects, where the grant requested is for less than $250,000.
- Large projects, where the grant requested is for $250,000 or more.
- A one-off project may be – a discrete stage of a larger, ongoing project; or – a single, stand-alone project.
Internal Deadline: Monday 3 August 2020, 5pm.
Further information can be found on the website
Rutherford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship (Royal Society Te Apārangi)
The Rutherford Foundation provides early career support for NZ researchers to build capability in science, technology, engineering and mathematics
Eligibility: Must have PhD conferred on or after 01 January 2016, applicants from all fields of research, science and technology, including social sciences and the humanities, are eligible to apply, NZ Citizen or NZ resident visa and have continuously resided in NZ for at least two years.
Grant Value: $75,000 salary support + $10,000 (GST incl, direct and indirect research costs) per year (up to 2 years total)
Internal Deadline: 5pm Tuesday 28 July 2020.
Guidelines are available on the funders website
Please contact Kathryn or Kelly if you are interested in applying, or have been approached by a candidate who would like to apply
Cambridge-Rutherford Memorial PhD Scholarship
The Cambridge-Rutherford Memorial PhD Scholarship is a Jointly funded by Rutherford Foundation Trust and Cambridge Commonwealth, European and International Trust (CCEIT) to support completion of a PhD at the University of Cambridge.
Eligibility: Must have completed undergraduate study in NZ, disciplines of science and technology (includes pure or applied science in the social sciences), NZ Citizen or NZ resident visa and have continuously resided in NZ for at least two years, applicants who hold a New Zealand resident visa are also required to have completed their undergraduate study in New Zealand, must be able to enter the United Kingdom and comply with the regulations for matriculation at the University of Cambridge
Grant Value: Scholarship (including course and college fees) for max three (3) years, Living allowance (maintenance) of approx. £14,777* per annum, Eligible for one (1) non-transferrable, return airfare NZ-UK per annum.(*Indicative only – set by CCEIT annually)
Internal Deadline: 5pm Tuesday 28 July 2020.
Guidelines are available on the funders website
New publications
- Bulmer R.H., Stephenson F., Jones H. F. E., Townsend M., Hillman J.R., Schwendenmann L., Lundquist C.J. (2020). Blue Carbon Stocks and Cross-Habitat Subsidies. Frontiers in Marine Science 7, 380. DOI=10.3389/fmars.2020.00380
- Jones, R., Baker, T., Huet, k., Murphy, L., Lewis, N. (2020). Treating ecological deficit with debt: The practical and political concerns with green bonds. Geoforum, 114. pp. 49-58.
- Peralta, G., Vázquez, D.P., Chacoff, N.P., (…), Perry, G.L.W., Tylianakis, J.M. (2020). Trait matching and phenological overlap increase the spatio-temporal stability and functionality of plant-pollinator interactions. Ecology Letters, 23(7), pp. 1107-1116.
- Fryxell, D.C., Hoover, A.N., Alvarez, D.A., (…), Simon, K.S., Palkovacs, E.P. (2020). Recent warming reduces the reproductive advantage of large size and contributes to evolutionary downsizing in nature. Proceedings. Biological Sciences, 287(1928), p. 20200608.
Copy deadline for next edition of P-cubed: Friday 3rd July to Farnaz: f.sheikh@auckland.ac.nz