Genomics has promised to transform medicine and medical practice but for the average New Zealander the evidence for this might seem lacking. My talk will address the technologies that have enabled step changes in understanding the genetic architecture of disease. I will also highlight the areas of medicine that have benefited most from this technological revolution. […]

Professor Angus McIntosh, University of Canterbury In his talk, Angus will traverse the range of issues associated with climate change that confront our freshwater ecosystems. He'll talk about the challenges as well as some solutions. This will touch on native fish having to deal with drought and introduced trout, mudfish negotiating tornados, high alpine tarns […]

Dr Shaun Wilkinson, CEO Wilderlab High-throughput DNA sequencing technologies make it possible to survey entire biological communities with as little as a single cup of water. The commercialization of environmental DNA (eDNA) has vastly improved the accessibility and accuracy of this technology. In Aotearoa New Zealand, eDNA monitoring is being implemented by multiple organizations from […]

Associate Professor Anna Garden and Dr Emilia Nowak, MacDiarmid Institute. The MacDiarmid Institute is a network of leading researchers from around the country united in a common goal: to create and explore innovative, sustainable materials that will improve the lives of people in Aotearoa New Zealand and around the globe. This talk will present an […]

Professor Delwyn Moller (University of Auckland) Imagine if domestic flights crossing our skies each day were not only taking people places but also gathering vast amounts of critical environmental data at the same time. Delwyn Moller will tell us about the ground breaking Rongowai Mission - a collaborative programme between NASA, NZ's Space Agency and […]

Professor David Wiltshire, University of Canterbury Sixty years ago New Zealander Roy Kerr helped revolutionize physics when he discovered the solution to Einstein's equations defining space around a rotating star or black hole. The Kerr solution became the basis for revolutions first in fundamental physics and later in astronomy and cosmology. More recent discoveries of […]

All cellular organisms in the world are vulnerable to infection by viruses. We have seen this impact our lives in the past few years with the coronavirus pandemic. Bacteria are also infected by their own viruses, which are known as bacteriophages (phages) – Greek for “bacteria eaters”. These phages are the most abundant biological entities […]

Professor James Higham, Griffith University, Brisbane, and University of Otago There has been much said about the impact of COVID-19 on tourism in New Zealand, and the need for a ‘new’ tourism that will meet the challenges of the 21st century. This presentation will explore the challenges that we now face, consider why a tourism re-set […]

Associate Professor Karen Pollard, University of Canterbury and Director of Mount John Observatory Stars are key components of galaxies: they are hosts for families of planets; they create the chemical elements deep in their interiors; they evolve and explode, providing the physical feedback mechanism to kickstart new generations of star formation. In this talk I […]

Professor Cliff Abraham, University of Otago Alzheimer’s disease treatment is one of neurology’s greatest challenges. Although drug therapies have been available for over 30 years, they’ve only been able to address certain symptoms. Now, new therapies are being developed that have potential to directly attack the disease’s causes. Yet there are still questions about their […]

DO YOU HAVE A HEALTHY MIND? The philosophy of mental health Professor Simon Keller, Victoria University of Wellington Mental health is an increasingly prominent consideration in society but what is a healthy mind? To put it another way: what should you strive for, exactly, when you set out to cultivate or protect your mental health? […]

Professor Stephen Henry, Kode Biotech Ltd Steve’s early studies were of glycolipids (which can hop into cells and label them) before he switched to creating synthetic analogues. The work evolved into Kode technology - 3D bioactive paint that allows the rapid modification of virtually any biological or non-biological surface and can be used to create […]