Message from Society President – Dr Brent Clothier
Dr Brent Clothier shares his foreword as President of Royal Society Te Apārangi.
Tēnā koutou katoa.
Since the last Fellows’ newsletter, Covid restrictions have lifted. Now there’s been lots of face-to-face activities that hitherto were not possible. It’s great to be back in the mode of ‘kanohi-ki-te-kanohi’.
Paul Atkins and I were able to travel together to Canberra, Australia, in September to meet with the Academies and key stakeholders over there. This signals renewed trans-Tasman working relationships. As well, on a separate mission, Marc Rands had earlier visited Australia.
Unlike Te Apārangi, Australia has separate discipline-based Academies, with the ‘umbrella’ organisation of the Australian Council of Learned Academies (ACOLA) providing links between them.
Paul and I met with personnel from the Australian Academy of Science, the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, the Australian Social Science Academy, the Australian Academy of Humanities, and the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Science (albeit by Zoom for that was to be on the day subsequently assigned as the National Day of Mourning for the late Queen Elizabeth II). We also met with the Chief Executive of ACOLA.
As well, we met with Dr Cathy Foley, Chief Scientist of Australia. We also had meetings with managers from the Australian Research Council, plus the President and Secretary of the Royal Societies of Australia. And we met with Craig Ritchie, the Chief Executive of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AISTSIS).
These ‘re-established’ organisational contacts through face-to-face meetings are already bearing fruit. More on these in subsequent Forum newsletters.
Meanwhile, we have benefitted through being able to host our Research Honours Aotearoa events in person. The successful innovation of regional events, brought about by Covid in 2020, has been repeated this year. We have hosted events in Kirikiriroa (Hamilton), Ōtepoti (Dunedin), and Te Whanganui-a-Tara (Wellington). Congratulations to all the winners of the awards and medals. The Research Honours Aotearoa events this year have enabled us to celebrate, face-to-face, the immense difference that New Zealanders can make through their resolve and passion in ‘seeking’ and ‘discovering’ new knowledge, and we are proud to be able to facilitate this to be honoured and ‘shared’ through these events
Ngā mihi
Brent
Dr Brent Clothier FRSNZ
President, Royal Society Te Apārangi