Fellowships support research of 'little brains' of the heart, 'Green Hydrogen Economy' technology, and women's wellbeing

Associate Professor Johanna Montgomery, University of Auckland, will explore the underlying function of nerve cells called ‘ganglionated plexi’ clustered on the heart. These nerve cells act as ‘little brains’ controlling the rhythm of the heart. They play a key role in atrial fibrillation, a condition of the heart that causes an irregular and often rapid heart rate, and is linked to an increased risk for stroke, heart failure and dementia. Getting to the root cause of how these nerve cells control heart rhythm, and if they can alter their signals under different conditions, is vitally important. Montgomery has developed ground-breaking techniques to take measurements of the nerve signals from these neurons. These methods will be applied in this study to look for changes in the heart’s neural activity, comparing tissue from patients with atrial fibrillation to tissue from non-AF patients.

Professor Holly Thorpe, University of Waikato, will research how the global pandemic has impacted New Zealand women’s wellbeing—their social, physical, mental, and spiritual health, their connection to people and places, and their sense of belonging to their communities—as well as the strategies they have devised to rebuild relationships and renew a sense of hope in the future. Building upon international scholarship that has focused on the role of formal and informal sport for recovery, Thorpe will draw out the nuances and lived complexities of women’s wellbeing and physical activity practices in the pandemic. Leading a cross-cultural team and exploring innovative feminist theories and methods, the project will contribute to rethinking women’s health and wellbeing outside individualistic, linear, and medical models. The project seeks to reframe wellbeing as processes of ‘becoming community’ – open-ended, relational, embracing contradictions, and affirming diversity.

Associate Professor Geoffrey Waterhouse, University of Auckland, aims to advance Aotearoa New Zealand’s path to a Green Hydrogen Economy, whereby hydrogen is generated from water with renewable electricity, with the hydrogen produced then used in fuel cells to generate electricity as required. He will explore the potential of a new type of catalyst – metal single-atom catalysts – for driving the oxygen evolution and oxygen reduction reactions needed for these energy conversion reactions. Waterhouse has early findings which suggest that single-atom systems containing inexpensive elements (such as iron, cobalt, nickel) offer remarkable oxygen reduction and evolution performance, comparable to traditional precious metal catalysts (based on platinum and iridium, respectively).  Building on this work, a series of inexpensive single-atom systems will be fabricated and tested for their oxygen reduction and evolution performance, then applied in prototype water electrolysers and hydrogen fuel cells (as well as metal-air batteries).

The fellowships are awarded to researchers who have achieved national and international recognition in their area of scientific research.  The fellowships allow them to concentrate on a major piece of research for two years without the additional burden of administrative and teaching duties.  The funding package annually is $100,000 plus GST and up to $10,000 plus GST in relevant expenses.

The James Cook Research Fellowships are managed by Royal Society Te Apārangi on behalf of the New Zealand Government with funding from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

View more information on the fellowship recipients.