These three awards were presented during the NZIAHS’ Canterbury Forum last month.

 

Jubilee Medal

• Adjunct Professor Jacqueline Rowarth

Jacqueline Rowarth, winner of the NZIAHS’s premier award, has made an immense contribution to primary resource science and has served as a leader in scientific research, education, technology transfer and communication.

Trained as a soil scientist, Jacqueline has assiduously developed – and repeatedly explained – her understanding of the complex issues affecting the New Zealand pastoral sector, including the dynamics of soil carbon levels, the shortcomings of regenerative agriculture, various agricultural trade issues, the impacts of New Zealand’s Emissions Trading Scheme, and the convoluted and tiresome processes associated with the New Zealand science funding system.

The breadth of her knowledge, her extensive and highly effective networking and her clear-eyed understanding of what is going on in the pastoral sector is peerless. Her prodigious output in both the scientific and popular literature in dealing with issues is unmatched, resulting in her being recognised some years ago by her becoming a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to agricultural science.

A distinguishing feature of Jacqueline’s work has been her courage in articulately pronouncing on contentious issues such as the extent of water pollution in agroecosystems, the safety and indispensability of glyphosate in primary production and the sometimes-inept nature of the agricultural technology transfer system, particularly as it relates to regenerative agriculture.

During her career Jacqueline has developed excellent governance skills and participated in many government and private sector advisory committees.   Related to this, she has consistently taken ethical stands on contentious issues, exemplified by her returning an honour bestowed on her – the Companion of the Royal Society of New Zealand – to express her disapproval of the society’s change in direction away from its singular focus on science-based research and technology.

Pushing back against prevailing populist opinion may have adversely affected her career trajectory. That said, many of her views have subsequently been shown to have been correct.

Jacqueline has dedicated herself to the interests of the NZIAHS and its membership for many years.  She joined the institute in 1993 and became President in 2003. The award of the NZIAHS Jubilee Medal to her is well overdue.

 

Honorary Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Science

• Professor John Hampton

John Hampton has had a long and committed career in agricultural science and has been a long-time contributor to the work of NZIAHS.

John was a key driver in establishing the Seed Research Centre at Lincoln University in 2009. His professional speciality and research have focussed on seed quality, productivity and the biocontrol of pests and diseases. The outcomes have had strong practical benefits for the industry.

He has been President of the International Herbage Seed Group, the New Zealand Agronomy Society, and the International Seed Testing Association, and has held leadership roles with the Seed Testing Associations’ Vigour and Association Rules Committees, making a key contribution to the introduction of vigour testing of seeds internationally.

John’s leadership has involved him in projects such as ‘Smart Seeds for Export’, PGG Wrightson Seeds Primary Growth Partnership, Ravensdown Biologicals for Pastoral Agriculture, and ‘Suppressing urea-nitrogen wastage using a bioinoculant’, and he was involved in an international foreign aid project in Nepal.

John is an Adjunct Professor with the Department of Agronomy and Plant Breeding at the University of Tehran in Iran and an Honorary Professor at Qingdao Agriculture University in China. He is also a Fellow of the Agronomy Society.

For the NZIAHS, John serves on the Canterbury Branch and has served on the National Council from 2005-2012. He was the recipient of our Yates Award in 2000 and the Doug Campbell Award in 2010, and was elected a Fellow in 2006.

He has been a prolific publisher and is named on three patents.

In 2022 he was awarded an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit.

 

Fellow of New Zealand Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Science

• Dr Trish Fraser

Trish Fraser, who began her studies in Scotland, completed her PhD at Lincoln University in 1991. Her thesis was entitled “Fate of Nitrogen under an animal urine patch” , work which helped develop the use of monolith lysimeters to measure leaching losses from New Zealand pastures.

In August 1992 Trish joined what now is Plant & Food Research to develop research on the importance of soil biology in our farming systems. With her science and people expertise, she became a Senior Soil Scientist, and Team Leader for the Climate Smart Systems Team.

Trish has been at the forefront of research addressing a wide range of soil-related issues in the cropping sector, much of which has delivered practical knowledge to the farming community to balance important productivity, environmental and system resilience outcomes. She has contributed to collaborative research and industry teams that are responsible for key discoveries in the area of soil health.

Trish is a passionate communicator of soil and crop science, highly regarded for her promotion of the value of soil to a wide range of audiences from school children and farmers to policy makers and scientists.

Her many awards for her contribution to farming included the Women of Influence Award (Rural category) in 2020, the NZIAHS AGMARDT Technology Transfer Award in 2022 and the Norman Taylor Memorial Award for Outstanding Service to New Zealand Soil Science.

Some specific areas of her research include the role of earthworms and the impact of agronomic practices on their activities and survival; nitrate leaching from pasture, cropping and vegetable systems; crop residue management practices; impacts of different tillage practices on soil properties; and assessing biological nitrification inhibition in soil as influenced by urine of animals fed plantain or plantain root exudates.

Trish has served as a member of the NZ Society of Soil Science Executive Council for about 24 years, including more than 20 years as Secretary and two years as President. She is now a Fellow and Life Member of that society.