University of Auckland researchers awarded $24.3m in Marsden Fund

3 November 2022

University news, Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Education and Social Work, Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, Faculty of Science, Auckland Bioengineering Institute, Business School, Auckland Law School

The impact of top University of Auckland research has been recognised in a successful funding round.

Waipapa Taumata Rau research is being supported by the 2022 Marsden Fund, including Kasper van Wijk probing the depths of Auckland’s volcanic field.

In the 2022 Marsden Fund, 36 researchers have been successfully funded. Their projects sit across the breadth of Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland’s research disciplines.

The Marsden Fund supports fundamental research in disciplines ranging from social sciences and humanities to physics, chemistry, and biochemistry. Fourteen University researchers have been awarded Fast Start grants, worth $5.04m in total and 22 Standard awards worth $19.3m.

Projects are wide-ranging and include how crustaceans hear and communicate, a Futures Lab for the Residential Red Zone in Christchurch and a series of innovative approaches to combatting cancer.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research, Professor Jim Metson said, “This is an encouraging result recognising excellent research. We congratulate those who have received Marsden funding, but I also want to acknowledge the many strong proposals that came close.”

The University is the country’s leading research institution, and the Marsden Fund success reflects this. The University gained almost a third of the total $77.4m awarded by the Marsden Fund this year.

Professor Metson said the awards reflected the significant contribution delivered nationally by the University research community.

“This is a challenging environment and researchers work hard to secure funding. I know how committed they are in tackling some of the biggest questions we face.”

Marsden Grants, Standard

  • Craig Radford, Science, Hearing and sound communication in crustaceans
  • Melissa Tacy, Science, Improved control for synthesis of Fourier transform
  • Steve Matthewman, Arts, Futures Lab in Residential Red Zone
  • Jon Sperry, Science, Green awakening for radical chemistry
  • Graham Donovan, Science, Tipping points, early warning signals and lung physiology
  • Simon Harris, Science, Genealogies of random individuals in stochastic populations
  • Kim Handley, Science, The Black Queen hypothesis with biofilms
  • Annette Henderson, Science, Completing the loop with Baby X
  • Stuart Murdoch, Science, Fibre ring resonators for optical frequency combs
  • Kasper van Wijk, Science, Probing the depths of Auckland’s volcanic field
  • Justin Fernandez, ABI, Using hyperband MRI for ADHD brain behaviour
  • Raewyn Poulsen, FMHS, the X and Y factor in osteoarthritis
  • Jo James, FMHS, Blood flow across the placental surface
  • Kim Mellor, FHMS, Hidden pathways of cardiac sugar toxicity
  • Toni Bruce, EDSW, Netball’s role in the health and well-being of women
  • June-Chiew Han, ABI, What makes the heart fail when it beats like a metronome?
  • Gretel Boswijk, Science, Improving ancient chronology with radiocarbon and isotopes
  • Alexei Drummond, Science, Bayesian phylodynamic inference from single-cell sequences
  • Christopher Carrie, Science, Organelle biogenesis in resurrection plants
  • Hinke Osinga, Science, Fingerprints of wild chaos
  • Wei-Qin Zhuang, Engineering, Oxidative power of bacterial lacasse enzymes
  • Mohi Rua, Arts, Indigenous imaging, decolonisation, and mainstream sport

Fast Start grants

  • Christopher Larsen, Science, Artificial photosynthesis
  • Petr Tomek, FHMS, Stimulating immune cells to fight cancer
  • Tristan de Rond, Science, Biosynthesis of terpenoid natural products from marine sponges
  • Kiri Dell, Business, Māori well-being and Pākeha consumption of te reo
  • Marie Graff, Science, Adaptive Eigenspace inversion
  • Edward Willis,Law, Public law theory of economic regulation
  • Nam Kyeun Kim, Engineering, Wastewater biopolymers for fighting fire
  • Justine Hui, Engineering, Te reo Māori in an acoustically varied world
  • Alexandra Mowday, FHMS, Bacteria as immune stimulants for cancer therapy
  • Ninh Pham, Science, Federated nearest neighbour search
  • Matthew Conder, Science, Algorithms for linear groups
  • Evert Loef, Science, Using plasmin to enable immune system to respond to cancer
  • Matthew Fullmer, Science, Mutualistic cheating of the strong Black Queen Hypothesis
  • Patrick Savage, Science, Cross-cultural relationships between speech and song

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