Hīkina kia Tutuki

Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland is privileged to be New Zealand’s leading research-led university, achieving a place in the world’s top 100 universities. The University offers a critical mass and diversity of top minds, breadth across academic disciplines and state-of-the-art research facilities. Hīkina kia Tutaki, Rise to the Challenge, Researchers with global impact is the University's annual showcase of a small fraction of the world leading research underway.

Our role in the fight against tobacco

There is really good news. Quitting at 30 years of age increases life expectancy by a decade while quitting at 40 and 50 years of age increases expectancy by nine and six years, respectively. People who have had heart attacks who stop smoking reduce their risk of another attack by 50 percent.
Professor Chris Bullen

Professor Chris Bullen, FHMS, a distinguished researcher who has taken smoking cessation programmes to China, where one fifth of the population are smokers.

Professor Chris Bullen, FMHS, a distinguished researcher who has taken smoking cessation programmes to China, where one fifth of the population are smokers.

Professor Chris Bullen on Aotearoa's unique role in the global campaign against tobacco.

Evidence-based policy isn't only about the evidence

We have to remember that absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. My favourite quote on this comes from US President Donald Trump who in the days of Covid said, 'If we stop testing, we'd have fewer cases, if any.' He was right. But that might not be the best way to manage a pandemic.
Dame Professor Juliet Gerrard

Dame Professor Juliet Gerrard, the former Chief Science Adviser to the Prime Minister is writing a book about the interface between research and policy.

Professor Dame Juliet Gerrard is examining how research can better inform policy to benefit society.

The essentials for a good old age

Our people in advanced age are not the overwhelming burden that we seem to be expecting from some portrayals in the media. In general, they are resilient and living in the community. They commonly make essential contributions to their society, families and whānau.
Professor Ngaire Kerse

Professor Ngaire Kerse holds the Joyce Cook Chair in Ageing Well and is a co-director of the Centre for Co-Created Ageing Research, a University Research Centre.

Professor Ngaire Kerse on the unexpected lessons of ageing well.

Growing a better heart valve

The big problem for children is that the valves are fitted to a small heart and as that child grows into an adult, that heart will grow. But the valve that's been put in will not. As a result, further operations are going to be needed. Our answer is to make a heart valve that will grow as the heart grows that will never be rejected.
Professor Julian Paton

Julian Paton is a Professor of Translational Physiology and the Director of Manaaki Manawa, the Centre for Heart Research and co-director of Pūtahi Manawa, Healthy Hearts Aotearoa New Zealand, a Centre of Research Excellence.

The power of great expectations

I found that teachers with high expectations for all their students lifted academic growth by more than two years in just one year. That large increase in performance was the same for all students, regardless of their socio-economic status, gender or ethnicity or where they started the year in terms of their achievement.
Professor Christine Rubie-Davies

Professor Christine Rubie-Davies is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Te Apārangi and her services and significant contributions to teaching and learning research in New Zealand and globally led to her appointment as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit.

Professor Christine Rubie-Davies is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Te Apārangi. Her significant contribution to learning research in New Zealand and globally saw her appointment as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit.

Professor Christine Rubie-Davies on how teachers can lift achievement for all their students.

Liquefying electricity to build a renewable future

Using computational chemistry tools, we identified an outstanding catalyst capable of effectively converting carbon dioxide to formic acid which can be used as a fuel source. The breakthrough was published in the prestigious journal Nature.
Dr Ziyun Wang

Dr Wang is a computational chemist whose research is at the forefront of electrocatalysis and machine learning techniques. He has had five papers published in the prestigious journals Nature and Science. His group has pioneered the use of a catalytic process to turn carbon dioxide into valuable fuel and chemicals.

Dr Ziyun Wang on discovering catalysts that can support a sustainable future.