Harriet Fulbright visits New Zealand

Harriet Fulbright visits New Zealand

Harriet Fulbright with Hon Chris Carter, Ambassador William McCormick and Rt Hon Helen Clark Harriet Fulbright, widow of the Fulbright programme’s founder Senator J. William Fulbright, visited Wellington in December to help launch Fulbright New Zealand’s 60th Anniversary celebrations in 2008.

At a parliamentary reception in her honour, Mrs Fulbright spoke of the contributions, contributors and lasting value of the educational exchange programme her late husband founded in 1946.

She described how Senator Fulbright’s own Rhodes Scholarship exchange convinced him in the aftermath of World War II “that if future potential leaders could follow in his footsteps, they would, when in actual leadership positions, be far more willing to exchange ideas instead of bullets.” | read the full story online

Grantee Voice: Amy Fowler - An extended stay in Aotearoa

Amy Fowler Amy Fowler from Memphis, Tennessee was a 2007 Fulbright US Graduate Student who completed a Master of Science degree in Marine Science at the University of Auckland. While most of her fellow grantees recently returned to the US, Amy will extend her stay in New Zealand by another two years thanks to a special supplementary University of Auckland Fulbright Scholarship.

The receding tide sparkles as the noon day sun shines over the mudflat. Carrying my crab traps, buckets and bait, I manoeuvre through the mangroves, walking quickly to avoid sinking into the anoxic mud. Pulling in the crab traps set the day before, I wave to the local sailors and pleasantries are yelled as they make their way down the estuary. Always the same question: “How many did ya’ get today, Amy?” A quick look into the traps shows a good number: eleven.

Highly aggressive, Charybdis japonica throws up its chelae (claws) at this sudden invasion of privacy and scuttles around the trap, trying to find the best vantage point to nip my fingers. Opening the trap I find not only C. japonica but cushion stars, hermit crabs, a couple species of molluscs and juvenile fish. Having being pinched a couple of times in the past, I press C. japonica’s chelae together, hold them firmly next to the carapace (shell) and place them in buckets for the journey home. | read the full story online

Alumni Voice: Richard Faull - The marvel of the human brain

Richard Faull Professor Richard Faull was awarded a Harkness Fellowship in 1975 to undertake postdoctoral research on the brain with leading neuroscientists in the US. In the 30 years since his return to the University of Auckland, where he is now Professor of Anatomy, Richard has established an international reputation for his studies on human brain diseases. In November 2007 he was awarded New Zealand’s top science award, the Rutherford Medal, by the Royal Society of New Zealand for his innovative research studies on the human brain. He also serves as Chair of the New Zealand Harkness Fellowships Trust Board..

I first saw the human brain when I was a third year medical student at the University of Otago. I was immediately captivated by its beauty and endless complexity and decided to interrupt my medical studies to pursue a year’s research on the brain. I spent the year studying the intricacies of the basal ganglia in the rat brain, the region involved in the control of movement and affected by Parkinson’s disease in the human brain. That was one of the most exciting years of my life – I published seven papers, found a new pathway in the brain and presented my findings at an international conference.

That year shaped the whole of my future career in medicine. I was captivated by the challenges of the brain and was in awe of just how the billions of brain cells worked together in the most complex and marvellous way to give each of us our own special behavioural profile and abilities that make us all unique and special people. | read the full story online

Fulbright New Zealand 60th Anniversary Celebrations For sixty years the New Zealand-United States Education Foundation (Fulbright New Zealand) has facilitated the exchange of students, scholars, artists and professionals between New Zealand and the United States of America. To celebrate this achievement Fulbright New Zealand is organising a range of anniversary activities in 2008.

More information on all these activities will be distributed in the coming months and on our website. Offers of assistance are welcomed! Please email any enquiries or offers to info@fulbright.org.nz

Conference in New Zealand Held in association with the University of Auckland from Thursday 20th to Saturday 22nd November 2008 (please note the change of dates), the theme of the conference is ‘Creative Partnerships’. It is intended to highlight the energising and stimulating impact of intellectual exchange.

The conference will draw on outstanding presenters to show how the coming together of American and New Zealand cultural and academic traditions has enriched the life of both societies. There will be six main thematic areas – education, law and business, humanities and social sciences, sciences and heath, creative arts and indigenous leadership. Some well-known keynote speakers are being invited and the conference will be accompanied by several exciting cultural events and social receptions.

Participants and alumni are invited from all NZ-US exchange programmes including Fulbright, Ian Axford, Harkness, Eisenhower programmes and the International Visitor Program. Key stakeholders/organisations and tertiary education audiences in both countries will also be invited. The conference will also be open to interested members of the public. It will be held at the new Business School at the University of Auckland.

Group Tour for US Alumni For those Americans attending the conference, we are contracting New Zealand Educational Tours to run a nine day tour throughout New Zealand from Wednesday 12th to Thursday 20th November. You will visit universities in Hamilton, Palmerston North, Wellington, Dunedin and Christchurch and take in the scenery and culture of Rotorua, Taupo, Napier and Oamaru. It will provide an exciting opportunity for you to reacquaint yourselves with the beauty of Aotearoa/New Zealand and the universities you were based at during your Fulbright exchange here.

Costs will vary depending on the number of participants, so early expressions of interest would be appreciated. All you will need to do is register, pay the fee and everything for your whole trip Down Under is arranged for you!

Art Exhibition and Photographic Competition Alumni who are visual artists will be invited to exhibit artworks in the foyer of the Business School during the conference. Fulbright New Zealand will also run a photo competition with entries submitted prior to the conference and the winners announced on 22 November.

US Celebration For those who cannot attend the Conference in New Zealand, there will be a Reunion and Gala Dinner at the Embassy of New Zealand in Washington, DC on the evening of Saturday 7th June.

Download 847kb PDF Also in this issue: Editorial 60th Anniversary Celebrations New Fulbright award for education research Nobel Laureate visits as Kennedy Fellow Ian Axford Fellowships Forum New Zealand government delegation to the US Fulbright Advisers on New Zealand campuses Awarded Arrivals and Departures Current Grantees Rochester remembered In Pictures Awards Grantee and Alumni News Fulbright alumna Rebekah Fuller (2006 Fulbright-MoRST Graduate Award) was awarded one of sixteen Te Tipu Pûtaiao Fellowships by the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology in October, to continue her PhD research into the links between indigenous peoples’ knowledge of fungi and science at the University of Hawai‘i. The fellowship is valued at up to $107,500 over three years. . Sarah-Jane Paine, 2007 Harkness alumnus Professor Ken McNatty (1977 Harkness Fellowship) was named as one of four 2007 recipients of the Royal Society of New Zealand’s prestigious James Cook Fellowships in November. The fellowships, which support two years of research, are awarded to forward-thinking researchers who will make a significant contribution to New Zealand’s knowledge base. A Professor of Physiology at Victoria University of Wellington, Ken will research environmental and nutritional influences on reproductive health. Also in November, Fulbright alumnus Professor Michael Saunders (1967 NZ Graduate Student) from Stanford University was elected as an Honorary Fellow of the Academy of the Royal Society of New Zealand, which provides expert advice, promotes scientific best practice and disseminates scientific information. Harkness alumnus Professor Richard Faull (1975 Harkness Fellowship) was awarded New Zealand’s top science honour, the 2007 Rutherford Medal, in November, in recognition of his groundbreaking research into neurodegenerative diseases. You can read more about Richard and his research here . Fulbright alumnus Damien Wilkins (1990 NZ Graduate Student) was awarded New Zealand’s most valuable international writer’s residency package, the Katherine Mansfield Memorial Fellowship and inaugural $100,000 New Zealand Post Mansfield Prize, in November. The fellowship enables a New Zealand author to work at the Villa Isola Bella in Menton, where Katherine Mansfield lived and wrote in the 1920s while recovering from tuberculosis. A Senior Lecturer at Victoria University of Wellington’s International Institute of Modern Letters, Damien joins a number of Fulbright alumni who have previously held the same fellowship. Fulbright alumna Ngahuia Te Awekotuku (2004 Travel Award) has published a new book, Mau Moko, about the Mâori art of facial or body tattoo. Published by Penguin in December, the book offers a cultural history of moko from pre-European times to the present day. Several Fulbright and related alumni were recognised in the Queen’s New Year Honours 2008. Fulbright alumnus Professor Gary Hawke (1990 NZ Senior Scholar) was appointed as a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to education and economics. Fulbright alumna Judith Fyfe (1987 NZ Cultural Development Grant) was appointed as an Officer of the same Order for services to oral history and journalism, and Eisenhower alumna Bev Adlam (1990 Eisenhower Fellowship) was appointed as a Member of the Order for services to business. Fulbright alumna Dr Sarah-Jane Paine (2007 Travel Award) from Massey University’s Sleep/Wake Research Centre was awarded the Health Research Council of New Zealand’s Eru Pomare Research Fellowship in Mâori Health in January. One of eleven Mâori Health Research Career Development Awards made for the 2007 year, Sarah-Jane’s postdoctoral fellowship provides $463,000 in funding towards her ongoing research into advancing sleep health in New Zealand. In Memoriam Fulbright alumnus Dr Jim Hood (1982 NZ Research Scholar) passed away in November. Jim received his Fulbright award midway through a 40 year career at the University of Otago, to lecture and undertake research in dental materials at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Jim taught more than 2,000 dentistry students at the University of Otago, and served as Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry for fourteen years until his retirement in 2006. He was acknowledged internationally for his research, which he published and presented widely. Jim is survived by his wife Lynley (herself a Fulbright alumna) and three children.

Jim Hood, pictured with his wife Lynley at a 2007 Fulbright alumni function in Dunedin We are also saddened by the recent passing of the following alumni: David Menzies, 1956 New Zealand Graduate Student Owen Boscawen, 1966 New Zealand Exchange Teacher Important Dates March 1

Fulbright Travel Awards applications due These awards are for New Zealand academics, artists or professionals to visit the US for 12 to 90 days in order to present papers at conferences, deliver lectures, collaborate with American colleagues or visit relevant institutions. Eight to twelve awards valued at up to NZ$5,000 are offered each year. See www.fulbright.org.nz for more information Fulbright Senior Specialist Awards applications due These awards are for New Zealand academic institutions to host US academics, artists or professionals for two to six week programmes of lectures, seminars, workshops, conferences or symposiums. Approximately six awards valued at up to NZ$8,400 (plus travel expenses) are offered each year. See www.fulbright.org.nz for more information Ian Axford (New Zealand) Fellowships in Public Policy applications due These fellowships are for outstanding mid-career US professionals to research and gain first-hand experience of public policy in New Zealand for six months. A small number of fellowships valued at up to NZ$39,000 (plus travel expenses) are offered each year. See www.fulbright.org.nz for more information April 1 Fulbright-Creative New Zealand Pacific Writers’ Residency applications due This award is for a New Zealand writer in any genre to carry out work on an approved creative writing project exploring Pacific identity, culture or history at the University of Hawai‘i for three months. One residency valued at NZ$30,000 is offered each year. See www.fulbright.org.nz for more information May 1 International Fulbright Science and Technology Awards applications due These awards are for promising graduate students from around the world to undertake fully-funded PhD study at top US universities in fields of science, technology or engineering. Approximately 25 awards with an estimated value over NZ$250,000 are offered internationally each year. See www.fulbright.org.nz for more information

Fulbright-Cognition Education Research Trust Scholar Award in Education Research applications due This award is for a New Zealand scholar to pursue research in the US, designed to have an impact on New Zealand schooling and student achievement, for three to five months. One award valued at up to US$20,000 (plus travel expenses) is offered each year. See www.fulbright.org.nz for more information

November 20 Fulbright New Zealand 60th Anniversary Conference - ‘Creative Partnerships’ Highlighting the energising and stimulating impact of intellectual exchange, this conference will draw on outstanding presenters to show how the coming together of American and New Zealand cultural and academic traditions has enriched the life of both societies. Case studies will be drawn from such areas as business, creative arts, education, health, the humanities, law and sciences.

Some well-known keynote speakers are being invited and the conference will be accompanied by several exciting cultural events and social receptions, with travel options for international visitors. Mark your diaries! 20-22 November, University of Auckland

ENDS

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