Stories of impact

The 2016 Kaikōura earthquake greatly affected pāua populations. Ecological recovery of surrounding reefs focused on juvenile pāua. Learn more about post-earthquake recovery of pāua populations and a reopened fishery.

We carried out twelve oral history interviews on fourteen individuals who had a close association with Miss Marion Steven, one of UC’s first female academic Readers, and founder of the James Logie Memorial Collection of Classical Antiquities.

In recent decades many museums have made their collections accessible online, and the Teece Museum has enthusiastically joined this trend. 

The Māori in engineering podcast series aims to create an accessible space for inspiration, learning and tautoko. The platform is an important space for all of us to be a part of as we shift towards a future where Māori voices and values are intertwined across the engineering landscape in Aotearoa.

The date of birth often determines when and how children in New Zealand start school. While parents may sometimes feel disappointed that their children are initially placed in Year 0 rather than ‘fast-tracked’ directly into Year 1, our study shows that these children actually tend to benefit from their longer, and more gradual, immersion in early schooling.

Social marketers need to understand the structural and environmental factors contributing to the problem behaviour/wicked problem and focus on the implementers and controllers of society-wide strategic interventions. Eliminating all factors which enable problem behaviors creates an environmental context where it is easy for consumers to change behavior and maintain that change. 

This research creates a B2B sustainability positioning scale and taxonomy. 

The CHCH101 course brought the SVA’s disaster response back onto campus by providing an academic context within which students could reflect on their experiences. 

Research about young lives in Ōtautahi Christchurch supports a local and global focus on sustainable urbanisation and youth wellbeing.

A variety of collaborative initiatives with this exciting community based teaching programme and UC are under development. It lends itself to residential programmes as well as citizen science and teach-in discussions and experiments- 

Among these students are the Pacific scholars of the future. Having a positive, supported university research experience as part of their high school studies can help to students to recognise the value of their own cultural knowledge, and learn research skills. 

Bringing together environmental education programmes with iconic events will help our love affair with the outdoors to be good for both people and our special places.

The Seismic Protection of Museum Artefacts was a joint project by the University of Canterbury and Canterbury Museum. Artefacts in museums, galleries, and private collections have significant cultural value. In regions with high seismicity, there may be risk of irreversible damage due to earthquake shaking.

UC scholars conducted a systematic study with high-calibred researchers on burning ammonia/hydrogen for power generation and aero-engines to achieve 0% CO2 emission. 

Without good quality information on the changes in the environment, policy and management decisions can be compromised.

In the case of frost in early spring, substantial loss of fruit crops due to frost-triggered injuries could ensue. The approaches to prevent this are basically based on manipulating the immediate layers of air surrounding plant surface.

The use of wireless, implantable sensors changes that, providing current information about the state of the implant that is accessible to a clinician even when patients are in remote locations.

The study revealed the need to regulate surrogacy and parenthood of children born through this type of arrangement in New Zealand. The research provides law makers and others stakeholders with social, legal and cultural data and analysis that could be used to inform their policies. 

Water supply systems transport a precious resource but the much of NZ systems are beyond their design life and desperately needing replacement.

This research draws the supply chain management discipline (academic and practitioner perspectives) into the transformative domain, which has been pioneered by the transformative consumer research as well as the transformative service research movements.

A range of concepts were evaluated before building and testing functional prototypes of the chosen solutions.

In preparation for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Canterbury has collaborated with Zenyth Projects Ltd to design a new tandem frame that incorporates further aerodynamic refinements but is significantly lighter than the Rio 2016 frame whilst retaining adequate stiffness.

Keeping our healthcare workers safe and helping them know they are safe to go to work is more imperative than ever during the Covid 19 pandemic. 

Through these microprojects the university supports its community, at the same time as students engage in rich, experiential learning in which their conceptual knowledge of communication meets the practicalities of meeting the needs of a client

The All Right? Campaign was developed as a mental health promotion campaign following the 2010–2011 Canterbury earthquakes. 

The internationally unique methodology has enabled contemporary assessment of the effectiveness of historical legal change and the recent procedural changes in the Sexual Violence Court. 

This project will identify and analyse a range of legal and policy options to support successful implementation of EBM in Aotearoa New Zealand marine management.

A Better Start National Science Challenge team have been researching effective ways to accelerate early reading and writing success for children who enter school with lower levels of oral language. 

Dist Prof Chase and Dr Cong Zhou have developed the methods using sensor data from instrumented buildings to accurately and robustly detect changes in structural stiffness, or damage, after major earthquakes.

The Digital Image Elasto-Tomography, or DIET, is a new method for non-invasive early breast cancer detection.

A project has been awarded $150,000 from the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment’s Covid-19 Innovation Fund. 

The research is part of the National Science Challenge on Science for Technological Innovation (SfTI) and MedTech Centre of Research Excellence, and also includes researchers from the University of Otago Christchurch School of Medicine, the University of Auckland Bioengineering Institute, and the Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB).

This research entitled Unique Acoustic Signatures to Diagnose Impending DOOM (Dysfunction of Osteo-Mechanics), has been undertaken thanks to funding from MBIE, the MedTech CoRE, and a Marsden Grant administered by the Royal Society Te Apārangi.

Tūranga, Christchurch’s new state-of-the-art central city library incorporates innovative UC engineering solutions designed to help it endure a large earthquake with minimal damage.

In collaboration with Dist Prof Geoff Chase, Prof Geoff Rodgers designed novel dampers that not only absorb energy to prevent building damage during an earthquake, they do not need to be replaced or reset after a large earthquake, eliminating downtime and interruption in the building’s use.

UC researchers conducted a multi- phase study to better understand how much importance international visitors placed on sustainable behaviours during their travels and the sustainability practices they adopted while visiting the Canterbury region. 

This project is a first attempt at actually providing some evidence on the matter. Its inability to detect any health benefits calls into question the business case for cycleways.

We used 9 years of data for 73 NZX-listed firms to test the proposition that more gender diversity on company boards causes better financial performance. A common problem with such studies is the potential for reverse causality.. This study received the Outstanding Research with Practical Application Award from NZX at the 2019 NZ Finance Colloquium. 

Our work embraces immersive technologies such as virtual and augmented reality to prepare for the smaller and larger challenges in life all of us face – from children with autism (ASD) and attention and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to UC students engaging in virtual field trips to places that are threatened by floods or earthquakes.

Environmental and climate issues are no more than creating mass uncertainties to our economy and way of life. Some of our UC researchers in Department of Chemical and Process Engineering have been developing practical methods to manage current environmental issues such as global warming, industrial waste treatment, excessive energy usage, lack of irrigation, and microplastics.

The results from the study outline key dimensions to social media use that enable a better understanding of the dialogue used to generate consumer engagement online for small businesses. 

This study examines the performance and benchmark asset allocation policy of 70 KiwiSaver funds categorised as growth, balanced or conservative over the period 2007- 2016. This study raises concerns about the poor after-fee benchmark-adjusted performance of KiwiSaver funds and the semi-active investment strategy widely used by balanced and growth fund managers. 

Using data on imported and domestic COVID-19 cases from Taiwan and New Zealand between January and June 2020, we develop an epidemic surveillance model to detect cluster infections from imported cases.

Wātakirihi is a mahinga kai. Mahinga kai are traditional Māori sources of food and the places where they are grown or harvested. 

The purpose of the event was to excite young learners about their local environment and to introduce them to the tools of science for learning more about it.

The Navigate evaluation provided a preliminary indication of the Initiative’s effectiveness by gathering qualitative data from in-depth interviews with Navigate residential clients.

This project, led by Dr Jarrod Gilbert in collaboration with UC PhD students Ben Elley and Irina Golda Lamadrid, addresses the two interrelated problems of gangs and prisons, and works towards decreasing the negative effects of both.

Led by Dr Jarrod Gilbert in collaboration with UC PhD students Ben Elley and Irina Golda Lamadrid, the primary focus of this research currently underway is on a group of legal measures called the Harassment and Criminal Associations Bill introduced in 1997.

The New Zealand Initiative offered a project based group internship on the topic of the feasibility of introducing per unit charging for water use in Christchurch.

Killer robots are a Hollywood staple, but militaries around the world are making significant progress in bringing lethal autonomous weapons (LAWs) into military strategy and war-fighting.

The project mapped the legal and institutional frameworks around International Disaster Response Law (IDRL) in the 16 English speaking member states of the Pacific Islands Forum. 

The research provides law makers and others stakeholders with social, legal and cultural data and analysis that could be used to inform their policies.

This project allows tamariki to engage with a fun learning activity from the comfort of their home. It also played an important role during the lockdown when TMMCU members were unable to engage with local Learning Destinations during school holidays. 

TMMCU connects tamariki and their whānau to the learning that happens outside of school in their local community.. TMMCU is dedicated to helping children reach their full potential and supports those who do not normally excel in the classroom environment. 

Dying is not merely a medical event but a family and social event that is supported by health services and community support agencies working in partnership with families. End-of-life-care is the responsibility of all of society, so it is very important to seek the experience of families to ensure services meet their needs.

The current state-of-the-art in lymphoedema diagnosis and treatment shows that early detection and treatment is the most effective means to manage and improve the quality of life for people living with this condition. 

New Zealand has one of the worst mental health statistics in the world, with men being affected by it the most. Men often face stereotypes that they have to be strong, tough, and can’t show emotions. We want to break that stigma and highlight that it is okay to be vulnerable. It is okay to not be okay.

Airborne microplastics are an emerging environmental contaminant yet little is known about their abundance and distribution in the Southern Hemisphere.

The UC Student Volunteer Army (SVA) club was formed from the rubble of the 2010-2011 Christchurch earthquakes by a keen group of university students, who mobilised thousands of student volunteers to help their community in need. 

Dementia is one of the most rapidly increasing conditions throughout the world. The incidence of dementia is projected to continue to rise as improvements in health care allow people to live longer. 

We investigated the added value of BGI through the research question “Can the implementation of blue-green infrastructure lead to an improvement of habitat connectivity and biodiversity in urban environments?” We defined and quantified the role of BGI in meeting the holistic ambitions of the Ōtākaro Avon River Corridor (post-earthquake) Regeneration Plan.

Urban flood resilience has been studied by assessing the Dudley Creek flood remediation project in Christchurch. This work adopts a holistic approach to assess to what extent and why a flood remediation project contributes to urban flood resilience. 

Spin coating is the cornerstone of many industrial processes, and therefore, the ability to adapt it to curved surfaces could disrupt a range of technologies in fields such as optics, micro-technologies and medical implants. It could also open up a litany of commercialisation opportunities.

Watson and his PhD student Tenaya were the first people in the world to 3D image the inside of a live maple trunk and they're now in talks with several landowners interested in becoming New Zealand's first maple syrup producer. Establishing a maple syrup industry in NZ represents a new economic opportunity for landowners, especially in colder parts of the country.

The story is about a girl named Pascale who decides she wants to change her life. Starting with one little action, Pascale soon improves her own life and the lives of others.

In an effort to protect us from harsh impacts, UC researchers and honours students created a material capable of stopping even bullets at short range. 

On request from Maritime NZ, components of a steering linkage were assessed to determine the cause of failure. The analysis showed that the design of the steering linkage was flawed. Steering is a safety-critical function, and failure can lead to loss of life.

The research work conducted on the permanent deformation behaviour of asphalt materials has led to an improved testing system and new international standards. This enhanced testing system for road materials can make our state highways safer and more robust to withstand years of heavy traffic. 

New Zealand’s refugee resettlement strategy focuses on social and economic integration as a means of creating an equitable future. 

Even in 2021, the human rights impacts of the Canterbury earthquakes continue to be felt, especially in the housing context. The submission to the United Nations helped to draw international attention to the shortcomings of the Government response, and the Human Rights Council made three recommendations to the New Zealand Government on how to better respond to the human rights effects of the earthquakes. 

A team of researchers from UC, Otago University and several Chinese Universities joined forces to investigate how NZ-China food value chains adjusted their practices during the pandemic

WIL can enhance students’ employability through developing their discipline-specific knowledge and skills and can enhance their preparedness for post-graduate study.

The research we are doing is in showing that the virtual reality training experience induces as much stress as the live training and that more and varied training opportunities can lead to better preparedness.

Conducting biological experiments in space allows for both a more complete understanding of life on Earth and the development of life support capabilities which will enable advanced human space exploration and future off-Earth habitation.

This project involves the design, synthesis and investigation of new molecules that are candidates for hydrogen storage applications. 

New Zealand has high rates of endemism and a significant portion of native species found nowhere else in the world; therefore, reducing chemical influences that threaten their existence is critical. 

To achieve high-quality outcomes in our research activities, we collaborate internationally with expertise in the following fields: nano- and micro sensors, new and emerging clean room fabrication techniques, coupled oscillators and nonlinear vibrations, electrophysiological and audiological instrumentation, and measurement of speech perception, among others.

The ability to move is essential to human health and wellbeing. Injuries, along with disorders that impair motor function, have considerable impact on our mobility, which in turn may influence our ability to perform self-care, work, recreate, or return to a sport or level of activity that we previously enjoyed. 

The UC Spatial And Image Learning group has been optimizing the detection of road surface defects, such as potholes and cracking. 

Knowing the social impact of terrorist attacks is important for evidence-based policy making in terms of how to react when a terrorist attack happens.

The project illuminated the institutional history of UC and the publicly accessible James Logie Memorial Collection, now in the Teece Museum. It explored women’s history in Christchurch and at UC, and also explored aspects of oral history as a research methodology. 

Student wellbeing is strongly linked to learning and feelings of connectedness. Through this project, UC students build connections and learn to collaborate with other students while giving back to their local community.

The brain is one of the most complex systems in the universe, and we are far from understanding its structures and functions. Brain diseases could lead to the lose of physical and mental capabilities, and significantly affect human wellbeing. By mimicking brain structures and functions, deep neural network and other artificial intelligence technologies have generated broad impacts in every industry and human society.