Category Archives: Lectures

Avian Influenza (H5N1): what we can expect and what you can do to help

Brett Gartrell

7.30 pm Tuesday, 15 September, Palmerston North Central Library, George Street, Palmerston North

HPAI poses a significant risk to the wildlife of Aotearoa. The virus has caused unprecedented mortality of wild birds throughout the world with recent detections in Aotearoa and Australia. Globally, hundreds of thousands of dead birds have been recorded from over 2,600 separate mortality clusters, with the actual number of birds affected estimated to be much higher. Deaths have been reported from every continent and outbreaks are slowly moving closer to Aotearoa. The virus has also spilled over into mammals causing deaths in cats, dogs, bears, foxes and skunks. Sustained mammalian transmission has now occurred in farmed mink in Spain, in dairy cows in the USA, and in elephant seals in South America. The number of human infections is fortunately very low but can be fatal. Our challenges will be to ensure that any disease management strategies protect the health of workers and volunteers, that affected animals are humanely killed and that bodies are disposed of safely. The tikanga of tangata whenua must also be considered in all wildlife interventions. It is likely there will be severe impacts on mental well-being of people involved in the response, even if their only option is to do nothing.

Professor Brett Gartrell is a wildlife veterinarian and has been the Director of the Wildbase Research Centre from its inception in 2002. Based at Massey University’s veterinary teaching hospital, Wildbase is New Zealand’s leading wildlife health and treatment facility.

Solutions to health service crisis are hiding in plain sight

Jenny Carryer

7.30 pm Tuesday, 18 August, Palmerston North Central Library, George Street, Palmerston North

The global health-care environment is one of converging pressures: accelerating population aging, a rising burden of chronic disease and comorbidities, persistent access to care gaps, and significant workforce shortages.  Nursing has provided evidence for over 40 years now that safer hospital staffing and different use of the workforce would provide significant increases in quality and cost efficiency. It seems however that decision makers are blinded by medical hegemony, and we see persistent failure to read the evidence and change some processes. In this session, I will share some of that evidence and use the development of the Nurse Practitioner role as a case study in the persistence of that hegemony.

Jenny Carryer is Professor of Nursing at Massey University and an Honorary Professor at the University of Auckland. Jenny has clinical postgraduate qualifications in oncology and cardiovascular nursing and in counseling. She has conducted extensive research and published in the areas of primary health services, safe staffing, development of the Nurse Practitioner role, and long-term condition management. Jenny was the Executive Director of the College of Nurses for 30 years. She is a member of numerous advisory groups to Ministers of Health and the Ministry of Health.

Rutherford Medal Lecture Tour 2026

Our Mysterious Brain: The Making and Breaking of Memories

Cliff Abraham

7.00 pm, Tuesday, 21 July, Palmerston North Central Library, George Street, Palmerston North

How does our brain remember – or forget? What happens to the nerve cells in our brain to cause this? Distinguished Professor Cliff Abraham FRSNZ won the Rutherford Medal in 2025. He will speak about our mysterious brains, and ideas for new treatments emerging from the discoveries made by his research team.

How the brain stores memories has long been mysterious. Intensive research over decades has revealed the mechanisms that change connections between nerve cells in the brain and allow memories to be stored. These mechanisms are affected by a variety of internal and external signals, from genetics to environmental stressors. Importantly, this knowledge helps explain memory decline in neurological disorders, leading to revolutionary ideas for new treatments.

Emeritus Distinguished Professor Wickliffe (Cliff) Abraham FRSNZ, of the University of Otago, was awarded the Rutherford Medal in 2025 for breakthroughs in understanding of the neural mechanisms of memory and for providing inspirational leadership for neuroscience in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Prof Abraham established the Brain Health Research Centre at the University and most recently co-led the national Aotearoa Brain Project – Kaupapa Roro o Aotearoa. He is passionate about translating his fundamental research into treatments for neurological disease, as well as mentoring and inspiring the next generation of neuroscientists.

All warmly welcome!