Chairs, Board Members Named For New Science Mergers

Wednesday, 14 May 2025, 5:59 pm
Article: RNZ

Russell Palmer, Political Reporter

NIWA and GNS Science's chairs have been named to lead two of the new research institutes created by merging or scrapping their current ones.

The government in January confirmed its reform plans to merge the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences Limited (GNS Science) with the National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) - which is also acquiring the MetService as a subsidiary.

Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Shane Reti confirmed on Wednesday that when those organisations form the new Earth Science Institute from July, it would be chaired by David Smol - who currently holds that role at GNS.

The new ESI board will also include:

• Mary-Anne Macleod - Deputy Chair for a two-year term (current NIWA, AgResearch, Environmental Protection Authority, Fire and Emergency NZ director, DairyNZ director)
• Paul Connell - Director for a three-year term (current Plant and Food Research, WorkSafe NZ chair and Environmental Protection Authority audit and risk chair)
• Paul White - Director for a two-year term (current GNS and Te Matapihi director, chair of Ngāi Tūpoto ki Motukaraka Trust, management consultant)
• Peter Landon-Lane - Director for a three-year term (current chair of AsureQuality, NIWA director)
• Professor Chris Bumby - Director for a two-year term (Victoria University of Wellington academic and MacDiarmid Institute principal investigator)

Barry Harris, who chairs NIWA, will move to the new Bioeconomy Science Institute formed from the merger of AgResearch, Plant and Food Research, Scion and Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research.

The rest of the BSI new board:

• Kim Wallace - Deputy Chair for a two-year term (current AgResearch and Te Manawataki o Te Papa chair)
• Candace Kinser - Director for a three-year term (current Plant & Food Research director)
• Andrew Morrison - Director for a two-year term (sheep, beef and forestry farmer, current Ovis Management chair, AgResearch and Wool Source Manufacturing director)
• Gray Baldwin - Director for a three-year term (dairy farmer, current Manaaki Whenua and Alliance director)

The current Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR) is being rebranded as the Institute for Public Health and Forensic Science, with the current board and chair Sarah Young and remaining.

The reforms also disestablish Callaghan Innovation, and will set up a fourth new public research organisation focused on advanced technologies like AI, synthetic biology and quantum computing.

Dr Reti said the government was moving swiftly to implement its reforms, which "are about unlocking the full potential of science to deliver stronger economic growth and greater resilience for New Zealand".

"Critically, the new research organisations will have a strong commercial focus, with a mandate to translate science into real-world outcomes and commercial success. It's not enough to have great science - we need that science to power start-ups, lift productivity, and create jobs. This is about turning research into results for New Zealand's economy," he said.

Dr Reti said Harris and Smol brought "outstanding leadership and deep sector experience" and he was confident they would help deliver a system that was more connected and commercially focused, and "better aligned with the needs of our nation".

After the reforms were announced, the New Zealand Association of Scientists (NZAS) said that while the merging of CRIs was a good idea in principle, it had been cherry-picked from the Science System Advisory Group first report led by Sir Peter Gluckman - with many other recommendations ignored.

NZAS co-president Lucy Stewart said the changes did not seem well thought through, considering Sir Peter's report warned that maintaining the science workforce should be a priority for maintaining the overall science system, and the changes were too focused on commercialisation.

Others also warned of a lack of funding commitments for new research.

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