Peer-judged staff excellence awards for 2024 announced

Lincoln University has announced its most prestigious peer-judged staff awards for 2024; honouring members of our staff whānau who have most outstandingly championed the University’s values, delivered a world-class student experience and made the most positive impact on the wider community.

At the end-of-year event for staff on Wednesday 11 December, Vice-Chancellor Professor Grant Edwards presented two Staff Excellence Awards and one Critic and Conscience of Society Award – judged by a panel of peers – and one Health and Safety Award.

Staff Excellence Awards

The annual Staff Excellence Awards recognise outstanding performance by individuals or teams who are nominated by their peers, managers, students or alumni as having demonstrated Lincoln University’s values, contributing to the University’s success and making it a great place to learn, discover and share. The winners received a cash prize – which this year increased to a very significant $3,500 – plus a personalised trophy carved from New Zealand historic limestone by Ken Sowman.

This year, one individual Staff Excellence Award and one team Staff Excellence Award were presented.

The winner of the individual Staff Excellence Award for 2024 is Hestine Zurich – Group Financial Controller, Finance team.

The winner of the team Staff Excellence Award for 2024 is the Admission and Enrolment team, Student Administration.

Hestine Zurich

Hestine has only been with Lincoln University for a couple of years, but she has made a very significant impact in a very short time, consistently going the extra mile while under pressure from external and internal deadlines.

An example of her performance under pressure was her management of the 2023 Audit, where she directed her own outstanding mahi and that of her colleagues throughout the typically challenging and exacting process towards a successfully completed Audit 2023 – delighting her colleagues and earning plaudits from Audit NZ.

Hestine demonstrates exceptional leadership skills; always supporting and nurturing fellow team members and engaging professionally and capably with external partners. Her colleagues and associates appreciate her calm, level-headed demeanour under very difficult circumstances, even when buried in mountains of her own work.

She is known amongst her team for her approachability, and for taking the time to lend an ear, talk through a challenging work issue or impart knowledge through guidance and encouragement.

When called upon to lead the Finance Team for a period in 2024, Hestine stepped up with enthusiasm and confidence, bringing the team together under her leadership to achieve their usual high standards of delivery and professionalism.

Hestine Zurich

Admission and Enrolment Team

With strong demand for Lincon University’s programmes and year-on-year growth in our student enrolments, the Admission and Enrolment Team have risen to the monumental challenge of enrolling huge numbers of students from all over Aotearoa and the world. As a unit, they exemplify the University’s drive to deliver a student experience that is second-to-none.

The team, under the guidance of Rosemary Mather (Team Leader), Anu Sharma, Miyoko Sawada and Rachel Smith, have shown outstanding growth in their in their capabilities in recent years, including successfully onboarding several staff into complex processes in 2024.

This team is highly regarded and respected by their peers, their colleagues and their student customers – always working calmly through challenging times, with empathy and integrity.

Admission and Enrolment Team

Critic and Conscience of Society Award

The Critic and Conscience of Society Award recognises the activities of a member of the academic staff who has most notably contributed to Lincoln University’s role as a critic and conscience of society. Nominated by staff and students, the award is only presented when a nominee is considered by the judging panel to have provided the public or government with an exceptional level of independent, expert commentary on national or global issues that affect societies and future generations. The winner receives a prize of $3,500 plus a Ken Lowman-carved limestone trophy to keep.

In 2024, the Critic and Conscience Award has been presented to Professor Amanda Black.

Professor Amanda Black

Professor Amanda Black is the founding Director of Bioprotection Aotearoa, a national Centre of Research Excellence, and is nationally and internationally recognised for her efforts protecting Aotearoa’s taonga species and their ecosystems.

For more than a decade Amanda has provided an exceptional level of independent expert commentary in the public realm. Her research has been referenced in over 100 media items, including TV (eg Newshub, TVNZ), radio (eg RNZ, 95bFM) and print (eg The Guardian UK, Te Ao Māori News).

Her sustained leadership has been acknowledged through the prestigious Māori Television Matariki Award, Te Tupu-ā-Rangi for Health and Science (2019).

In 2024 Amanda has advocated for kaupapa that support and protect indigenous knowledge in general, and Māori rights and interests more specifically. Notably, in February Amanda was the primary author, with Professor Jason Tylianakis, on a policy forum article in the prestigious journal Science titled Teach Indigenous knowledge alongside science – evidence supports the teaching of Indigenous knowledge alongside sciences in the classroom. The article provided an evidence-based response to debates that have raged over the past few years following efforts to ensure that Mātauraka Māori is given equal value to other bodies of knowledge in the school curriculum. Amanda and Jason’s article received considerable national and international attention, earning an Altmetric score of 785 and gaining over 2,000 shares on X (formerly Twitter). Several response letters were published in Science (including one with 15 NZ authors), which were in turn responded to by Black and Tylianakis. The article was shared by the US Science Envoy Dr Dawn Wright, and was discussed in multiple blog posts by ‘science defenders’ such as Richard Dawkins. The article also prompted Jane Palmer, an independent journalist based in the US, to contact Amanda about a profile of her career as an Indigenous scientist for the journal Nature, due for publication in early 2025.

In August 2024, Amanda Black and Professor Tahu Kukutai authored another article in Science, this time an invited expert commentary titled CARE-ing for Indigenous nonhuman genetic data – rethinking our approach. It cautioned that continued use of public data repositories can push indigenous researchers and communities to the periphery and advocated for a more balanced approach to data sharing, including the implementation of indigenous governance. This article also received media coverage, such as in Te Ao Māori News.

Amanda is frequently called upon in local media to comment on nationally important topics, and she continually advocates for broader environmental and social justice, especially the inclusion of Māori rights and interests, that lie within her research expertise.

During her career Professor Amanda Black has provided the public and government with an exceptional level of independent, expert commentary on issues of considerable importance, both nationally and internationally, that affects our society and will impact future generations.

Professor Amanda Black

LU Health and Safety Award

The annual Health and Safety Award is presented to the staff member who has:

• Most proactively demonstrated their commitment to health and safety in the workplace, going beyond the requirements of their role
• Worked towards continuous improvement of health and safety in the workplace, for example activities/actions taken to prevent injuries or illnesses, prevention of unsafe conditions or practices
• Promoted a work and service environment that is respectful, collegial and supportive

In 2024 the LU Health and Safety Award was presented to Jenny Brookes.

Jenny Brookes – Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Jenny is a senior technician in the Department of Pest Management and Conservation, and as part of her role manages training courses for new staff and postgraduates to assist with the H&S aspects of their research and studies. Supervisors work with Jenny in identifying students who would benefit from training such as 4-wheel drive, Back-country and Bush & Alpine Survival, and River Safety & Crossing theory and practical courses. Many of these courses go on to benefit students as additional NZQA qualifications when seeking employment after graduation.

Recognising the importance of facilitating safety training for staff and postgraduates in her own department, Jenny has promoted these courses to the wider faculty and for the past two years has organised 4-wheel drive training for staff and students across AGLS. She is also very aware of the risks New Zealand roads and remote field-work activities pose for new internationals and has been proactive in raising awareness of driving risks for international postgraduates via H&S committees.

Jenny Brookes

Numerous nominations

The University received around 40 nominations over all award categories in 2024, which Professor Grant Edwards said signalled the enthusiasm of the Lincoln University staff to call out and reward their colleagues for outstanding performance.

“It was pleasing to see so many of our staff whānau dedicating so much effort into submitting thoughtful and compelling nominations for the judging panels to consider. This mobilisation on behalf of their fellow team mates epitomises the Lincoln University culture of manaakitaka and whanaukataka, where we look after each other, and where our people are supported and inspired to thrive.

“The judging panels undertook an exhaustive and rigorous process to identify the award winners in each category, and they relished the opportunity to acknowledge and reward the deserving recipients.”