About The Series

Rangahau Rising is a new webinar series showcasing emerging researchers who are asking bold questions and exploring new directions in bioprotection. Each session features an early career researcher sharing their journey, ideas, and in-progress work across a range of bioprotection topics. 

These sessions are a chance to: 

  • Hear fresh thinking from across Aotearoa and the Pacific 
  • Connect with the next generation of research leaders 
  • Be part of conversations that bring together science, community, and environment 

Whether you’re a student, part of the research sector, or simply curious about the future of our natural and productive ecosystems, this series is for you. 

Why We Created Rangahau Rising

Rangahau Rising is part of our commitment to building research leadership and supporting the next generation of scientists working to protect our environments, communities, and economies. 

Early career researchers bring fresh perspectives, new tools, and bold ideas to the challenges we face. By creating space for their voices, this series helps connect people and place, while strengthening the future of bioprotection in Aotearoa and the Pacific. 

It’s not just about sharing science. It’s about growing capability, building relationships, and weaving knowledge systems together to care for people and place. 

Upcoming Webinars

Rangahau Rising is free and open to everyone. Our webinars will start again in March 2026

Understanding the key weapons of the kauri dieback pathogen Phytophthora agathidicida

Wednesday 17 June, at 1:00 pm REGISTER HERE   Plant diseases are an increasing threat to natural ecosystems worldwide, and Aotearoa New Zealand is no exception. Kauri dieback, caused by…
Rangahau Rising Webinar July 2026

Wednesday 15 July, at 1:00 pm More details coming soon. Please check back here for the registration link. More Information Learning from the past for bioprotection futures: Understanding the roots…
Rangahau Rising Webinar August 2026

Wednesday 19 August, at 1:00 pm More details coming soon. Please check back here for the registration link. More Information Research: Learn more about Nicola’s aligned doctoral research with Bioprotection Aotearoa….
Rangahau Rising Webinar September 2026

Wednesday 16 September, at 1:00 pm More details coming soon. Please check back here for the registration link. More Information Research: Resilience Agroforestry for Pacific Communities – Exploring how agroforestry…

Watch Past Webinars

Click on the webinars below to watch past episodes

Calculating hope: How spatial modelling can help us plan strategies to protect Aotearoa New Zealand’s indigenous myrtles from disease

Plant disease outbreaks are occurring more frequently across the world. This is due to a combination of environmental change and people moving plants, pathogens, and their vectors beyond their natural…
Dairy farming in Aotearoa: Feeding the world or destroying the planet?

Few sectors are more contentious than dairy, with debates tending to be polarised between optimising the current system and “abolitionist” narratives. The ongoing intensification of dairy farming globally and in…
Bacteria and Their Enemies: Insights from Studying Microscopic Warfare

Bacterial pathogens infecting humans or plants have major impacts on health and agriculture, especially as the efficacy of traditional control methods such as antibiotics and agrichemicals is increasingly undermined by…
Microbial indicators of forest health and environmental change

The communities of microbes living in and around plants play an important role in shaping plant growth, health, and resilience. Yet, we still know little about how these microbial communities…
Studying drivers of soil carbon resilience across agroecosystems in Waitaha | Canterbury

Agricultural land use intensification is a major driver of soil carbon loss. Understanding the impacts of agricultural land use on soil carbon cycling is essential to develop sustainable land use…
Maire tawake microbiome and how it’s impacted by myrtle rust

Microbes, the tiny living things that are found all around us, play crucial roles in the development, health and interactions of humans, animals and plants alike. The microbial communities, or…
Rethinking biocontrol in the genomics era

Biological control, which uses natural enemies to manage pests, has been practised for over a century. Over this time, there have been improvements in establishment success and minimising off-target effects. However,…
Non-native plant invasion in Aotearoa: insights from mānuka–kānuka shrublands

Non-native plants are increasingly threatening Aotearoa New Zealand’s biodiversity and ecosystems, with nearly half of all plant species being non-native and many becoming environmental weeds with a widespread impact. To…

We suck at food security and we need to get better

The latest happenings in global activities (politics and the Strait of Hormuz) sees us once again faced with the very probable, likely-to-materialise issue of food security. We last encountered this…
Gene technologies explained for Aotearoa

Royal Society Te Apārangi has released two discussion documents and three posters on genetic technologies in Aotearoa New Zealand. Bioprotection Aotearoa’s Director, Professor Amanda Black, was among the experts who helped shape them.  Genetic technologies in Aotearoa New Zealand is a…
May 2026 Newsletter

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