Forestry awards top $34,000
THE VALUE OF AWARDS OFFERED BY THE NZIF FOUNDATION topped more than $34,000 this year – the most in the history of the awards.
Among the most valuable, the Future Forest Scholarships was on offer for the first time in 2017, thanks to a major contribution of $70,000 made by the Australia and New Zealand Forest Fund 2 (a New Forests entity).
From that prize pool, two scholarships may be selected, each of up to $10,000/year for post graduate research at any recognised NZ tertiary institution into NZ plantation forestry with a preference given to projects in the areas of environmental markets, wood fibre markets, forest logistics, productivity and genetics.
The first – and only – recipient this year is Fei Guo, a PhD Student at the University of Canterbury, who is working on a project in association with the New Zealand Dryland Forest Initiative. Fei Guo has a Master of Wood Science and Technology from the Chinese Academy of Forestry’s Research Institute of Wood Industry and has been researching aspects of wood science for over eight years.
The Foundation also offered three Student Scholarships this year, each worth $1,000, which are open to forestry students at tertiary institutions in New Zealand. They recognise forestry excellence at the student level, and reward innovation and entrepreneurial potential.
They include the Mary Sutherland Award, this year presented to Pauline Edge, who is enrolled in the second year of the Level 6 Diploma in Forest Management at Toi-Ohomai in Rotorua.
The NZ University Undergraduate Student for 2017 went to Morgan Scragg a first year Bachelor of Forestry Science student at the University of Canterbury.
And the Frank Hutchinson Scholarship, awarded to a post-graduate student, went to Michael Thornton-Pay, a second year Master of Forestry Science student at the University of Canterbury who is working on estate modelling for a multi-species, multi-objective forest.
The Otago/Southland Award, which offers up to $3,000 to assist or enable a project of relevance to forestry in the Otago/Southland region, this year saw $1,500 going to Luke Holmes, a Bachelor of Forest Engineering Honours student at the University of Canterbury. His topic is the productivity analysis of fully mechanised cable logging operations in New Zealand and part of his field work is studying the logging operation in Castle Downs forest in Southland, which is using an innovative method of cable yarding.
Two categories were not awarded for 2017. There were no nominees for the $3,500 Jon Dey Award to assist research projects in the areas of work study or new technology aimed at improving forest engineering and harvest productivity. And judges decided not to select anyone for the Chavasse Travel Award this year.
NZL