Marsden Fund panels
Definitions of panels and details of panel members
There are eight discipline-based assessment panels which make funding recommendations to the Marsden Fund Council. The panels are made up of researchers who are experts in their field. They are appointed by the Royal Society Te Apārangi after being recommended by the Fund Council and usually serve for a maximum of three years.
On this page:
- Biomedical Sciences
- Cellular, Molecular and Physiological Biology
- Earth Sciences and Astronomy
- Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour
- Economics and Human and Behavioural Sciences
- Engineering and Interdisciplinary Sciences
- Mathematical and Information Sciences
- Physics, Chemistry and Biochemistry
- Potential Panellists
Biomedical Sciences (BMS)
Research related to human health and disease. This includes physiology, pathology, pharmacology, molecular biology, genetics, cell biology, microbiology, neurobiology, human genomics, and bioinformatics.
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Professor Colin Brown (Convenor) | University of Otago |
| Dr Jacky Suen | University of Queensland |
| Dr Lisa Connor | Malaghan Institute of Medical Research |
| Dr Nikki Freed | University of Auckland |
| Dr Sarah Herridge | BioNTech |
| Dr Megan Leask | University of Otago |
| Dr Vanessa Morris | University of Canterbury |
| Associate Professor Pawel Olszewski | University of Waikato |
| Professor Simon Swift | University of Auckland |
| Dr William Kelton | University of Waikato |
| Associate Professor Ari Samaranayaka | University of Otago |
| Dr Alex Semprini | Medical Research Institute of New Zealand |
Cellular, Molecular and Physiological Biology (CMP)
Research related to cellular and tissue functions, and their integration within living organisms across the biological, agricultural, veterinary and biochemical sciences. This includes animal and plant physiology, molecular and cell biology, animal and plant genetics, functional genomics, bioinformatics, animal and plant pathology, and microbiology.
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Professor Richard Newcomb (Convenor) | Plant & Food Research |
| Dr David Crossman | University of Auckland |
| Associate Professor Liz Ledgerwood | University of Otago |
| Dr Jay Jayaraman | Plant & Food Research |
| Professor Colleen Higgins | Auckland University of Technology |
| Dr Adele Williamson | University of Waikato |
| Professor Jenny Mortimer | University of Adelaide |
| Professor Patrick Biggs | Massey University |
Earth Sciences and Astronomy (ESA)
Research related to Earth systems and processes, and the universe beyond Earth’s atmosphere. This includes geology, geophysics, physical geography, oceanography, hydrology, meteorology, atmospheric science, earth sciences, astronomy, and astrophysics.
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Professor Jan Lindsay (Convenor) | University of Auckland |
| Associate Professor Michael Brown | Monash University |
| Doctor Denise Fernandez | National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research |
| Associate Professor Marwan Katurji | University of Canterbury |
| Associate Professor Leanne Morgan | University of Canterbury |
| Associate Professor Julia Mullarney | University of Waikato |
| Professor Mark Stirling | University of Otago |
| Associate Professor Gavin Dunbar | Victoria University of Wellington |
| TBC |
Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour (EEB)
Research related to how organisms evolve, behave, and interact with their environments. This includes ecology, evolution, behaviour, biodiversity, and biogeography, spanning molecular to ecosystem scales and incorporating theoretical, experimental, and modelling approaches.
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Convenor | TBC |
| Associate Professor Kim Handley | University of Auckland |
| Professor Simon Ho | University of Sydney |
| Dr Angela McGaughran | University of Waikato |
| Associate Professor Craig Radford | University of Auckland |
| Dr Alice Rogers | Victoria University of Wellington |
| Dr Simon Stewart | Cawthron Institute |
| Associate Professor Matthew Stott | University of Canterbury |
| Dr Paul Szyszka | University of Otago |
Economics and Human and Behavioural Sciences (EHB)
Research related to human behaviour and economic systems. This includes psychology (experimental, cognitive, and neuropsychology), cognitive science, linguistics, archaeology, biological anthropology, business studies, commerce, management studies, marketing, communication science, and demography.
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Professor Randolph Grace (Convener) | University of Canterbury |
| Dr Elham Bahmanteymouri | University of Auckland |
| Dr Paul Dalziel | Wellbeing Economics |
| Professor Siân Halcrow | University of Otago |
| Dr Sam Manuela | University of Auckland |
| Associate Professor Susan Olivia | University of Waikato |
| Professor Vincent Reid | University of Waikato |
| Professor Maree Roche | University of Auckland |
| Professor Matthew Roskruge | Massey University |
| Dr Grace Villamor | Scion |
| TBC |
Engineering and Interdisciplinary Sciences (EIS)
Research related to the fundamentals of engineering. This includes biomedical, bioprocessing, civil, chemical, electrical, electronic, environmental, materials, mechanical, and robotic engineering; and cross-disciplinary research relating to engineering.
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Distinguished Professor Geoff Chase (Convenor) | University of Canterbury |
| Dr Hin Lim | University of Waikato |
| Professor Melissa Knothe Tate | Blue Mountains Interdisciplinary Innovation Institute |
| Professor Tracie Barber | University of New South Wales |
| Dr Peter Murmu | GNS Science |
| Associate Professor Brooke Farrugia | University of Melbourne |
| Professor Mathieu Sellier | University of Canterbury |
| Professor Mike Duke | University of Waikato |
| TBC | |
| TBC |
Mathematical and Information Sciences (MIS)
Research related to mathematics and information sciences. This includes pure mathematics, applied mathematics, statistics, operations research, logic, computer science, information systems, and software engineering.
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Professor Eamonn O'Brien (Convenor) | University of Auckland |
| Associate Professor Ting Wang | University of Otago |
| Associate Professor Kelly Blincoe | University of Auckland |
| Professor Clemency Montelle | University of Canterbury |
| Emeritus Professor Mick Roberts | Massey University |
| Professor Alan Fekete | University of Sydney |
| Professor Felipe Voloch | University of Canterbury |
| Associate Professor Steven Mills | University of Otago |
| Professor Richard Arnold | Victoria University of Wellington |
Physics, Chemistry and Biochemistry (PCB)
Research related to the physical world. This includes materials science, physics, chemistry, biophysics, chemical biology, and structural biochemistry.
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Professor David Hutchinson (Convenor) | University of Otago |
| Associate Professor Jane Allison | The University of Auckland |
| Professor Simone Ciampi | Curtin University |
| Professor Matthew Davis | The University of Queensland |
| Professor Catherine Bishop | University of Canterbury |
| Associate Professor Erin Leitao | The University of Auckland |
| Professor Renae Ryan | The University of Sydney |
| Associate Professor Jonathan Squire | University of Otago |
| Professor Shane Telfer | Massey University |
TBC = to be confirmed.
Potential Panellists
The Marsden Fund secretariat at the Royal Society Te Apārangi maintains a list of potential panellists. If individuals wish to signal their availability to serve on a Marsden Fund Panel for 2026, they should contact Dr Rachel Averill at the Royal Society Te Apārangi with their contact details, affiliation, a clear preference for which panel they would be suitable for, and ideally a link to their institutional web page.
Panellists are appointed by the Chief Executive of the Royal Society Te Apārangi based on the recommendation of the Marsden Fund panel convenor. Appointments are made on a year-by-year basis for each calendar year. Panellists must be experienced researchers in an appropriate field and may be drawn from outside New Zealand if necessary.
In considering the suitability of potential panellists, the following requirements for panel composition should be taken into account as appropriate:
- mix of discipline expertise;
- institutional balance;
- geographic representation; and
- diversity/gender balance.
Panellists may not apply as a named as Principal or Associate Investigators to the panel they are serving on in that year. The Royal Society Te Apārangi will call for nominations from interested parties. Individuals can nominate themselves or institutes can nominate staff to serve on panels. All nominations received will be passed on to the relevant Convenor for consideration.