Dr Diane (Dee) Muller.

Ethnic and socioeconomic inequities in sleep health are already evident by the time children are three, according to the Sleep/Wake Research Centre.

Research officer Dr Diane (Dee) Muller graduated on November 29 with a PhD for a mixed-methods study analysing preschoolers’ sleep. She found significant differences in the quality and amount of sleep young children are getting – and ethnicity and socioeconomic deprivation are key determining factors.

“The reality is inequities in sleep health parallel what we see in broader aspects of child health and wellbeing,” Dr Muller says. “We have families in this country that are really disadvantaged and that shows through even in the sleep of children.”

Dr Muller’s findings show Māori children are twice as likely as non-Māori children to have short and inconsistent sleep durations and preschoolers living in the most deprived neighbourhoods were four times more likely to have short sleep during the week than children living in the least deprived areas.

She says there are multiple and complex reasons for these differences and it is not the result of “families doing a bad job”. The study found that differences in the material and financial resources of families, employment patterns, housing, social support, early childhood education services and child health services all had an impact.

“It’s really easy for blame to be laid at the feet of individual parents but, from my interviews with mothers, it was clear they were trying their absolute best to support their children to sleep well, but some families just have less resources and support and more stressors to deal with.

“I think this study is further evidence that we need action to address the unequal distribution of wealth and privilege that leads to unequal living conditions and opportunities for wellbeing.”

Dr Muller’s research sits within a broader programme of research conducted at the centre. Earlier studies compared the sleep health of Māori and non-Māori pregnant women, following up with the same women in the months after they gave birth. For her PhD thesis, Dr Muller analysed data collected from the same cohort when their children were three years old.

“My thesis is important because it fills in a missing piece of the puzzle,” she says. “We already had a large body of work looking at sleep inequities in adults, so it begged the question, ‘How early do we start to see these inequities?’

“Unfortuntely, the research shows they start very early in life, and that’s not fair. It potentially puts young children at a disadvantage for their learning, and these children are already disadvantaged.”

Dr Muller also hopes her research will highlight the importance of preschooler sleep health more generally.

“Early childhood is a significant time of growth and development so eating well, getting enough physical activity and enough good quality sleep are really important. I think the message is much stronger when it comes to nutrition and exercise, but less so with sleep.

“We need to highlight its importance and not take a one-size-fits-all approach. We must make sure families have the support and resources they need to be able to support their children’s sleep in a way that works for them.”

Professor Graham Squires.

Dr Arshad Javed.

The latest Massey University Home Affordability Report shows an overall decline in national affordability over the most recent quarter, largely driven by soaring house prices in most regions and an increasing interest rate.

The report, which covers the quarter from August 2021 to November 2021, shows median house prices across the country increased by 8.8 per cent in aggregate. This, combined with an increase in interest rate, has seen national home affordability decline by 24 per cent.

National house price-to-income ratios have declined this quarter, with house prices moving from 12.8 to 13.8 times the average annual wage.

Report authors, Dr Arshad Javed and Professor Graham Squires from the Massey University Real Estate Analysis Unit (REAU), say the results show home affordability in New Zealand continues to decline.

“In this quarter we have seen a decline in affordability. If we take an annual view, there’s a solid decline in affordability at a national level of 38.2 per cent, reflected in all 16 regions,” Professor Squires says.

“Within this aggregate result, there are some large regional changes, including 93.4 and 88.1 per cent decline in affordability for the Taranaki and Gisborne regions respectively over the past year, and more than 35 per cent decline in affordability for the remaining twelve regions,” he adds.

The greatest increase in median house prices, in percentage terms, has for the last quarter occurred in Gisborne (37 per cent or $185,000), Hawke’s Bay (18.6 per cent or $130,000), West Coast (16.7 per cent or $50,000) and Northland (14.6 per cent or $95,000). All sixteen regions showed an increase in house prices in this quarter, with the exception of Marlborough (-19.4 per cent or -$170,000).

Read the full December 2021 Home Affordability Report here.

Funded by the Earthquake Commission (EQC), the Massey-led research project will investigate how agencies have communicated risk during times of inactivity, unrest, eruption, and post-eruption in previous volcanic events in this country and globally, to create an effective approach for future events.

Lead researcher Associate Professor Julia Becker from the Joint Centre for Disaster Research says communication of volcanic risk varies over time, depending on the status of the volcano and the population at risk, and is challenging due to the unpredictability of an eruption.

“We want to learn from our previous responses and use our results to help improve New Zealand’s volcanic preparedness, resilience, emergency management and warnings. Communication about such aspects is essential to inform decision-making and keep New Zealanders safe.”

While Dr Becker’s research primarily focuses on volcanic risk communication, the research scope will also include aftershock communication approaches that were useful to agencies and the public during the Canterbury earthquake sequence.

“We want to see whether communication for earthquakes could be transferable to a volcano context. It’s clear that an integrated approach would help to understand the range of ways to effectively communicate volcanic risk and provide advice for decision-making.”

Dr Becker is one of 13 recipients of EQC’s 2022 Biennial Grants. She will be leading a research team from Massey and GNS Science, working alongside the Department of Conservation, local iwi and  agencies responsible for volcanic risk management in New Zealand, including Determining Volcanic Risk in Auckland (DEVORA).

EQC Research Manager Dr Natalie Balfour says communications about any natural hazard are crucial to keep the public safe and informed.

 “This research will ensure that important lessons from the past are not lost and will help us communicate volcanic risks more effectively in the future. New Zealand experiences a range of volcanic activity and eruption styles.

“The eruptions of Mt Ruapehu [1995/96], Te Maari Crater [2012], and events overseas such as in Tonga, all provide us opportunities to learn. Successful communication of volcanic risk will help the public and other decisionmakers to better plan and prepare. 

“We’re funding this project as it fits perfectly with EQC’s vision to create better understanding of the natural hazards we face and how we can better prepare for them.”

Professor Ajmol Ali.

A study being run out of Massey’s School of Sport, Exercise and Nutrition is looking to find out whether a blackcurrant juice and caffeine combination will benefit sports performance in male athletes.

The study is being led by Professor Ajmol Ali, with funding from The New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research and in partnership with 2Before Performance Nutrition Ltd, a New Zealand-based performance nutrition company.

The study sits within The Beverage Lab – a team of experienced food technologists, bicohemists and sport and exercise scientists providing academic facilitated solutions with a focus on health, wellness and performance.

Professor Ali says New Zealand blackcurrants contain the highest levels of anthocyanins in the world, and have been shown to reduce cell damange, reduce inflammation, and enhance blood flow. “Published science has already shown that exercise performance improves with blackcurrant supplementation in a variety of settings, including running/sprinting, intermittent exercise, and rock climbing.”

In terms of caffeine, it is one of the most widely-used psychoactive drugs in the world due to its accessibility, evidenced ergogenic effects and few negative side effects. Professor Ali adds that since its removal from the World Anti-Doping Agency’s banned list in 2004, the use of caffeine as an ergogenic aid has increased significantly, particularly in endurance athletes.

“Both blackcurrant and caffeine seem to afford greater benefits to athletes when they are in a fatigued state, therefore it would be reasonable to assume that adding caffeine to a blackcurrant juice will provide greater performance benefit considering the different mechanisms of action.”

The beverage will be provided to previously fatigued male athletes, and their performance and metabolic parameters examined through exercise tests that simulate a high-intensity team sport like football, rugby or hockey.

The research team is currently looking for male athletes based in Auckland aged between 18 and 45 years to participate in the study. Participation will include athletic tests such as the Loughborough Intermittent Shuttle Test as well as oxygen uptake testing and other general health tests. Participants must be available between now and June and able to attend early morning and early evening laboratory sessions on Massey’s Albany campus.

If you are interested in taking part, please contact Darrien Holten at: D.Holten@massey.ac.nz or via mobile on 021 0279 2338.

Dr Isaac Henderson.

A recently published study has found that users of unmanned aircraft, also known as drones, need to take a more holistic approach to identifying and mitigating potential risks before undertaking a flight.

The study, authored by School of Aviation lecturer Dr Isaac Henderson, examined the prevalence of key operational risk mitigations amongst 812 users of unmanned aircrafts (also known as drones) in New Zealand, their confidence in identifying and complying with airspace requirements, and their ability to read Visual Navigation Charts (VNCs) and use AirShare (a tool that shows airspace requirements).

The study found that the only risk mitigation that virually all users applied was conducting a pre-flight check of their aircraft. However, less than a quarter of users typically log their flights on AirShare, check the VNC for the area of operation (useful for seeing airspace requirements and potential dangers in the operating area), check Notices to Airmen that have been issued (these contain aeronautical information that is time-sensitive), or conduct a Job Safety Assessment of the operating area (where you consider potential ground-based and airborne risks in the area and how they will be managed operationally).

Just over a quarter used air band radio to help enhance awareness of what was happening in the airspace around them. While a majority of users did typically apply Model Flying New Zealand (MFNZ) site-specific requirements, these are only applicable when operating at MFNZ sites, which are identified on VNCs so that manned aircraft pilots are aware of the potential for aeromodellers to be flying in the area. Outside those sites, other risk mitigations also need to be applied to ensure that airspace requirements are adhered to and risks are adequately managed.

Dr Henderson says that users should view risk mitigation more holistically. “It was surprising to see such a low number of users applying risk mitigations where they check airspace requirements or actively consider airborne and ground-based risks. While many in the sample were MFNZ members who followed their own internal procedures for operating at their own sites, it is important that other risk mitigations are applied when operating outside of those sites.”

As for unmanned aircraft users who are not MFNZ members, Dr Henderson has a clear message: “Mitigating risk is not simply a case of checking the aircraft is airworthy. That’s a great start, but even an airworthy aircraft can cause damage, injury, or disruption if the pilot operates it without being aware of the airspace requirements or considering how to minimise risks to people and property.”

The study also showed that users were confident in their ability to identify and comply with airspace requirements. Participants who indicated they knew how to use AirShare or read a VNC were asked two follow-up questions to measure their accuracy at using these tools. For both AirShare and VNCs, roughly half the participants got both questions correct, meaning that the other half were not entirely accurate when using these tools. However, those who indicated higher levels of confidence at identifying and complying with airspace requirements were typically more accurate than those with lower confidence levels.

Because users were grouped according to particular characteristics, there are some clear ways forward for improving the number and variety of risk mitigations applied. Having attended a course on unmanned aircraft operations had the strongest effect and improved risk mitigation across all measures (number, variety, confidence, and accuracy).

A weaker effect was also found with operational competency assessments, a form of flight examination to ensure practical competency. Dr Henderson says it appears that the key way of increasing the number and variety of risk mitigations a user typically applies is through education, suggesting that educational requirements may be a suitable policy direction.

Professional and semi-professional operators, members of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles New Zealand (a professional and industry body), and those that operated for Part 102 organisations (organisations that have been certificated by the Civil Aviation Authority to undertake operations that would not be allowed under general operating rules for unmanned aircraft) also typically apply more risk mitigations.

Dr Henderson says he has an idea why this might be the case. “This is presumably because their livelihoods depend upon safe operations and because there is a greater reputational risk and potential for accountability for these operators than with other users.”

He says the study is the first of its kind in the world by examining risk mitigation for unmanned aircraft operations from a user perspective.

“There is little in the academic literature about how users are currently mitigating risks. While there are many papers that examine risk mitigation, they tend to take the view of what users should be doing rather than examining what they are doing. Without knowing what is happening now and understanding differences between users, it will be difficult to bridge that gap.”

Ultimately, Dr Henderson says that while the risk posed by unmanned aircraft is generally low, there is always potential for an incident or accident if users are not applying a variety of risk mitigations. He hopes that the study will spur future research and regulatory work on this issue.

Read the full article here.

Dr Ermanno Brosch.

Professor Gert Lube.

Pyroclastic surges are lethal hazards from volcanoes that exhibit enormous destructiveness through large dynamic pressures of 10⁰-10² kilopascal inside flows that are capable of obliterating reinforced buildings. These hot, fast and turbulent gas-and-ash clouds create far greater devastation to life and infrastructure than can currently be explained scientifically. But why are they so destructive? Until now, the hostile conditions inside pyroclastic surges have precluded measurements of their inner workings and therefore their hazards remain poorly mitigated globally.

A research article just published in Nature Communications, co-authored by a team of scientists from New Zealand, Italy, the United States and Switzerland, provides new insights into this important volcanic hazard process. The researchers show, through large-scale experiments and the first direct measurements inside the pyroclastic surges from the deadly December 2019 eruption of Whakaari (White Island, New Zealand), that it is turbulence that controls and amplifies the destructiveness of these flows.

Dr. Ermanno Brosch from the School of Agriculture and Environment explains, “It is well known that the damage-causing dynamic pressure of pyroclastic surges increases with both their speed and the relative amount of particles suspended inside them. Therefore, traditional hazard assessments rely on estimates of the bulk velocity and bulk density of pyroclastic surges that yield average dynamic pressure values, which can be compared, for instance, with the strength of buildings in the flow path.”

What is not known is how the velocity and density, and hence the destructive force, vary and evolve inside pyroclastic surges. That is why the researchers synthesised them in large-scale experiments using the Pyroclastic flow Eruptions Large-scale Experiment (PELE) simulator in New Zealand. Just like the collapse of a volcanic eruption plume, they heated natural volcanic ash and rock material, dropped it from a height of seven metres into an instrumented channel to generate a two to eight metre high pyroclastic surge that moved at speeds of more than 30 kilometres per hour before colliding with a cliff at runout length of 35 metres.  

Professor Gert Lube from the School of Agriculture and Environment says much to their initial surprise, the measurements of dynamic pressure inside their synthetic pyroclastic surges were by no means chaotic.  “Instead, they occurred as two markedly regular sets of pressure oscillations, each showing recurrent peaks almost exactly every 570 and 800 milliseconds. These flow oscillations formed right after impact of the hot mixture on the ground and persisted and raced at high speed through the advancing surge. Importantly, the regular peaks in damage-causing dynamic pressure exceed mean values, which are traditionally estimated for hazard assessments, manifold leading to significant underestimation of the actual hazard impacts. Furthermore, the effect of repeated large pressure pulses on resulting damage is somewhat similar to strong damaging aftershocks in an earthquake sequence leading to successive weakening of building structures. What is also concerning is that the pressure oscillations closely coincided with similarly oscillating variations in the concentration of ash and temperature known to cause immense suffocation and burn hazards. The synchronous peaking of the flow characteristics that cause damage, suffocation and burning hazards is likely to exacerbate the impacts of pyroclastic surges.”

Concurrent with these experimental findings, pyroclastic surges generated during the Whakaari eruption killed 22 visitors to the island and severely injured another 25, marking it as the deadliest eruption in Aotearoa New Zealand since the 1886 eruption of Mount Tarawera.

“Working on the eruption data, we realised that pyroclastic surges, during their runout, had engulfed an array of pressure sensors that usually monitors explosion signals from within the volcano and its vent system. The characteristics of the pressure signals inside the Whakaari surges were the same as in our experimental flows, just that instead of 75 pressure pulses per minute in our experiments, the natural surges showed 12 such pulses per minute,” Dr Brosch says.

The researchers showed that the hazardous pulsing inside pyroclastic surges occurs because the flow energy focusses into and is transported within the largest turbulent eddy structures. They developed a new flow model that allows prediction of these pulses in future volcanic events. This discovery, which is also applicable to snow avalanches, necessitates a re-evaluation of volcanic hazard models that aim to forecast and mitigate volcanic impacts here in New Zealand and elsewhere.

This research was partially supported by a Royal Society Marsden Fund grant), a Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment Endeavour Research program, and a Resilience to Nature’s Challenges Science Challenge Fund.

The article, Destructiveness of pyroclastic surges controlled by turbulent fluctuations, was recently published with open access in Nature Communications.

Authors includes Dr Eric C.P. Breard and Professor Joseph Dufek of the University of Oregon, USA; Dr Tomaso Esposti-Ongaro and Dr Matteo Cerminara of the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Pisa, Italy; Dr Betty Sovilla of WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF, Davos, Switzerland, and Dr Luke Fullard of the School of Fundamental Sciences, Massey University.

A project looking at ecological restoration approaches in the domain of Tangaroa, and one that seeks to enrich Māori and Pasifika science through Waka Ama, have both been awarded funding through the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s (MBIE) Unlocking Curious Minds contestable fund.

The fund supports projects that aim to engage more New Zealanders in science, echnology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Thirteen projects have been awarded funding for the 2022 round, totaling $1.592 million in grants which start on 1 February 2022.

“He waka eke noa!”: Enriching Māori and Pasifika science through Waka Ama – Dr Andrew Foskett, Dr Kathryn Beck, Dr Paul Macdermid, and Dr Bevan Erueti, Taranaki, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Te Atihaunui-a-Pāpārangi.

This project will engage students in their communities through real world application of science to their performance during Waka Ama. In addition to fostering the curiosity and enhancing the scientific literacy of the students the project will, in line with the aims of Vision Mātauranga, take science and technology innovations into local (largely Māori) communities whilst fostering engagement in hauora and kaitiakitanga. A (floating) platform is proposed to engage students, communities and (future) scientists through participatory science.

The target audience are 200 year nine and 10 Waka Ama paddlers from invited low decile schools in regions with large Māori and Pacific communities. Data from various New Zealand sources identify a decline in science performance in Year nine and ten students which translates into a drop-off of older students enrolling into science-related subjects. The sources report that students from richer communities perform better than those from poorer communities, and that the achievement gap for Māori and Pacific students narrows when socio-economic factors are taken into account. The data show that access to learning resources impacts on science achievement. As such, the proposed target audience are those who would most benefit from the provision of a resource-rich participatory science experience in their own communities in an activity that can build on their cultural confidence and identity. All of the above fit squarely within the strategies outlined in Vision Mātauranga, Curious Minds and National Statement for Science Investment documents.

Te Kunenga Ki Pūrehuroa’s (Massey University) vison is to foster lifelong learners and so a key performance indicator would be an elevated interest in and understanding of the applications of science in a meaningful context. The students will access their own performance metrics and participant groups will be provided with anonymised metrics that they can utilise for stair-cased learning within their school.

This project has received funding of $136,837.

Kotahi taku huata ki runga Hauruia, te mano, te mano, te mano  - David Aguirre.

This project will develop active ecological restoration approaches in the domain of Tangaroa, building an advanced understanding of restoration ecology and aquaculture through an undeniably Te Whānau-a-Apanui lens. The whakataukī that guides the approach, “Kotahi taku huata ki runga Hauruia, te mano, te mano, te mano - For every kumara I plant in my garden at Hauruia there follows a progeny of thousands,” reminds Te whānau-a-Apanui descendants of the mana and prosperity that comes from mahinga kai and taking care of te taiao.

Passive ecosystem restoration approaches (e.g. Marine Protected Areas) exclude people from the restoration process. Conversely, active ecosystem restoration approaches place the responsibility for nurturing our environment on the community. New Zealand has a long, distinguished legacy of active ecosystem restoration on land, with many national and grass-roots initiatives to remove pests and reforest disturbed areas. Why have we not applied this thinking in our moana?

This project will build on existing mātauranga and significant investment in leading research to deliver the first applied example of an active, participatory, whole-ecosystem approach to marine ecosystem restoration. Accordingly, the teachers and rangitahi involved in the project won’t simply experience science, they will be at the forefront of scientific discovery, generating and defining mātauranga that will be used in Aotearoa and the rest of the world.

The project is founded on a genuine partnership between mana whenua/mana moana and researchers, it increases science relevance for teachers, students and whānau as well as advancing scientific understanding, develops new ways of learning and empowers the community to shape the narrative underlying the development of new mātauranga.

This project has received funding of $90,662.

More information on Unlocking Curious Minds is available here.

Massey University’s latest Rental Report shows a national deterioration in rental affordability both quarterly (1.76 per cent Index Deterioration March 2021 – June 2021) and annually (9.4 per cent Rental Charge Deterioration June 2020 - June 2021).

The report also shows a decline in rental affordability in seven of the 16 regions from last quarter, with Southland and the West Coast of the South Island bucking the trend.

Regionally, between March 2021 and June 2021, seven regions are deemed less affordable than the national average which is set at 100 per cent.

• Bay of Plenty ­– 113.3 per cent
• Tasman – 113.1 per cent
• Hawke’s Bay – 110.5 per cent
• Northland – 106.3 per cent
• Auckland – 103.3 per cent
• Nelson – 102.2 per cent
• Gisborne – 100.9 per cent

The largest annual rent increases were recorded in five regions:

• Hawke’s Bay – 20.4 per cent
• Bay of Plenty – 16.4 per cent
• Manawatū-Whanganui – 14.2 per cent
• Northland – 12.8 per cent
• Gisborne – 11 per cent

Wellington and Auckland showed a moderate increase of 7.8 per cent and 3.4 per cent respectively for the year.

Report authors, Dr Arshad Javed and Professor Graham Squires from the Massey University Real Estate Analysis Unit, say there are a number of varied factors impacting rental prices across New Zealand.

“These include rising house prices that feed through the housing system towards renters, a shortage of properties, and rising costs for landlords given recent policy changes,” Professor Squires says.

The remaining nine regions are all relatively more rent affordable than the national average, but two regions continue to stand out as being the most affordable for renters – Southland (73.5 per cent) and West Coast (65.7 per cent).

“West Coast and Southland continue to have affordability below the national average, reflecting more favourable rental conditions in these regions relative to incomes,” Dr Javed says.

“Despite the West Coast being one of the most affordable places for renters, the region has had the largest quarterly increase in rent prices – up 12 per cent to an average rent of $281 per week. This still pales in comparison of course to Auckland and Wellington - the most expensive cities to rent accommodation, at an average of $554 and $510 per week respectively,” Dr Javed adds.

National and regional affordability are calculated by dividing the respective average weekly wages into the respective geometric mean rents.

Read the full September 2021 Rental Report here.

Professor Jonathan Elms.

Robyn Pickerill.

The annual turnover of business format franchises in New Zealand has grown by $9.2 billion in the past four years, according to the latest Franchising New Zealand 2021 report.

The survey, the tenth of its kind, was conducted between 30 September and 29 October by the Massey Business School, and sponsored by the Franchise Association of New Zealand. Report author Professor Jonathan Elms says the $9.2 billion increase in business format franchise turnover, which excludes sales from motor vehicle and fuel retail, despite difficult trading/operating conditions and lower projected total units reflects the intrinsic resilience of the franchising business model.

“The New Zealand franchise system is a significant contributor to the economy, and involves multiple businesses and industry sectors. Despite a very constrained operationing environment, the franchise system continues to deliver through being adaptable and flexible. There are some world-class operators leading the way in New Zealand.”

The survey found there to be 590 business format franchisors in New Zealand, with 71 per cent of these brands being homegrown. The sales turnover of the business format franchise sector is estimated at $36.8 billion, up from $27.6 billion in 2017.

The survey data was gathered during a period of continued border closures and business restrictions that limited trading opportunities and generated operating and economic uncertainty.

Franchise Association Chief Executive Robyn Pickerill says when asked about the impacts of COVID-19 on business, the top three responses returned were the significant disruptions to trading, greater levels of stress and mental health concerns, and adjusted hours of operation. The key challenges going ahead are labour shortages with a lack of suitable skilled staff in many areas, supply chain issues and the uncertainty of periodic business interruptions.

However, Mrs Pickerill says that despite these impacts, franchise operators continue to show resilience and adaptability to succeed, recognising a number of opportunities that the pandemic had brought to light. “Diversification, having an increased online presence and targeting local disposable income were all identified as areas of opportunity that the pandemic have highlighted to business owners.”

Professor Elms says franchise employment has also risen, at a rate of around 8000 a year since 2017. “Franchise businesses are employing more staff than in 2017, which again speaks to the resiliency of the business model. At present it’s estimated there are 156,820 people employed in a franchise operation in New Zealand.”

The support franchise owners receive as part of the business model is another feature that Professor Elms believes is integral to its success.“The support offered by franchisors and fellow franchises is unique to the sector. This is evidenced through sharing best practices, investment in training and development, and community engagement. All are necessary to help franchises weather the COVID-19 storm.”

Further key findings include:

• New employees within franchisee units receive 40 hours of training within their first year, while established employees receive 20 hours of training per year. 
• 97 per cent of franchisors provide training to reinforce employment best practice and compliance.
• 65 per cent of franchise brands actively implement environmental sustainability and ethical measures within their operations.
• There are 32,000 business format franchise units operating in New Zealand.
• Auckland is the most popular location for franchise support offices.

The main purpose of the franchise survey is to obtain current information about the structure, practices and performance of the franchise sector in New Zealand, including recent trends and challenges. Conducting the survey regularly will help the sector to build an analytical time series and set benchmarks for future performance. Survey sponsors include Westpac, Nexia New Zealand, Franchize Consultants, The Franchise Coach, Stewart Germann Law, Iridium Partners and Franchise New Zealand Media.

Successful applications for this year’s grants were those that aligned with EQC’s research priorities, but also weaved in either a mātauranga Māori, climate change or social science lens over their research.

The programme saw a record number of applicants this year, with around 120 researchers applying for the grant. Thirteen research projects were successful, including those of Associate Professor Julia Becker, Dr Marion Tan and Dr Lauren Vinnell from the Joint Centre for Disaster Research (JCDR).

We asked them to share some information about why their research is important and how it will be carried out.

Associate Professor Julia Becker - Long-term communication of volcanic risk for effective decision-making

Communication of volcanic risk varies over time, depending on the status of the volcano and the population at risk. It is made challenging by factors such as uncertainty about the likelihood and timing of an eruption, and the potential impacts which may vary across space and time. Communication about such aspects are essential to inform decision-making.

Dr Becker’s research will investigate methods of risk communication from previous Tongariro National Park events to draw out effective aspects of risk communication over timeframes of quiescence, unrest, eruption, and post-eruption.

“We will also draw on communication lessons from recent earthquakes to identify if these are transferable to a volcano context. Results will help science, monitoring and response agencies frame and provide advice for decision-making. We will be working on this research with a team at GNS Science, alongside agencies and groups responsible for volcanic risk management in Tongariro National Park,” Dr Becker says.

The project team also includes Dr Emma Hudson-Doyle from JCDR and Dr Danielle Charlton, Dr Sally Potter and Dr Graham Leonard from GNS Science.

Dr Becker is a Senior Lecturer and Doctoral Supervisor at JCDR. She undertakes social science research on a range of natural hazards and environmental issues. Her areas of expertise include perceptions, preparedness, community resilience, emergency management and warnings. She has worked extensively in New Zealand and internationally.

Associate Professor Julia Becker.

Dr Marion Tan - Improving school-based hazards education outreach programmes: towards enhancing alignment with schools and communities

There are many outreach programmes for schools teaching pupils about hazards and preparedness, Dr Tan says.

“These initiatives come and go, their outputs may be well received in the short-term, and their impacts may create a lasting impression on schools and communities. But with a limited outlook towards sustainability and continuity, resources can be wasted in initiating, reinitiating, and duplicating similar school outreach programmes.”

Through this project, Dr Tan and her team will design sustainable outreach programmes that will have a continuous and long-term resilience outlook for the schools and their surrounding communities.

“We will work with schools and kura in the Bay of Plenty. We will use a participatory design methodology where we will design the outreach programmes with the schools,” she says.

The project team also involves Professor David Johnston and Kelvin Tapuke from JCDR, Professor Anna Brown and Andrew Tobin from Toi Āria: Design for Public Good, and Brandy Alger from QuakeCoRE.

Dr Tan is a post-doctoral fellow at JCDR. She completed her PhD in Emergency Management at Massey in 2020, where she conducted her doctoral research on the usability of disaster apps. She has expertise in the use of technology for disaster management with current research interests in user engagement, citizen science, and outreach and education.

Dr Lauren Vinnell - Changing societal expectations and risk appetite: exploring influences on building earthquake resilience in lower seismic hazard zones

While some areas are at higher seismic risk than others, all of Aotearoa New Zealand can and does experience earthquakes.

“Previous research tells us that people tend to perceive lower risk as low risk; in this case, people might think about their risk in comparison to other parts of the motu which can lead to a false sense of safety and therefore low levels of preparedness,” Dr Vinnell says.

In this research, a collaboration with the University of Auckland and the University of Otago, Dr Vinnell’s team will use surveys and focus groups to understand how people in Tāmaki Makaurau and Te Tai Tokerau think about and act on earthquake risk.

“We can then use this understanding to inform how we encourage communities in these and similar areas to prepare for hazards such as earthquakes.”

The project team also includes Professor David Johnston, Associate Professor Julia Becker, Dr Emma Hudson-Doyle, and Kelvin Tapuke from JCDR, Professor Jan Lindsay from University of Auckland and Associate Professor Caroline Orchiston from University of Otago.

Dr Vinnell is a post-doctoral fellow at JCDR. She completed her PhD degree in Social Psychology, and is interested in understanding peoples' judgments and behaviour around preparation for and response to natural hazards. She has experience in experimental survey design and quantitative analysis. Dr Vinnell is currently examining predictors of household preparedness, response to multi-hazard risk communication, impacts of earthquake drill participation, and human behaviour during earthquake shaking.

The latest Massey University Home Affordability Report shows an overall decline in national affordability over the most recent quarter, largely driven by soaring house prices in most regions and an increasing interest rate.

The report, which covers the quarter from May 2021 to August 2021, shows median house prices across the country increased by 3.7 per cent in aggregate. This, combined with an increase in interest rate, has seen national home affordability decline by 2.7 per cent.

National house price-to-income ratios have slightly improved this quarter, with house prices moving from 12.4 to 12 times the average annual wage.

Report authors, Dr Arshad Javed and Professor Graham Squires from the Massey University Real Estate Analysis Unit (REAU), say the results show home affordability in New Zealand continues to fluctuate from quarter to quarter.

“Again in this quarter we have seen a decline in affordability. If we take an annual view, there’s a solid decline in affordability at a national level of 14.3 per cent, reflected in all 16 regions,” Professor Squires says.

“Within this aggregate result, there are some large regional changes, including a 57.9 per cent decline in affordability for the Manawatū/Whanganui region over the past year, and more than 30 per cent decline in affordability for the Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay and Tasman regions.”

The greatest increase in median house prices, in percentage terms, has for the last quarter occurred in Marlborough (34.6 per cent or $225,000), Waikato (6.8 per cent or $50,000) and Auckland (4.5 per cent or $52,000). Nine of the 16 regions showed an increase in house prices in this quarter except reduction in Gisborne (-19.4 per cent or -$120,000), Tasman (-5.9 per cent or -$50,000) and Northland (-5.1 per cent or -$35,000).

Read the full report here.

Dr Trisia Farrelly

Despite not being producers of plastics, and contributing as little as 1.3 per cent to global plastics pollution, the Pacific region is on the frontline of the plastic crisis and is disproportionately impacted by plastics pollution.

In a bid to support Pacific Island policy makers in their efforts to develop strategies to address this issue, a range of factsheets have been produced, focused on preventing plastics pollution in the Pacific. The five factsheets were launched on the first day of the Third Clean Pacific Roundtable.

Hosted by Massey University’s Political Ecology Research Centre, The University of Newcastle, Australia, the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Plastics Pollution Prevention in the Pacific Region side event brought together experts from government, academia, private sector, and civil society to promote awareness and enhance understandings of the impacts of plastic pollution, and discuss strategies needed to address them.

The factsheets cover five key areas – A Safe(r) Circular Economy for Plastics in the Pacific; Plastics Pollution Policy Gaps in the Pacific Region; Plastics, Marine Litter, and Climate Change in the Pacific Region; Plastics Impacts on Human Health in the Pacific Region; and The Business of Plastics: Impacts of Plastics Pollution on Human Rights in the Pacific Region.

Session moderator and editor of Pacific Environment Weekly, Lagipoiva Cherelle Jackson, says although they may sound simplistic, factsheets are actually one of the key tools used to communicate about plastic pollution in the Pacific. “Most of our schools, organisations, and ministries still depend on paper to communicate, so these factsheets are key to communicating changes on the ground.”

Principal Solid Waste Advisor for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in Samoa, Ali’imuamua Setoa Apo, congratulated the collaborators involved in the development of the factsheets. “These will be very useful for the Pacific as awareness and educational materials,” he says.

Funded by UNEP, the factsheets were developed by Dr Trisia Farrelly of Massey University, and Dr Sascha Fuller of The University of Newcastle, Australia, in partnership with CIEL, designer Nadya Va’a, and Pacific Island countries.

Dr Farrelly noted the factsheets were developed from the results of the 2020 EIA Pacific Islands Plastic Pollution Prevention Policy Gap Analysis. The study showed that national plastics pollution prevention plans and policy frameworks are urgently needed to prevent problematic plastics from entering the region. “The study also highlighted that a legally binding plastic pollution treaty would significantly increase the success of those plans and policy frameworks,” Dr Farrelly says.

Patricia Pedrus, from the Federated States of Micronesia Department of Environment, Climate Change, and Emergency Management, discussed the increasing dependency of Pacific Island nations on imported food and beverages, which is contributing significantly to the plastics problem. She agreed that a strengthened policy framework is needed.

This would also protect Pacific communities from the human health and climate impacts of plastics pollution, which do, as Ms Imogen Ingram of the Island Sustainability Alliance Cook Islands, pointed out, occur all along the plastics life cycle. 

Dr Marcos Orellana, UN Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights, made clear that the plastics crisis is not just about waste, as the whole life cycle of plastics has serious impacts on people and their rights. “A human rights-based approach is critical to an effective and legitimate global instrument. Human rights principles can and should inform the transition towards a chemically safe circular economy. A rights-based approach to the plastics crisis can ensure that solutions actually work and do not come at the expense of those most vulnerable in society.”

Speaking on behalf of UNEP, Mr Sefanaia Nawadra, Head of UNEP’s Pacific office, says: “UNEP has always supported and been the convenor for the work on waste and marine plastic pollution, and we will continue to serve this role.”

Mr Nawadra remarked that while factsheets are an excellent first step in the collection of science and knowledge, there is still work that needs to be done to translate the information contained in these factsheets into policy briefs to help countries when they go into negotiations for various fora.

The factsheets are freely available for download and can be accessed here.

Associate Professor Claire Matthews.

The average retired household continues to spend in excess of New Zealand Superannuation, highlighting the importance of preparing for retirement.

The latest Retirement Expenditure Guidelines produced by Massey’s NZ Fin-Ed Centre suggest most Kiwis will need to make provision for supplementary retirement income, in addition to what New Zealand Superannuation can provide.

The guidelines, which are produced annually, calculate what retirees currently spend to maintain either a ‘no frills’ retirement, or a more fulfilling ‘choices’ lifestyle that includes some luxuries. Costs are calculated for one and two-person households in both metropolitan (Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch) and provincial areas.

Financial support to produce the guidelines was provided by Financial Advice New Zealand and financial adviser firm Consilium.

The guidelines calculate a two-person household living in the city would need to have saved $809,000 to fund a ‘choices’ lifestyle, while a couple living in the provinces would need to have saved $511,000. The lump sums required for a ‘choices lifestyle’ for a one-person household are $600,000 and $688,000 for metropolitan and provincial areas respectively.

New Zealand Superannuation increased by 3.09 per cent in April 2021 but fell short of covering all of the expenses for most retirees.

Only two-person provincial households living a ‘no frills’ lifestyle come close to being funded by New Zealand Superannuation, however these households would still require savings of $75,000. A metropolitan two-person household with a ‘no frills’ lifestyle would require savings of $195,000 at retirement to supplement their superannuation.

The key inflationary drivers for superannuants for the twelve months ending 30 June 2021 were transport, housing and household utilities.

Report author, Associate Professor Claire Matthews from the Massey Business School, says people need to proactively prepare for retirement, and there are several matters to consider.

“Retirement represents a substantial life change for most. The financial aspect of retirement is one of the most important factors to consider, but there are other aspects to think about, many of which will directly or indirectly impact your financial planning. To avoid sleepwalking into retirement, people need to be proactive about their preparation. Factors to consider include budgeting, life insurance, health needs, living arrangements, wills, enduring powers of attorney, family trusts and retirement activities."

Dr Matthews says it’s never too early to start planning for retirement.

“For the baby boomers that have not yet retired, there is some urgency to this preparation as at most they now have eight years before reaching the age of 65, the age of eligibility for New Zealand Superannuation and widely seen as the retirement age. Retirement now looms on the horizon for Generation X, with the first of these reaching 65 in less than 10 years. While Millennials have at least 25 years before reaching retirement age, it is never too early to start thinking about retirement.

“Retirement preparation could easily become overwhelming because of the number of things that need to be considered, but there are many sources of information and assistance, including financial advisers and the Sorted website,” Dr Matthews adds.

Financial Advice Chief Executive Katrina Shanks welcomed the report, saying it was a further timely reminder about the need for people to plan for their retirement.

“We need to drill home to people that they must start thinking seriously about saving for their retirement from an early age or they will struggle to live the lifestyle they want to once they stop work, and these guidelines clearly show what people need to aim for.”

Scott Alman, Managing Director Consilium and co-sponsor of the New Zealand Retirement Expenditure Guidelines says, “We are really pleased to co-sponsor this report which helps the financial literacy of New Zealanders. It provides evidence to pre-retirees about their retirement income needs. It helps them be better informed about what sort of lump sum they will need to accumulate to fill the retirement savings gap between their NZ Super and private savings.”

About the Retirement Expenditure Guidelines

NZ Fin-Ed Centre, or New Zealand Financial Education and Research Centre was set up in 2011 with an aim to improve the financial wellbeing of New Zealanders. The report’s findings are based on figures from Statistics New Zealand’s triennial Household Economic Survey, adjusted for the effect of inflation. It is important to note the guidelines do not represent recommended levels of expenditure, but reflect actual levels of expenditure by retired households.

Read the full report here.

Hypotonic drinks ingested during exercise hydrate better than isotonic, hypertonic, and water-based sports drinks, according to new research led by a team from Massey University.

Sports drinks, those typically containing carbohydrates and electrolytes, are commonly used during exercise for hydration purposes. The drinks can be formulated to be more concentrated, similar, or less concentrated (hypertonic, isotonic, hypotonic) than body fluids.

Lead author Professor David Rowlands undertook the research with Hani Kopetschny and Dr Claire Badenhorst from Massey’s School of Sport, Exercise and Nutrition. The research was recently published in Springer Sports Medicine journal.

Professor Rowlands says there was some confusion and misinformation about which type of sports drink is the most effective at hydrating during prolonged periods of exercise.

“We extracted and analysed data from 28 studies that consisted of healthy individuals and athletes drinking these drink types, as well as water, while cycling or running for prolonged periods of up to three hours, to see what effect the drinks had on central hydration. We assessed this by the simple change in blood plasma volume compared to rest.”

The findings showed one key result: hypotonic drinks, which typically contain a lower amount of sugar and salt, hydrated better than isotonic and hypertonic sports drinks.

Professor Rowlands says looking at the quantity and type of carbohydrate mix in all of the drinks was a large contributing factor.

“Hypotonic drinks typically contain about half to two thirds of the sugar found in isotonic and hypertonic drinks. When sugar [sucrose] is broken down in the intestines into two smaller sugars [fructose and glucose], the result is the concentration of sugars about doubles. This then draws more water out of the body and into the intestines, effectively the reverse of what an athlete wants when trying to hydrate.”

Although, he adds, drinks with more carbohydrates do provide more energy, which is useful for long-duration exercise performance.

“Interestingly, we found that most of the commercial isotonic sports drinks contained a high amount of ordinary sugar. So, in the gut the isotonic drink’s sugar concentration was doubled because sugar is disaccharide comprising glucose and fructose, and the effect on hydration was similar or worse than a hypertonic drink,” Professor Rowlands says.

The team studied the change in plasma volume during exercise, the liquid portion of the blood, and how this was affected by the different drinks. Plasma makes up around 55 per cent of our blood volume, which is important to maintain during exercise to keep up the capacity for oxygen and nutrient delivery to the working muscles, and distributing heat from the muscles to the skin for loss.

“If the plasma volume starts to drop, our cardiovascular system will have to work harder to maintain blood pressure and blood flow to the muscle and the skin. During exercise, plasma and blood volume starts to decline as people become more dehydrated, so our measurements looked at which of the four drinks was most effective in slowing down the decline in plasma, and hypotonics came out best.”

Professor Rowlands says another surprising finding was evidence for a small but worthwhile benefit to hydration with hypotonic drinks compared to water. The research suggests that this may be due, in part, to the sodium in the drinks that helps to retain water in the body and limit losses through urine.

“If there hasn’t been a substantial amount of dehydration and athletes are drinking water it will dilute sodium and increase urine production. This may also occur if too much hypotonic drink is ingested.

“On the other hand, when there has been a substantial amount of dehydration, usually around three to four per cent bodyweight lost or more, then the athlete is more likely to experience declines in performance. In these cases, drinking water or hypotonic sports drinks are likely to be more beneficial because the sodium concentration in the blood has gone up and so drinking more water will dilute the concentration back down towards normal whilst also recovering plasma volume and cardiovascular function.”

Professor Rowlands says a second suggestion that would explain the improvement in hydration with hypotonic drinks compared to water is the effect of the carbohydrate component in the hypotonic drinks. “When these carbohydrates get absorbed in the middle of the small intestine, it helps to draw in water into the body.”

The researchers also noted the benefit of hypotonic beverages for hydration was further improved as exercise intensity increased.

The team are now wanting to focus future research on how effective hypotonic beverages are on exercise performance.

Dr Nikki Renall.

Dr Nikki Renall, Taranaki, has been awarded nearly $350,000 to partner with Māori communities to explore new ways to inspire Māori rangatahi (youth) and pakeke (adults) about healthier and more sustainable ways of eating that can reconnect them back to whenua (land) and Te Ao Māori (traditional Māori world).

The Māori Health Research Postdoctoral Fellowship grant is from the latest Health Research Council of New Zealand funding round, announced today.

The collaborative research project, entitled Mātauranga Kai, aims to gather pūrākau (stories) about kai from knowledge holders who grew up in provincial towns in Te Tai Tokerau, Taranaki, Tairawhiti and Te Tauihu rohe (regions).

Dr Renall, a Registered Dietitian who graduated with her PhD earlier this year, says the project will record important narratives on kai of kaumatua (elders) and traditional knowledge holders, which will be a taonga (treasure) for younger generations.

“The narratives can be used to develop innovative and inspiring resources for nutrition-related health promotion for Māori and provide culturally relevant guidance for health professionals and dietitians to promote better health outcomes for Māori.

“This research project also has the potential to advance knowledge in the field of nutrition by drawing on other world views of wellbeing and the connection between food, health, and our environment.”

The project will provide essential evaluation evidence of the impact of the Wakatū whānau-led pilot project, that could highlight new approaches for relevant agencies to support and empower whānau and Māori communities to achieve improved oranga in contemporary times, which could contribute to healthier and more resilient communities.

Supported by a Māori research advisory group, the Kaupapa Māori research has five phases:

• Establish relationships with Māori communities;

• Document the mātauranga contained in historical archival materials and academic writings relating to traditional foods and oranga (a holistic concept of wellbeing encompassing physical, spiritual, mental, environmental, and social wellbeing);

• Conduct interviews with whānau, hapū, and Iwi members about their knowledge and experiences of mātauranga relating to kai;

• Evaluate the wellbeing impact of a Wakatū whānau-led pilot project utilising mātauranga and tikanga (customary)-led practices to grow traditional kai on their whenua and;

• Develop a nutrition-related health promotion framework to support oranga for Māori in contemporary times based on traditional mātauranga and values around kai.

“I aim to become a more well-rounded nutrition researcher to lead more impactful nutrition-research that addresses the health inequities of today leading to health equity in the future,” Dr Renall says. 

“This experience will enable me to develop my capacity as a Māori researcher in a culturally appropriate and safe way. The specialist expertise that the collective research team brings to this project will ensure that I am supported to conduct this research safely with Māori for Māori and honour the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi whilst ensuring the protection of mātauranga Māori.

“The Hohua Tutengaehe Postdoctoral Fellowship has given me the opportunity to work with and learn from a diverse group of strong wāhine Māori who I admire, and who contribute to the development of Māori health research that is consistent with tikanga Māori,” she adds.

Dr Renall will lead the research which will be hosted at Massey’s Research Centre of Hauora and Health, with the support of:

• Associate Professor Lisa Te Morenga, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, Te Uri o Hua, Ngāpuhi, Te Rarawa, Principal Investigator at the Riddet Institute and a Rutherford Discovery Fellow;

• Dr Marg Wilkie, Ngāti Porou, Ngāpuhi, a Kairangahau Kaupapa Māori (Senior Researcher) from Massey University’s Research Centre of Hauora and Health and;

• Dr Tracy Perry, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Uepohatu, Waikato, Ngāti Wairere, a New Zealand Registered Dietitian from the University of Otago.

Ms Miriana Stephens, Ngāti Rarua, Ngāiterangi, Ngāti Ranginui, General Manager for AuOra/Wakatū Incorporation and Dr Meika Foster, Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Mutunga, a New Zealand Registered Dietitian and director of Edible Research Ltd are part of the Māori research advisory group guiding this project, notably supporting this research with their expertise around cultural and intellectual property rights, and the protection of mātauranga Māori.