Today we mark our 25th anniversary – and what a 25 years it has been. New Zealand has every reason to be proud of its health research, and its health researchers. All the evidence indicates that we punch above our weight and - that means a positive story to tell our communities. We will do our best to continue supporting the very best research, and the very best researchers, over the next 25 years.
To mark our anniversary, we will be putting on a series of events that both celebrate and inform - that tell the HRC’s story of impact over the next 12 months. There will be a focus on what our funding has helped be achieved in specific projects and programmes, but perhaps even more importantly, the value add of the body of work funded and the capacity we have helped to build in the health research workforce. We already have a couple of events scheduled and will keep you in touch with where and when there might be something on that will interest you.
When I think about our work as health researchers, or as facilitators of that research, I think we have one of the very best jobs in the world. We get to advance our own knowledge and, if we do it well, use that knowledge to improve health and wellbeing for people both here in NZ and internationally. It's not easy, it’s certainly not quick - but it is a fantastic job and opportunity to contribute. HRC is proud to support the work, and the people, doing this work.
Recently I was at the Queenstown Conference and as one of the more ‘mature’ people there, I was struck by the excellence of the young scientists presenting their work. One of the most exciting bits of my current role is anticipating (and readying the ground for) what those younger researchers are going to do over the next few years. My prediction is that within 10 years – the very best ideas, the very best research projects, the very best contributions, will be made by our up and coming researchers. Along with continuing to support the fantastic senior researchers of renown that have built New Zealand’s research capability and capacity, the HRC cares deeply about supporting the ‘as yet unidentified leaders of the future’. I can’t wait to see the impact that they produce over the next 25 years.
So – in celebrating our first 25 years – the HRC has done a whole lot more than simply fund research. The HRC has played a key role in creating the collective knowledge network New Zealand needs to be healthy and strong. I am immensely proud of what the HRC has achieved, and of what it has helped health scientists across the country achieve. And we are committed to producing the knowledge, and the workforce, that New Zealand needs right now, and in the future.
Professor Kathryn McPherson
Chief Executive
Health Research Council of New Zealand