In July 2018, about 40 BioHeritage early career researchers attended a workshop in Lincoln that aimed to foster collaboration among their wide-ranging projects.

The two-day workshop featured speed-talks by each researcher, along with presentations on how to incorporate mātauranga (Māori knowledge) into research and science communications. 

Attendees were either postgrad students and postdocs working on BioHeritage Challenge Projects, or early career researchers connected with aligned projects. 

Postdoctoral fellow and organiser Jennifer Pannell said it was a good opportunity for early career researchers to integrate across projects and strengthen collaborations. 

“We’re involved with projects spread across the country so it was great for us all to hear what the others were up to and think about how we may be able to work together in future. 

“We also explored ideas for improving science outreach, and discussed technical solutions for connecting researchers. We’ll report back on the barriers and opportunities for collaboration that we discussed.”