Organising Committee

Mik received a BSc (Hons) in statistics from the University of Canterbury, and a MSc (mathematical statistics) and PhD (statistics) from Purdue University. After completing his PhD in 2002, Mik returned to New Zealand to work as a lecturer in the Department of Statistics at the University of Auckland.  An ongoing involvement in a number of Dunedin-based collaborative genomics projects resulted in a move to the University of Otago in 2006.  Mik’s research focuses on the development and application of statistical methods for the analysis of data from genomics experiments, with a particular emphasis on human disease.  Mik has also been heavily involved in a number of major initiatives designed to put in place sustainable national research infrastructure: New Zealand Genomics Ltd (where he was the Bioinformatics Team Leader during 2012-2013) and now Genomics Aotearoa (where he is currently the Bioinformatics lead) for genomics, and NeSI (New Zealand eScience Infrastructure) for high performance computing and eResearch.

Based in Auckland, Jana Makar is a Communications Manager at REANNZ, where she works to highlight and support the critical role of national-scale eResearch infrastructure in enabling data-intensive research. She brings experience from Canada’s cyberinfrastructure sector, having worked with provincial Research and Education Networks and national High-Performance Computing (HPC) platforms. Jana is a founding member of the Women in HPC Australasia Chapter (WHPC AusNZ) and serves on the Executive Committee of the Science Communicators Association of New Zealand (SCANZ).

Georgina is the Head of Science Engagement at REANNZ where she ensures that REANNZ supports NZ’s researchers and research priorities through meaningful partnerships and user-driven approaches. Her team connects with the research sector, helping researchers and institutions build capability, adopt new research methods, and achieve impactful research outcomes. Before diving into the eResearch space, she worked in molecular biology and intellectual property.

Chloé is a Bioinformatics Training Coordinator with Genomics Aotearoa, where she supports researchers throughout NZ to grow their computational and bioinformatic skills through workshop-style training. She is passionate about driving genomic and bioinformatic capability in Aotearoa and has strong expertise in both, as well as many years of experience in teaching and supervision of early career researchers. She previously worked as a Postdoctoral researcher exploring the genetic and behavioural mechanisms driving protogynous sex change in the New Zealand Spotty wrasse at the University of Otago. Her research background broadly encompasses exploring evolutionary and functional genomics, with a focus on genomic drivers of fundamental and unusual physiological mechanisms in invertebrates, such as tephritid fruit flies and sea anemones. Chloé completed her PhD and undergraduate studies at the Queensland University of Technology (Brisbane, Australia) before moving home to Aotearoa in 2022