Victoria University announces latest Honorary Doctorates

Victoria University announces latest Honorary Doctorates

Victoria University of Wellington will confer honorary degrees on one of New Zealand's finest musicians, a world-leading physicist, and a champion of our kiwifruit industry.

Michael Houstoun is an acclaimed musician, with an unmatched record in international competition by a New Zealand pianist. After winning every significant prize for pianists in New Zealand by the age of 18, he went on to place at three of the world's most distinguished piano competitions: Van Cliburn (1973), Leeds Piano (1975), and the Tchaikovsky Competition (1982).

In 1981 Houstoun made the decision to return to New Zealand and devote his life to music here. He has performed regularly with every professional ensemble in New Zealand, and frequently appears with smaller ensembles around the country.

His repertoire includes many world premieres of New Zealand composers alongside the traditional piano repertoire. Composers who have written for him include Jack Body, John Psathas, Christopher Blake, Kenneth Young and Gareth Farr.

In 2008 his solo CD of New Zealand music Inland was named the Best Classical Album at the New Zealand Music Awards and he was awarded a Lilburn Trust Award for his services to New Zealand music.

Professor Pat Walsh says Michael Houstoun's services to New Zealand music have enriched our musical culture, and provide a source of inspiration for the New Zealand School of Music, a joint venture between Victoria and Massey universities, based in Wellington.

"Through his commitment to live and work in New Zealand he has contributed substantially to raising the standard of expectations for classical performance, and helped to establish an international standard of musical excellence in New Zealand, which is being built on by the New Zealand School of Music."

World-leading physicist and manager of Industrial Research Limited's (IRL) Superconductivity and Energy Group Dr Bob Buckley is both an IRL Distinguished Scientist and a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand. Over the past 16 years, Dr Buckley has led IRL's research into the synthesis, discovery and application of high temperature superconductor (HTS) materials and managed their commercialisation. He was closely involved in the establishment of the IRL company HTS-110, and is currently a board member of a second HTS based company, General Cable Superconductors.

HTS technology underpins new developments that allow the transmission of electricity without resistance or the loss of energy. This enables the manufacture of lighter, smaller and more efficient electrical equipment than can be achieved with existing copper wire technology.

Victoria University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Pat Walsh, says that Dr Buckley is at the forefront of the industry.

"Bob Buckley has played a key role in developing New Zealand's strategy for capturing the benefits of HTS discoveries. Among his many achievements, he co-invented Bi-2223, the material used to make high temperature superconducting wires."

Dr Buckley completed his PhD at Victoria University in 1979. He is also a board member of the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, based at Victoria University, and the author of 100 referred publications and nine patent applications.

In 2004 he was awarded the Royal Society of New Zealand's prestigious technology honour, the Pickering Medal, in 2009 he won Wellingtonian of the Year in the Science and Technology category, and in 2010 he was jointly awarded the inaugural Prime Minister's Science Prize.

Dr Ross Ferguson is the international authority on kiwifruit biology and an ambassador for New Zealand science. Projects under his leadership have been fundamental to New Zealand's kiwifruit breeding programme and to the New Zealand kiwifruit's expansion to an international market.

In 1973, with kiwifruit emerging as an increasingly important crop for New Zealand, he began studying the fruit's biology. Much of this research was later included in the seminal work, Kiwifruit: science and management. Dr Ferguson has authored or co-authored nearly one hundred books and papers on the topic, and is regularly invited to address scientific conferences.

Professor Walsh says that Dr Ferguson's efforts have been of huge importance to a very important industry for New Zealand.

"Dr Ferguson is another example of the importance of scientific research to our export industries. As a major contributor to the success of the kiwifruit industry, he is a model for the way science and industry in partnership can be of enormous benefit to our economy."
Dr Ferguson graduated with a BSc (Hons) from Victoria University in 1965. He is a scientist with Plant and Food Research and is a Fellow of the Royal society of New Zealand. In 1995 he received a New Zealand Research and Technology Medal, and in 2007 was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his contribution to the kiwifruit industry. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Jubilee Medal of the New Zealand Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Science for his exceptional contribution to primary resource science over a sustained career.

Michael Houstoun will receive the honorary degree of Doctor of Music and Dr Bob Buckley the honorary degree of Doctor of Science at Victoria University's May 2011 Graduation. Dr Ross Ferguson will receive the honorary degree of Doctor of Science at Victoria University's December 2011 Graduation.

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