Dr Lara Shepherd, who’s been working with us on genetics research since January 2012 has just been awarded a prestigious Rutherford Fellowship.

Only 10 fellowships are awarded each year, with a total of $8 m granted. The fellowships are awarded on the basis of the excellence of the candidates work as well as the research topic they propose.

Lara’s project is to explore the influence of human activity on evolutionary processes for New Zealand species. This includes further work on plants brought by Maori to New Zealand during early colonisation and the changes in these plants since that time. She’ll also examine how data on species changes can be used to better manage conservation of species and prevent population losses.