Speakers
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Click on the titles below to view the presentation abstracts.
Keynote Speakers
Stephanie Chang
Professor, University of British Columbia (Canada)
Stephanie Chang is a professor in the School of Community and Regional Planning (SCARP) and the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES) at the University of British Columbia. Much of her work aims to bridge the gap between engineering, natural sciences, and social sciences in addressing the complex issues of hazards and disasters. Her research has ranged from empirical investigation of major urban disasters to computer modeling and analysis of risk reduction strategies. She is particularly interested in issues of disaster recovery and resilience, urban risk dynamics, infrastructure systems, and coastal cities.
Dr. Chang was awarded the 2001 Shah Family Innovation Prize by the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI), was EERI’s 2011 Distinguished Lecturer, and received the 2018 Distinguished Research Award from the Integrated Disaster Risk Management Society (IDRiM). She has served on the editorial boards of Earthquake Spectra, Environmental Hazards, and Natural Hazards. She was also on the U.S. National Research Council's Committee on Disaster Research in the Social Sciences and its Committee on Earthquake Resilience – Research, Implementation, and Outreach, and recently served on the Council of Canadian Academies’ expert panel on Disaster Resilience in a Changing Climate.
John Hooper
Director of Earthquake Engineering, Magnusson Klemencic Associates (USA)
John Hooper is a Senior Principal and the Director of Earthquake Engineering at Magnusson Klemencic Associates, a consulting structural and civil engineering firm in Seattle, Washington. He received his Bachelor of Civil Engineering from Seattle University and a Master of Science from the University of California at Berkeley.
John has over 40 years of engineering experience in the fields of renovation, earthquake engineering, and structural analysis and has been involved in the majority of MKA’s Performance-Based Seismic high-rise designs over the past 20 years.
He is Chair of Building Seismic Safety Council’s NEHRP Provisions Update Committee, Past chair of the American Society of Civil Engineer (ASCE 7) Seismic Subcommittee, and a member of ASCE 7’s Steering and Main Committees. He also serves on the American Institute of Steel Construction’s TC-3, TC-5 and Committee on Specifications.
Invited Speakers
Julia Becker
Associate Professor, Massey University
Panel Discussion: Risk Communication
Julia Becker is an Associate Professor at the Joint Centre for Disaster Research (JCDR) in the School of Psychology at Massey University, Wellington. She undertakes research and teaching on a range of natural hazard issues.
Her areas of expertise include perceptions, preparedness, community resilience, emergency management and warnings. Her research has focussed on earthquakes as well as other perils such as flooding, volcanic and coastal hazards. She has undertaken research extensively in New Zealand on major events (e.g. Canterbury and Kaikōura earthquakes) and internationally (e.g. U.S, Australia, Japan). She has published recent papers on communication about aftershocks during the Canterbury Earthquake Sequence, and on public response to earthquake early warnings.Nicola Borgfeldt
Team Leader - Building Policy, MBIE
Plenary 2: MBIE update and Joint Committee for Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings
With 16 years of policy experience in the New Zealand and Victorian public services, Nicola is currently a Team Leader in the Building Policy team at MBIE. Leading the seismic policy work programme, Nicola and her team will be applying a policy lens to new technical knowledge and considering how it could be applied to the way New Zealand's existing building stock is managed.
Charlotte Brown
Managing Director, Resilient Organisations Ltd.
Plenary 1: Resilient Buildings
Plenary 2: MBIE update and Joint Committee for Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings
Charlotte is joint Managing Director of Resilient Organisations Ltd., a research and consulting group helping organisations, groups and communities to be future ready (www.resorgs.org.nz). As a social scientist with a civil engineering background, Charlotte often works at the interface between physical and social sciences. Charlotte’s areas of specialty include risk management, systems thinking, decision-making and organisational resilience. Charlotte also has particular strengths in the practical application and communication of research. Charlotte is an Adjunct Fellow with the Department of Civil and Natural Resources Engineering at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand and has a PhD in Disaster Waste Management.
Dave Brunsdon
Director, Kestrel Group
Plenary 1: Resilient Buildings
Plenary 2: MBIE update and Joint Committee for Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings
Panel Discussion: Risk Communication
Dave Brunsdon is a Life Member of NZSEE and SESOC, and a Distinguished Fellow of Engineering New Zealand.
He has been involved in the communication of seismic risk for a range of owners and tenants of buildings, including the Ministry of Education and Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand. He contributed to MBIE’s Seismic Risk Guidance last year, and chairs the Steering Group of the current BRANZ and MBIE funded project Understanding and communicating seismic risk for commercial building tenants.
Anna Cardno
Senior Communications Advisor, GNS Science
Anna Cardno is GNS Science’s lead communications specialist working to connect Natural Hazards and Risks science to end users and the public. She led the interagency communications team that delivered the review of the National Seismic Hazard Model in 2022.
In distilling complex science for a broad audience, Anna champions plain language storytelling and integrated communication across agencies and platforms. While scientists work to reduce uncertainty in forecasting earthquakes, tsunami, volcanic eruptions and landslides, the impact of natural hazards on Aotearoa New Zealand is ever present. Through improved understanding of the vulnerability of people, property and the environment, we can identify opportunities to build resilience and grow confident communities.
To support informed decision-making at individual, community, agency and national levels, it is not enough just to deliver information. Translating science into everyday conversation enables the people of Aotearoa New Zealand to understand, plan for and respond to the risks we face from our natural hazards. Creating opportunities to collaborate and codesign communications that resonate with and engage defined audiences is important if we are to motivate people into taking action.
Phil Clayton
echnical Director, Beca
Plenary 2: MBIE update and Joint Committee for Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings
30+ years’ experience in consulting geotechnical engineering with a particular focus on seismic geotechnical engineering
Authored/co authored a number of technical papers on various aspects of seismic geotechnical engineering https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Phil-Clayton
Has provided significant input, authored or co-author input to various industry guidance documents on earthquake geotechnical engineering including the current section C4 of the NZSEE guideline for the seismic assessment of existing buildings.
Hugh Cowan
Hugh Cowan Consulting Ltd
Hugh Cowan has extensive experience of earthquake risk and recovery and of the value of research to inform learning. He advocates for making much better use of what we know, if we are to manage the challenges out there, many being at the limit of our experience and current knowledge. Hugh is a believer in diverse knowledge and experience and collaboration to address wicked problems. Hugh is from Whakatū/Nelson.
Martin Cooper
Director, Cooper and Associates
Getting on the Same Page - Various Perspectives on Sustainable and Resilient Design
Martin is a director of Cooper and Associates a development management business and also Experiences by Coopers who specialise in developing luxury apartments. Having overseen the delivery of and developed some of Auckland’s most significant suburban apartment projects Martin is at the forefront of consumer demand when it comes to luxury apartments. His current project One St Stephens is setting a new benchmark for luxury apartments in Parnell, Auckland. This gives Martin a unique view on what consumers want, what they care about, what they are prepared to pay for and how to balance those needs together with risks into a bankable property development.Martin is also the current Property Council, Auckland Regional Committee Chair and a Board member of Victoria Avenue School in Remuera.
Saskia de Vilder
Engineering Geologist, GNS Science
Title: Landslide Runout Modelling for Earthquake-Induced Landslides
Saskia de Vilder is an Engineering Geologist at GNS Science. She specialises in landslide runout, hazard and quantitative risk analysis but conducts research across a variety fields spanning from rock mechanics, landslide monitoring through to policy. Saskia is the current leader of the Landslide Runout research under the ‘Earthquake Induced Landscape Dynamics’ MBIE-funded Endeavour Research programme as well as being a co-compiler on the recent update to the “Landslide Planning Guidance – Reducing Landslide Risk through Land-Use Planning” document.
Caleb Dunne
Structural Engineer, EQC
Caleb Dunne is a structural engineer by training, and is a licensed engineer in California. He now focuses on natural hazard risk reduction at Toka Tū Ake EQC, working to increase the resilience of the Aotearoa New Zealand built environment across practice, research, and policy. When he’s not thinking about disasters at work, he’s still thinking about them as a Civil Defence volunteer with NZ Response Team 14.
Ken Elwood
Lecturer, The University of Auckland
Plenary 1: Resilient Buildings
Plenary 2: MBIE update and Joint Committee for Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings
Prof. Ken Elwood joined the University of Auckland in July 2014 after 11 years on faculty at the University of British Columbia, Canada. He served as the inaugural Director of Te Hiranga Rū QuakeCoRE: Centre for Earthquake Resilience.
In November 2021 Ken started a multi-year secondment to the New Zealand Government to serve as the MBIE/EQC Chief Engineer (Building Resilience). Through this role, Ken champions the resilience of New Zealand’s built environment, by establishing strong stakeholder connections and promoting collaboration between relevant research, policy, and practice players.
Ken received his PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley in 2002, M.S. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1995, and BASc from the University of British Columbia in 1993.
Helen Ferner
Past President, NZSEE
Plenary 1: Resilient Buildings
Helen Ferner is a structural engineer who has worked extensively both in NZ and California over the course of her 40 year career and who is the immediate past president of NZSEE. She initiated the Resilient Buildings Project in 2019, a NZSEE initiative, funded by Toka Tū Ake EQC which aims to inform future NZ earthquake standards and design approaches taking into account the perspective and expectations of building users. It has as its vision a more resilient built environment across New Zealand that better meet societal expectations.
John Hare
CEO, Holmes Group Ltd
Plenary 1: Resilient Buildings
John commenced work with Holmes since 1985 and has been in leadership and governance roles with the Group since 1997. He has experience working in New Zealand, the United States. United Kingdom and Hong Kong, and holds professional practice qualifications in both NZ and the US.
Through his early career, John developed his design and assessment capability through a wide range of buildings and civil structures, both in new design and in strengthening, based mostly in Christchurch.
Following the Canterbury Earthquakes, John spent a period acting as the Principal Engineering Adviser for Christchurch (CERA), providing advice on building safety and evaluation. He has been a member of the Ministry for Building, Innovation and Employment’s Engineering Advisory Group, during which time he was the principal author for the commercial building Detailed Damage Evaluation guidance and Industrial Building Assessment guidance. He is a member of the Ministry of Education Engineering Strategy Group, providing advice on design standards and safety for education buildings and the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment’s Seismic Working Group, providing advice on the incorporation of the new National Seismic Hazard model into the NZ Building Code.
In September 2015, John was appointed CEO of Holmes Group Limited, the parent company of the Holmes, covering the operation of all parts of thebusiness, currently located in NZ, Australia, Netherlands and the US.In 2013, John was the sole winner of the Fulton-Downer award from Engineering NZ, recognising his contribution through leadership of SESOC and participation with CERA and MBIE through the post-earthquake recovery. John is a former President of the Structural Engineering Society.
David Johnston
Professor, Massey University
David Johnston is the Professor of Disaster Management and Director of the Joint Centre for Disaster Research, in the School of Psychology at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand. Formerly a Principal Scientist at GNS Science, where he worked for 25 years (1993-2018). Currently he is the Deputy Director of the multi-institutional QuakeCoRE research programme in New Zealand. His research has developed as part of multi-disciplinary theoretical and applied research programme, involving the collaboration of physical and social scientists from several organisations and countries. His research focuses on human responses to earthquake, tsunami, and weather warnings, crisis decision-making and the role of public education and participation in building community resilience and recovery. In 2016 he became Co-chair of World Meteorological Organisation’s (WMO) High Impact Weather Project (HIWeather) Steering Group. This follows his role as the Chair of the Integrated Research on Disaster Risk Scientific Committee (IRDR) (2013-2015), a program co-sponsored by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the International Social Science Council (ISCC), and the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster reduction (UNISDR). He is the Editor of The Australasian Journal of Disaster and Trauma Studies; and was the founding Editor of the Journal of Applied Volcanology.
Rob Jury
Chief Structural Engineer, Beca
Plenary 1: Resilient Buildings
Plenary 2: MBIE update and Joint Committee for Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings
Rob’s 45-year career with Beca has involved many areas of structural engineering and he currently holds the position of Beca’s Chief Structural Engineer. His advice is often sought on all aspects of structural and earthquake engineering and he is currently advising the New ZealandGovernment on several issues including seismic design standards for New Zealand. Over the last thirty years Rob has participated in the development of earthquake standards for New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and Nepal. He acted as a key specialist in the Canterbury Earthquake Royal Commission of Enquiry and in the evidence gathering exercise related to thecollapse of the CTV Building during the Christchurch 2011 earthquake. Rob was chief editor for Guidelines for the Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings, the document that is the basis for seismic assessments of existing buildings in New Zealand. Rob is a Life Member of the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering and the New Zealand Society of Structural Engineers and is a Fellow of the NZ Institution of Professional Engineers.
Doug Mason
Engineering Geologist, WSP
Characteristics and impacts of earthquake-induced landsliding
Doug is an engineering geologist with WSP in Wellington, specialising in assessment and mitigation of natural hazards and risks, including landslide hazard mapping, assessment of infrastructure resilience, and providing advice for land use planning. Doug is currently researching the performance of cut and fill slopes in the Kaikōura earthquake, under the MBIE-funded ‘Earthquake Induced Landscape Dynamics’ research programme. This research aims to provide lessons for geotechnical and earthquake engineering practitioners on the assessment and design of earthworks slopes.
James McLean
Project Manager, L.T. McGuinness
Getting on the Same Page - Various Perspectives on Sustainable and Resilient Design
James McLean works for the construction company L.T. McGuinness and is the Project Manager for the Living Pā which is being built for Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington. The Living Pā is targeting the Living Building Challenge, arguably the world’s most rigorous environmental building standard. Outside of his work on the Living Pā, James co-wrote L.T. McGuinness’ “Low Carbon Mission”, an ambitious plan to direct L.T. McGuinness and the wider construction industry towards a more sustainable future. L.T. McGuinness kicked this plan off earlier this year when the company became Toitū Net Carbon Zero certified. Prior to working for L.T. McGuinness, James worked at Beca as a Structural Engineer and in 2021 became a Chartered Professional Engineer.
Richard Naish
Executive Director, RTA Studio
Getting on the Same Page - Various Perspectives on Sustainable and Resilient Design
Richard is the design director and executive director of RTA Studio and has been responsible for the development of the design direction and philosophy of the practice. Over the last 20 years, Richard has built a studio of over 40 people over 2 studios which now undertake public, private and commercial projects ranging from significant urban scale to small and sensitive interventions. RTA Studio has a strong focus on sustainable and climate resilient design and under Richard’s guidance the studio is undertaking research into new building typologies to advance the collective knowledge into climate responsible architecture.
Under his design leadership the practice has won over 100 local, national and international architecture awards, including the NZIA New Zealand Architecture Medal, the NZIA Ted McCoy Award for Education and category wins at World Architecture Festival.
An active fellow member of the New Zealand Institute of Architects, Richard has been convener of the New Zealand Architecture Awards and has been a judge on international juries. He has been adjunct professor of architecture at Unitec, Auckland as well as a regular teacher and critic at architecture school across the country.
Antonia Reid
Policy Director, MBIE
Getting on the Same Page - Various Perspectives on Sustainable and Resilient Design
Antonia is the Policy Director for MBIE’s Building for Climate Change Programme. The Building for Climate Change Programme is responsible for leading the government’s actions to reduce emissions from building and construction, and ensuring that homes and buildings are resilient to the impacts of climate change events.
Kelvin Tapuke
Ko Kelvin Retimana Tapuke ahau. He uri no nga iwi o Te Atiawa, Ngati Tama, Ngati Mutunga, Ngai Tai, Ngai Tai ki Tamaki, Ngati Porou, Te Whanaua a- Apanui, Te Aitanga a- Mahaki, Ngai Tuhoe, Te Whakatohea, Ngai Tahu, Ngati Maniapoto, Ngati Raukawa, Toa Rangatira. He Senior Research Fellow no roto I te Joint Centre For Disaster Research Massey University, Wellington.
Ko oku mahi matua I roto I enei mahi ko te tuhonohono I nga tangata putaiao me nga tangata whenua.
Ko te whakatipuranga o te tangata te mea nui. He tangata tautoko I nga kaupapa huhua o te whanau, hapu, iwi huri noa I oku iwi. Kua mahia I roto I nga turanga tumuaki, kaiako. Kaingakau ki nga matauranga a-iwi, a-hapu hoki. He kaiawhina, kaiako, tumuaki no roto I nga hui a-iwi, hui a-hapu, hui a-whanau, kura a-iwi, I nga kura kaupapa, wharekura, kura tini, whare wananga. Whakarauora reo, tikanga hoki.
Mauri tu. Mauri ora!
Andy Thompson
Structural Engineer, Holmes NZ
Plenary 2: MBIE update and Joint Committee for Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings
Andy is a practising structural engineer with Holmes NZ’s building structures team in Auckland. He has experience delivering projects as well as in seismic assessment, risk advice and retrofit work across all the main centres and some of the regions. Andy has served on NZSEE’s management committee since 2019 and is one of NZSEE’s current representatives on the Joint Committee for the Seismic Assessment for Existing Buildings (JCSAEB). He is a member of the Standards New Zealand committee for NZS 3404 revision project.
Lauren Vinnell
Lecturer, Massey University
Panel Discussion: Risk Communication
Lauren Vinnell is a Lecturer of Emergency Management at the Joint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University. She specialises in applied social psychology, using experimental survey design and quantitative analysis to understand peoples' judgments and behaviour around preparation for and response to various natural hazards in New Zealand such as earthquakes. This includes exploring human behaviour during earthquake shaking, the impacts of earthquake drills, and how people respond to multi-hazard risk communication.
Mark Willard
Principal Advisor - Engineering, Ministry of Education
Getting on the Same Page - Various Perspectives on Sustainable and Resilient Design
Mark is an engineering advisor at Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga|Ministry of Education. He chairs the Ministry’s Engineering Strategy Group which provides technical leadership and oversight of the Ministry’s seismic resilience policies, technical design guidelines for new school building design and ongoing work to improve the resilience of existing school buildings. As kaitiaki/guardian of school assets the Ministry is committed to prioritising sustainable, successful long-term outcomes and is progressively incorporating carbon assessment and carbon reduction targets into our design standards.
Liam Wotherspoon
Professor - The University of Auckland
Title: Shear-wavevelocity-based site classification for seismic design in New Zealand
Liam is a Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Auckland. He has held an academic position in the department since 2009. His research cuts across a range of geotechnical engineering topic areas, and he looks to develop research that can be both translated to practice and informed by the needs of the profession. He has strong links with the profession, through research collaborations with a range of organisations and input into a number of consulting projects, particularly with a focus on site characterisation. At a regional and national level, he has been involved in the development of resources to inform land use planning and seismic design. He has developed industry best-practice documents and provided industry short courses in the seismic site characterisation area, and is a current member of the NZGS committee.
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