"The collaboration between Victoria and GNS Science epitomises the strength and scope of scientific research in Wellington," says Professor John Townend, Head of the School of Geography, Environment, and Earth Sciences at Victoria.
The Nature Index is a ranked database of institutional relationships and author affiliations complied by scientific journal Nature. The ranking takes into account the number of articles published and the share of authorship on each article in a group of highly selective science journals. It is considered an important indicator of ‘global high-quality research output’.
Nature Index ranked the collaboration between Victoria University and GNS Science 9th out of 100 collaborations between academic and corporate institutions based on data collected between 2012 and 2016. The next highest New Zealand-based collaboration on the Index ranked 25th out of 100.
GNS Science Chief Executive Ian Simpson says the 9th place ranking demonstrates the international importance of New Zealand science.
“It shows that in areas such as earth science, New Zealand makes an outstanding international contribution, and GNS Science is an important part of that. The collaboration ranking was also an exciting endorsement of the work carried out by our scientists and Victoria University,” Mr Simpson says.
Professor Townend says the collaboration is a significant achievement for both Victoria and GNS.
“Collaboration is a crucial component of science and enables us to really expand the scope of our research and teaching. Victoria's collaboration with GNS Science and other scientific organisations throughout the country provides graduate students and professional researchers alike with enormous opportunities and ensures that our collective expertise has maximum effect,” he says.