Victoria University of Wellington alumna receives prestigious science award

Victoria University alumna Dr Jessie Prebble has been announced as the 2018 recipient of the Zonta Science Award. Dr Prebble completed her Bachelor of Science (Honours) and her Master of Science at Victoria University.

Dr Jessie Prebble
Dr Jessie Prebble

The Zonta Science Award is a biennial award that provides emerging female researchers in science with an $18,000 grant to further their careers and research.

Dr Prebble plans to use her award to visit three laboratories in the USA and work with leading plant scientists at the University of Florida. There she will learn new DNA sequencing techniques to help identify and describe species. This knowledge could help improve New Zealand’s biosecurity and conservation.

The Governor General, the Right Hon. Dame Patsy Reddy, presented the award to Dr Prebble at a ceremony at Government House last night.

“This award is such an honour,” Dr Prebble says. “I think there are many ways it will help me. It is a wonderful confidence boost, and so nice to have an opportunity to celebrate what I have achieved so far. It also shows others that the work I do is valued and that recognition can lead to other opportunities.”

This award is granted by the Zonta Club, an international organisation that supports women and girls in their communities and advocates for women’s issues. The club was founded in 1919 in the USA, and has been active in New Zealand for the past 50 years.