title: Twelve years on: Christchurch’s recovery from the 2010/2011 Canterbury earthquakes

authors: Lianyan, Li

subjects: 2010/2011 Canterbury earthquake sequence

abstract: What does the recovery of Christchurch, New Zealand’s garden city, look like twelve years on from the 2010/2011 Canterbury earthquake sequence? And what lessons has its long-term recovery offered? To answer these questions, a field trip to Christchurch and in-depth interviews with policymakers, engineering professionals and other recovery practitioners were undertaken in October 2022. The recovery state of Christchurch Central Business District (CBD) was observed. Interviews revealed lessons from CBD’s recovery from a longitudinal, retrospective perspective. There was a consensus that between 70 per cent to 80 per cent of damaged buildings in CBD had been repaired or replaced for other functions. Significant delays can be attributed to 1) the scale of the event, with tens of thousands of aftershocks and widespread demolitions in CBD, 2) the delayed decision-making process, 3) overwhelmed legal changes, and 4) limited resource availability. Moreover, it is found that building resilience was emphasised and well incorporated in architectural designs to ensure redundancy provided in newly constructed and retrofitted buildings in CBD. Such consideration also incurred the broad adoption of low-damage designs (e.g., base isolation), despite a slightly higher repair cost. Further, this paper also investigated the effectiveness of recovery agencies and affirmed their essential role in recovery. While New Zealand is proactively preparing for major seismic events such as the Magnitude 8.0 Alpine Fault earthquake (AF8), lessons elicited from Christchurch recovery included the necessity of available training programmes for engineers, a stronger emphasis on building resilience in engineering design, a need for functionality-focused building code, and the development of advanced National Seismic Hazard Model (NSHM) specific to New Zealand. It is hoped that these lessons can collectively translate into enhanced earthquake preparedness and resilience in the future.

text: Twelve years on: Christchurch’s recovery from the 2010/2011 Canterbury earthquakes What does the recovery of Christchurch, New Zealand’s garden city, look like twelve years on from the 2010/2011 Canterbury earthquake sequence? And what lessons has its long-term recovery offered? To answer these questions, a field trip to Christchurch and in-depth interviews with policymakers, engineering professionals and other recovery practitioners were undertaken in October 2022. The recovery state of Christchurch Central Business District (CBD) was observed. Interviews revealed lessons from CBD’s recovery from a longitudinal, retrospective perspective. There was a consensus that between 70 per cent to 80 per cent of damaged buildings in CBD had been repaired or replaced for other functions. Significant delays can be attributed to 1) the scale of the event, with tens of thousands of aftershocks and widespread demolitions in CBD, 2) the delayed decision-making process, 3) overwhelmed legal changes, and 4) limited resource availability. Moreover, it is found that building resilience was emphasised and well incorporated in architectural designs to ensure redundancy provided in newly constructed and retrofitted buildings in CBD. Such consideration also incurred the broad adoption of low-damage designs (e.g., base isolation), despite a slightly higher repair cost. Further, this paper also investigated the effectiveness of recovery agencies and affirmed their essential role in recovery. While New Zealand is proactively preparing for major seismic events such as the Magnitude 8.0 Alpine Fault earthquake (AF8), lessons elicited from Christchurch recovery included the necessity of available training programmes for engineers, a stronger emphasis on building resilience in engineering design, a need for functionality-focused building code, and the development of advanced National Seismic Hazard Model (NSHM) specific to New Zealand. It is hoped that these lessons can collectively translate into enhanced earthquake preparedness and resilience in the future.

year: 2023

title: A comparative study of functional monomer and crosslinker ratios in the synthesis of  catechin-selective MIPs via suspension polymerisation

authors: Pitaduwa Gamage, Sandeepa  Thathsarani Wickramasinghe

subjects: molecularly imprinted polymers

abstract: Catechin contamination in food and environmental samples presents challenges for selective extraction and analysis, requiring advanced polymeric materials with high specificity and capacity. This study investigates the synthesis of catechin-selective molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) using suspension polymerisation, with a systematic evaluation of crosslinker-to-monomer (CL:M) and template-to-monomer (T:M) ratios. Polymers were prepared with CL:M ratios ranging from 1:1 to 4:1 and T:M ratios from 0 to 0.5, and characterised by particle size analysis, BET surface area and pore measurements, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Adsorption experiments were conducted at initial catechin concentrations of 2.5–10 mg/L, and binding isotherm models were applied to interpret the adsorption mechanisms.
Polymers synthesised at CL:M ratios of 1:1 and 2:1 with T:M = 0.125 exhibited the highest adsorption capacities, consistently achieving values above 0.080 mg/g at 10 mg/L catechin. These optimal conditions also produced polymers with yields up to 94.7%, median particle diameters between 1100–1500 μm, and average pore radii approaching 10 Å. In addition, SEM analysis revealed that optimal samples displayed uniform, spherical morphology with well-developed surface porosity, whereas non-optimal samples showed increased aggregation and denser, less accessible surfaces. Notably, the Temkin isotherm provided the best fit for the adsorption data (R² = 0.9807), indicating heterogeneous binding sites and significant adsorbate–adsorbate interactions. In contrast, higher crosslinker (CL:M= 4:1 and 3:1) or template ratios (T:M= 0.375 and 0.5) led to reduced adsorption capacity and, in some cases, persistent template leaching. These results indicate that extraction conditions must be carefully optimised, such as by increasing Soxhlet extraction time or adjusting solvent parameters, to ensure complete template removal and improve polymer performance in practical applications. Overall, these findings establish suspension polymerisation, combined with carefully optimised synthesis and extraction conditions, as an effective strategy for producing catechin-selective MIPs with enhanced selectivity, capacity, and reproducibility.

text: A comparative study of functional monomer and crosslinker ratios in the synthesis of  catechin-selective MIPs via suspension polymerisation Catechin contamination in food and environmental samples presents challenges for selective extraction and analysis, requiring advanced polymeric materials with high specificity and capacity. This study investigates the synthesis of catechin-selective molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) using suspension polymerisation, with a systematic evaluation of crosslinker-to-monomer (CL:M) and template-to-monomer (T:M) ratios. Polymers were prepared with CL:M ratios ranging from 1:1 to 4:1 and T:M ratios from 0 to 0.5, and characterised by particle size analysis, BET surface area and pore measurements, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Adsorption experiments were conducted at initial catechin concentrations of 2.5–10 mg/L, and binding isotherm models were applied to interpret the adsorption mechanisms.
Polymers synthesised at CL:M ratios of 1:1 and 2:1 with T:M = 0.125 exhibited the highest adsorption capacities, consistently achieving values above 0.080 mg/g at 10 mg/L catechin. These optimal conditions also produced polymers with yields up to 94.7%, median particle diameters between 1100–1500 μm, and average pore radii approaching 10 Å. In addition, SEM analysis revealed that optimal samples displayed uniform, spherical morphology with well-developed surface porosity, whereas non-optimal samples showed increased aggregation and denser, less accessible surfaces. Notably, the Temkin isotherm provided the best fit for the adsorption data (R² = 0.9807), indicating heterogeneous binding sites and significant adsorbate–adsorbate interactions. In contrast, higher crosslinker (CL:M= 4:1 and 3:1) or template ratios (T:M= 0.375 and 0.5) led to reduced adsorption capacity and, in some cases, persistent template leaching. These results indicate that extraction conditions must be carefully optimised, such as by increasing Soxhlet extraction time or adjusting solvent parameters, to ensure complete template removal and improve polymer performance in practical applications. Overall, these findings establish suspension polymerisation, combined with carefully optimised synthesis and extraction conditions, as an effective strategy for producing catechin-selective MIPs with enhanced selectivity, capacity, and reproducibility.

year: 2025-07-05

title: Balancing openness with Indigenous data sovereignty: An opportunity to leave no one behind in the journey to sequence all of life

authors: Cartney, Ann M. Mc

abstract: The field of genomics has benefited greatly from its "openness" approach to data sharing. However, with the increasing volume of sequence information being created and stored and the growing number of international genomics efforts, the equity of openness is under question. The United Nations Convention of Biodiversity aims to develop and adopt a standard policy on access and benefit-sharing for sequence information across signatory parties. This standardization will have profound implications on genomics research, requiring a new definition of open data sharing. The redefinition of openness is not unwarranted, as its limitations have unintentionally introduced barriers of engagement to some, including Indigenous Peoples. This commentary provides an insight into the key challenges of openness faced by the researchers who aspire to protect and conserve global biodiversity, including Indigenous flora and fauna, and presents immediate, practical solutions that, if implemented, will equip the genomics community with both the diversity and inclusivity required to respectfully protect global biodiversity.

text: Balancing openness with Indigenous data sovereignty: An opportunity to leave no one behind in the journey to sequence all of life The field of genomics has benefited greatly from its "openness" approach to data sharing. However, with the increasing volume of sequence information being created and stored and the growing number of international genomics efforts, the equity of openness is under question. The United Nations Convention of Biodiversity aims to develop and adopt a standard policy on access and benefit-sharing for sequence information across signatory parties. This standardization will have profound implications on genomics research, requiring a new definition of open data sharing. The redefinition of openness is not unwarranted, as its limitations have unintentionally introduced barriers of engagement to some, including Indigenous Peoples. This commentary provides an insight into the key challenges of openness faced by the researchers who aspire to protect and conserve global biodiversity, including Indigenous flora and fauna, and presents immediate, practical solutions that, if implemented, will equip the genomics community with both the diversity and inclusivity required to respectfully protect global biodiversity.

year: 2022