I am an engineer and a researcher fascinated by almost anything. Being a mere mortal however, I was forced to select a specialization, landing at the intersection of machine learning, applied optics, computer vision, and electronics. My goal is simple: I want to teach machines how to see the world more clearly. Alongside my research, I teach foundational courses on electronics, lead the taught masters programme for Electronics Engineering, and supervise PhD, masters, and bachelors students completing their final year projects.

My research interests are best explained by three projects:

Machine learning: Say you are buying a house, but you want to make sure you dont overpay for it. A reasonable assumption is that the house price will depend on things like the number of bedrooms, square area, year built, location, etc. If you feed some test data into my algorithm, Maximal Associated Regression, it will tell you exactly which variables affect the price and by how much. Best of all, the results are fully human auditable, so you see exactly how the model reached its conclusion.

Computer Vision: Say you are a forensic scientist analyzing potential blood splatter on a car seat. Grisly I know, but we do work with actual forensic scientists. A standard black light highlights every single stain, including last week's dropped sandwich. Instead, our technology automatically modifies the colour of light so only the blood pops out for the camera to analyze. If we want, we can also adjust the light so the evidence becomes perfectly visible to the human eye instead.

Hyperspectral Imaging: Imagine you grow a highly lucrative crop like medicinal cannabis. To protect your bottom line, you want to harvest the buds at the exact right moment. By combining hyperspectral cameras with our machine learning algorithms, we can easily pinpoint that perfect harvest window without damaging the plants or using traditional (and time consuming) lab based techniques.

What are my plans for the future? Interesting question. I think energy and nano robotics are incredibly important technologies, so I'm planning to make some branches in that direction.

Nicholas Agar is a philosopher specializing in the ethics of technology, particularly artificial intelligence and human enhancement. He has written extensively on the social and ethical implications of emerging technologies, with a focus on how they shape our future. His recent work explores AI's impact on education, democracy, and scientific publishing, often critiquing speculative futurism and corporate control over technological progress. In addition to academic research, he is an active public intellectual, contributing opinion pieces on pressing technological and ethical issues.

Chris Akroyd is a Professor of Accounting at the University of Waikato. He is a member of CPA Australia and the Institute of Management Accountants (USA). He has a Master of Commerce degree from The University of New South Wales, an MBA from Kobe University and a PhD from The University of Auckland. Chris has held positions at the University of Auckland, Oregon State University and the University of Canterbury.

I am an accomplished academic specializing in Digital Business, with a strong passion for tertiary education and research. My expertise lies in areas such as social media analytics, online consumer behavior, and digital business management. With a PhD in Digital Business, I am dedicated to equipping students with the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate the evolving digital landscape. Through engaging teaching methods, I foster a dynamic learning environment that promotes critical thinking, data-driven decision-making, and ethical digital practices.

Kia ora, talofa, hola, and many thanks for your interest.

I am a Colombian, Canadian, and soon to be New Zealand citizen, who enjoys literature, art, architecture and music.

My research focuses on public international law, international trade law, and foreign investment law. I have a consistent record of publishing in high-impact peer-reviewed journals, including AJIL Unbound, European Journal of International Law, Journal of International Economic Law, International and Comparative Law Quarterly, and World Trade Review. My scholarly approach is highly interdisciplinary, integrating perspectives from economics, political science, history, and even the intriguing intersections between art and international law.

I regularly present my work at major international law forums. I supervise postgraduate research in diverse areas including public international law, international organizations, trade and investment law, international security, and transitional justice.

As an educator, I emphasize accessibility, innovation, and student-centered learning. I provide consistent feedback, foster open communication, and support students facing personal or academic challenges. My teaching methods include creative incentives for participation and the use of art and culture to deepen legal understanding.

I currently serve on the University of Waikato Academic Board, the Council of the Australian and New Zealand Society of International Law (ANZSIL), and hold several editorial positions, including the ANZSIL Newsletter and the Waikato Law Review.

On a more personal note—and as mentioned above—my interests extend beyond law. Here are some of the books I have been reading in 2026: Emperial Woman by Pearl Buck,  Black Marks on the White Page edited by Whiti Ihimaera & Tina Makereti, The Archaeology of Knowledge by Michel Foucault, Design as Art by Bruno Munari, Cuando era feliz e indocumentado by Gabriel García Márquez, and The Architecture of Modern Empire by Arundhati Roy.

Finally, I am always honoured when potential doctoral candidates get in touch to express interest in my supervision. Having a general idea is a valuable first step; however, it is usually not enough on its own to appeal to supervisors. A well-developed proposal, with clear research questions and an in-depth review of the relevant literature, is always very welcome, as it shows that you are well prepared and ready to begin the project. Please feel free to contact me once you have prepared it.

Tola Amusan is a lecturer in the School of Law, Politics and Philosophy, within the Politics and International Relations section. His research focuses on Chinese grand strategy, geoeconomics, and development in the Global South. His current work examines the intersection between global geoeconomics in an era of strategic competition and the domestic institutions of developing states, as well as the security and developmental externalities that arise for those states.

Angelika is a programme associate of the Behaviour Analysis programme. Her previous position was that of Associate Professor in the School of Psychology (Te Whatu Oho Mauri) in the Division of Arts Law Psychology and Social Sciences (ALPSS), at the University of Waikato. She was the director of the behaviour analysis programme and the coordinator of a Verified Course Sequence (VCS).

Previously she was at the Faculty of Education, Monash University, where she established the very first Verified Course Sequence (VCS) in Australia.

Early in her career she was at the University of Auckland as a Research Fellow and contributed to the development of the curriculum of Resource Teachers Learning and Behaviour (RTLB) as well as to the development of the first National Autism Guidelines in New Zealand with the Ministries of Health and Education. 

Ko Angelika Anderson taku ingoa, Ko Pirongia toku maunga, Ko Ruhr toku awa, no Germany ahau.

Jacob Anderson is a glacial geologist, paleoclimatologist, and geochemist with expertise using cosmogenic isotopes to investigate ice dynamics, earth surface processes and climate variability. His research focuses on Antarctic and Greenland ice sheet and glacier responses to changing climate, permafrost processes and landscape evolution. Jacob also investigates ancient microbial populations in Antarctic permafrost, using frozen archives to reconstruct past environmental change and better understand the limits of life in extreme polar desert environments. Prior to working at the University of Waikato, Jacob worked as a postdoctoral research scientist at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University. 

I assist academic staff at the University of Waikato with research projects across diverse areas of law and public policy. Currently completing a Master of Laws, I am particularly interested in how law can be designed to protect and enhance the wellbeing of people and places. My work draws frequently on comparative law, examining how different legal systems respond to contemporary challenges and what insights can be gained from different jurisdictions. My research interests include oceans and river governance, firearms regulation, digital technologies, artificial intelligence, and education. 

Hāwea Apiata (Ngāti Kura, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Toarangatira) currently works as the Poukōkiri Mātauranga Toi based in Te Iho o Te Manawataki|Library. In this role he works across both the University’s art & taonga collections as well as the open research space (research dissemination & publishing).

In his work in the arts space he curates exhibitions, advises on and contributes to the campus gallery’s exhibition program, and applies an Indigenous lens to collection care, management, and research alongside the Poutiaki Taonga and Kaitiaki Mātangireia.

In the open research space, he supports researchers in making their scholarly work open and accessible. In addition to this, his role includes implementing and advising on Māori data sovereignty and aligning research practice with the institution-wide commitment to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

As an emerging writer, he has an established creative writing practice in poetry and short fiction, with his writing being published in a range of journals and anthologies both in Aotearoa and overseas. He also has related research interests in Māori & Indigenous literatures more broadly, as well as archival objects and spaces, Māori & Indigenous spiritualities, and te reo Māori.

E veiwekani ena yasana mai vei tinana o Aporosa ki na koro o Naduri e Macuata e Viti. (Aporosa is maternally related to the village of Naduri in Macuata, Northern Fiji).

Aporosa currently holds the post of Duruvesi – Bula ni Pasivika (Senior Lecturer in Pacific Health) at Te Huataki Waiora School of Health.

He is a 2022 Fulbright Scholar recipient and has also held a New Zealand Health Research Council Sir Thomas Davis Te Patu Kite Rangi Ariki Fellowship (2019) and New Zealand Health Research Council Pacific post-doctoral award (2016).

His work is underpinned by the Pacific Post-development Methodological Framework, which combines the Fijian vanua research framework with post-development theory, to guide the ethical and equitable use of Western-developed, -standardised and -normed psychometric measures among Pacific people. This has informed the use of brain function tests to assess kava users in traditionally informed kava-use spaces relative to productivity and driver safety.

Apo teaches Pacific cultural and health themes, supervises research students, is collaborating on several research projects including with The Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR: Aotearoa New Zealand's Crown Research Institute), advises the Ministry of Health and Food Standards Board on the safe use of kava in Aotearoa NZ, and is a member of the Pacific Islands Kava Standards Committee. He is also a senior member of the University's Pacific Strategic Committee.

Apo's Fulbright Scholarship investigated the potential of traditionally influenced kava use spaces to reduce PTSD symptomology among post-combat soldiers and first responders. This led to a one-million-dollar Health Research Council of New Zealand Pacific Project award aimed at validating that Fulbright work in clinical trials. Those trials commence in February 2025 and include a team of seven in Aotearoa and includes project arms in Hawaii and the UK. The US-arm of the project is linked to the NSF ALL-SPICE INCLUDES Alliance at the United Nations CIFAL Center in Honolulu. The UK-arm is coordinated out of Cardiff University.

Residential Life Manager of College Hall, responsible for the residential staff and the pastoral care of 300 residents.

Bjørn' Arntsen is a researcher in music composition and sound engineering.

As a Sámi born New Zealander, Bjørn's music often blends Sámi syntaxes, rhythms and repetitions found in Joik with Māori vocabulary and has a strong focus and connection with mana whenua- indigenous land rights. He often blends the tradition of American minimalism with outside influences that include electronic dance music, hip-hop and alternative rock.

Born in Tromsø, Norway and educated in London, New York and New Zealand.

Bjørn also has an extensive background as a composer, pianist, recording engineer, editor and producer. His productions aim to bridge the gap between minimalist composers such as Reich, Glass and Pärt with the pioneering electronic music of Brian Eno, Kraftwerk, Aphex Twin and the Prodigy. The result is a body of work that encompasses music for television, film, theatre and the concert hall.

In August 2025, Atoll Records released Bjørn’s debut album, Bàrru, containing many of his works for chamber ensemble.

His compositional portfolio include works for chamber ensembles, string orchestra, concertos and an opera adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s, A Doll’s House.