Dunedin study wins half million-dollar PM prize

Dunedin multidisciplinary health and development research unit director Prof Richie Poulton was presented the prize by PM Bill English.
Dunedin multidisciplinary health and development research unit director Prof Richie Poulton was presented the prize by PM Bill English. PHOTO PETER MCINTOSH

A Dunedin study has been awarded a half million-dollar prize for research which has both saved and changed lives throughout the globe.

Researchers from the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Research Unit (DMHDRU), which has been running for 45 years, won the 2016 Prime Minister’s Science Prize.

The "Dunedin Study" researchers were awarded $500,000, New Zealand's most valuable science prize, for their longitudinal study and assessment of 1037 children born at Queen Mary Maternity Hospital in 1972-73.

The prize was presented to unit director Professor Richie Poulton by Prime Minister Bill English in Wellington this afternoon. 

Prof Poulton said it was a "lovely" way to start their next phase in the study.

“Receiving the prize is a watershed moment, really. This is going to be lovely for study members to be part of."

The prize recognised all researchers, support staff and participants involved in the study and was awarded for the research's global and local impact as well as its extensive record of publication.

The new University of Otago building in Union St East housing the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Research Unit. PHOTO PETER MCINTOSH
The University of Otago building in Union St East housing the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Research Unit. PHOTO PETER MCINTOSH

 

 

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