The Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand is New Zealand's flagship journal of scientific record. First published in 1868 as the Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute and then the Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand, it took its present name in 1971. Now, the journal is one of eight managed by the Royal Society of New Zealand that collectively are a central voice for New Zealand-focused research in science, social science and technology.
The journal's content has evolved over time. In the 19th century, its scope encompassed much of the intellectual life of the developing colony, including not only basic sciences but also applied sciences such as agriculture and technology and, more broadly, education and history. As the 20th century progressed, the focus narrowed, primarily to the life and earth sciences. The past decade has seen a broadening of subject matter, with many articles and special issues exploring the impacts of new knowledge and technologies on society—for example, the scope and place of Māori knowledge in New Zealand society, societal engagement with climate change, use of 1080, fluoridation and the role of science in the future of New Zealand.
The journal will continue to evolve. In 2010, the Royal Society of New Zealand embraced the humanities, clearly acknowledging the deep connections and interdependence of science, technology, social sciences and the humanities in shaping our future. The pages of the journal offer an important venue for articles that explore the links between the two cultures and how the humanities and sciences can engage to create a better future for all New Zealanders. My hope is that the humanities will have a growing presence in the journal in coming years.
This is the final issue of my six-year tenure as senior editor. No journal publishes itself and my tenure at the journal has been marked by the generous contributions of hard work and intellectual firepower of a very large number of people. I am grateful to the many authors who have entrusted their manuscripts to the journal and to the many more researchers who have provided superb service as anonymous referees. A dedicated and hardworking group of associate editors has managed the flow of papers, reviews and resubmissions. These include Ewan Fordyce, Michael Hannah, Kelly Hare, Greg Holwell, Ian Jamieson and Karen Cronin. I have been privileged to work with such a distinguished and committed group of editors and they have my sincere thanks.
Guest editors play a special role in the journal allowing selected subjects of particular relevance to be explored in detail. Guest editors undertake planning and management of publication processes over an extended period of time and ensure deep understanding of the topic. I thank David Bibby, Sir Paul Callaghan, Kelly Hare, Don Newman, Rebecca Priestley and Ian Yeoman for shouldering the load of recent special issues.
It has been an enormous privilege to contribute to the ongoing development of New Zealand's oldest scientific publication and I am especially grateful to a small number of people who have played key roles during my time as senior editor. Don Smith convinced me to take the role and introduced me to Sue Wilkins who, as publishing operations manager, provided wise counsel and patience in bringing me up to speed. For the past four years, Jill Mellanby as publishing manager has been my constant partner in this enterprise. Jill's endless patience, wry good humour and enlightened leadership have been essential in bringing issue after issue to fruition—she has my deepest thanks. Jill and I have been ably supported by publishing coordinators Tom Crick and Marie Hodgkinson. The journal is in the best of hands with this team and I wish them and my successor as senior editor the very best in continuing the growth and development of this distinguished journal.