Megan Ruby Balks (born 1960) is a New Zealand Antarctic soil scientist and former lecturer at the

University of Waikato The University of Waikato (), established in 1964, is a Public university, public research university located in Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton, New Zealand. An additional campus is located in Tauranga. The university performs research in nume ...

Early life and education

Born in 1960, Balks was raised on a sheep farm in the

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service t ...

, giving her an appreciation of the environment, and she wanted to become a geologist. She studied at

Massey University Massey University () is a Public university, public research university in New Zealand that provides internal and distance education. The university has campuses in Auckland, Palmerston North, and Wellington. Data from Universities New Zealand ...

, completing a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

honours degree in soil science.

Career

Balks lectured at the

from 1988 until she left in 2018, and mentored 10 Antarctic soil research graduate students. In 1990, Balks, along with other soil scientists, started researching Antarctica's permafrosts and its human environmental impact. When offered this role, she was sceptical as she did not believe that the Antarctic would have much soil to study. In her first project, she looked at soil from an airstrip that the United States built in the 1950s. In total, she completed 19 Antarctic field expeditions, including 12 as field leader. She and the other researchers placed soil climate monitoring stations in the Antarctic, reporting to the Circumpolar Active Layer Monitoring (CALM) programme, which measure the effects of climate change in the polar regions. From the mid 1990s to 2001, Balks was a member of the Waikato Conservation Board. From 2000 to 2023, she was a member of the Crysol Working Group of the International Union of Soil Sciences, and was co-chair for two years. From 2008 to 2022, Balks represented New Zealand on the council of the

International Permafrost Association The International Permafrost Association (IPA), founded in 1983, is an international professional body formed to foster the dissemination of knowledge concerning permafrost and to promote cooperation among individuals and national or internation ...

, where in 2019, she created its first Southern Hemisphere regional permafrost conference. Her other roles include being a founding member and secretary of the ANTPAS (Antarctic Permafrost and Soils), a member of the

Royal Society of New Zealand Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal ...

's Committee on Antarctic Research, a member of the

New Zealand Geographic Board The New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa (NZGB) is the authority over geographical and hydrographic names within New Zealand and its territorial waters. This includes the naming of small urban settlements, localities, mounta ...

Committee of Place Naming in the Ross Sea Region of Antarctica, and president of the New Zealand Society of Soil Science from 2018 to 2020. , she is review editor of the ''State of the World Soils Report'' of the UN

Food and Agriculture Organization The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security. Its Latin motto, , translates ...

. In 2021, Balks and other two other researchers published the book ''Soils of Aotearoa New Zealand''. It has 18 chapters and describes New Zealand's soils according to the New Zealand Soil Classification. In the

2024 New Year Honours The 2024 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Hono ...

, Balks was awarded the

New Zealand Antarctic Medal The New Zealand Antarctic Medal was created 1 September 2006, as a New Zealand Honours System, New Zealand royal honour to replace the British Polar Medal. History The Polar Medal was instituted in 1904 and awarded to those who had made notable ...

, for services to Antarctic soil science.

Personal life

Balks has a husband named Errol. Around the 1980s the two moved to Dunedin due to Balks' work in

Central Otago Central Otago is an area located in the inland part of the Otago region in the South Island of New Zealand. The motto for the area is "A World of Difference". The area is dominated by mountain ranges and the upper reaches of the Clutha River ...

, and so that Errol could study land surveying. They now live in Waikato and have their own nature reserve, where they have a breed of sheep that produces a fibre that Balks uses in a craft hobby.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balks, Megan 1960 births Living people Recipients of the New Zealand Antarctic Medal People from Otago New Zealand women academics New Zealand women writers New Zealand soil scientists Women soil scientists 20th-century New Zealand scientists 20th-century New Zealand women scientists 21st-century New Zealand scientists 21st-century New Zealand women scientists Massey University alumni

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

Further reading

References