Professor Rachael Taylor
Director of Edgar Diabetes and Obesity Research
Professor Rachael Taylor is the Director of the Edgar Diabetes and Obesity Research Centre. Rachael is also the Karitane Fellow in Early Childhood Obesity, a Ngā Ahurei a Te Apārangi Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand, and Head of the Department of Medicine at the University of Otago. Rachael is interested in determining how sleep, diet, and physical activity can be manipulated to favourably affect body weight throughout the life cycle, but particularly in childhood. Her extensively published research includes both observational studies and randomised controlled trials.
"Developing and trialing different ways of tackling the worldwide problem of childhood obesity is a fascinating area to work in. New ideas and initiatives are constantly being developed which makes for an interesting and continually evolving area of science."
Professor Jim Mann
Co-Director of Edgar Diabetes and Obesity Research
Sir Jim Mann has been Professor in Human Nutrition and Medicine at the University of Otago and Consultant Physician (Endocrinology) in Dunedin Hospital for more than 30 years. Previously he lectured at the University of Oxford and worked as a Consultant Physician in the Radcliffe Infirmary. Jim was the inaugural director of the Edgar Diabetes and Obesity Research Centre, and is currently Director of the Healthier Lives National Science Challenge and the New Zealand-China Non-Communicable Diseases Research Collaboration Centre. He is also a member of the World Health Organisation Nutrition Guidance Advisory Group, and Principal Investigator for the Riddet Institute Centre of Research Excellence.
Jim's research has focused on the prevention and management of non-communicable diseases, with a particular interest in how lipids and carbohydrates impact on coronary heart disease and diabetes. He is Patron of Diabetes New Zealand and a board member of the New Zealand Heart Foundation.
Associate Professor Justine Camp
Co-Director of Edgar Diabetes and Obesity Research
Justine Camp, (Kai Tahu, Kāti Mamoe, Waitaha) is the Associate Dean Māori for the University of Otago School of Medicine, and is a research Associate Professor. She was the Māori lead for Moemoeā, a Māori led sleep project, Te Kāika DiRECT – a study for the remission of type 2 diabetes, Restoring the balance: heart health of wāhine, fafine, va’ine, fifine & women of Aotearoa, and for the HRC programme grant Whakatipu Raktira. Justine holds several governance roles, including for the Healthier Lives National Science Challenge.
Previous fellowships include investigating the use of big data and its impact for Māori with A Better Start National Science Challenge. Justine is part of a mana whenua design team who work on the co-design for the new Dunedin Hospital and has developed design briefs, as well as new Māori clinics and models of care.
Dr Andrew Reynolds
Co-Director of Edgar Diabetes and Obesity Research
Dr Andrew Reynolds is a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Otago and is interested in lifestyle risk factors such as what we eat, when and how we move, and the resulting health outcomes. Andrew has a particular research interest in fibre-containing foods and dietary fats.
Andrew undertakes systematic reviews and meta analyses to synthesise current research knowledge or conducts randomised controlled trials to generate new knowledge. His work has informed international clinical and dietary guidelines, including for the World Health Organization and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes.
