Murray Cox is one of the world’s foremost authorities on the genetics of Island South East Asia and the Pacific. Recognised internationally for driving major advances by developing inventive new analytical methods, Murray moves beyond the usual emphasis in molecular anthropology of tracing human movements to reveal the social and health implications of past contact and interaction. His research leadership stems from coupling deep understanding of local communities with quantitative innovations spanning genetics, statistics and anthropology. His resulting discoveries have captured global attention, with articles in The Economist and The New York Times, fellowships at the Max Planck Institute and Oxford University, and Royal Society Te Apārangi awarding him the Te Rangi Hīroa medal for his anthropological work to reconstruct processes of transformation and change in past societies using genetic data.
