New Chief Executive for Antarctica New Zealand

Antarctica New Zealand is pleased to announce that, following an extensive search, Professor Jordy Hendrikx has been appointed as the new Chief Executive.

Antarctica New Zealand Board Chair, Leon Grice, says Prof Hendrikx will bring a refreshed focus on the organisation’s core purpose and brings considerable experience in polar settings.

“The Board is delighted to appoint Jordy to this role. In an acting capacity for the last six months, he has demonstrated the leadership we need across all functions of our organisation and in the Antarctic community in New Zealand and internationally.

“Jordy’s experience working from the Antarctic to the Arctic, combined with his scientific background and expertise, means he is well positioned to lead the organisation.”

Jordy joined Antarctica New Zealand in 2022 as the Chief Scientific Advisor and has been in the Acting Chief Executive role since August 2024.

“I feel extremely privileged to take on this role,” he says.

“Antarctica New Zealand is a special organisation and I’m excited to continue its legacy of international leadership in science, environmental protection and cooperation with other Treaty nations.”

Jordy has been a member of the Antarctic Science Platform leadership team and has represented New Zealand at international forums, including COMNAP (Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs) and ATCM (Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting).

He is internationally recognised as a leading interdisciplinary cryosphere/snow scientist, with publications spanning from climate change impacts on snow, to avalanche forecasting, hazard mapping, hydrology and decision-making science.

Prior to joining Antarctica New Zealand in 2022, Jordy was the Director of the Snow & Avalanche Laboratory and a Professor in the Department of Earth Sciences at Montana State University. He served as Department Head for Earth Sciences, and as the Director of the Liberal Studies Program. He is an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Geosciences at UIT the Arctic University of Norway.

He started his career at Victoria University of Wellington with degrees in Geology and Physical Geography hat included Antarctic research. He worked at the Federal Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research in Switzerland, and then completed his PhD at University of Canterbury in 2005. Jordy worked for NIWA in Christchurch before moving to the United States in 2010.