Hope Sanderson

Helen Augusta Hope Sanderson (known as Hope, née MacDonald; 27 November 1925 – 6 May 2016) was a New Zealand geologist, and was the first New Zealand woman to graduate with MSc with Honours in Geology at a New Zealand university.

Early life and education Born 27 November 1925 in New Zealand, Sanderson's parents were farmers near Colville, on the Coromandel Peninsula. The farm was accessible only by boat or on horseback. As Sanderson and her two sisters grew old enough for school, the farm was sold, and the MacDonalds moved to their paternal great-grandfather's original homestead in Howick. The position represented a challenge to civil service administrators as there had not been a similarly qualified woman employed by the service previously. Eventually, an employment category was created specially for Sanderson, that of "experimental technician". In the ten years that Sanderson held her post, only one other woman was employed in the category. Sanderson's work involved identifying geological samples brought in by the general public, and preparing and examining thin-sections for research. For the Ministry of Works, she undertook fieldwork to source materials to repair heritage monuments and buildings, and undertook a petrographic examination of the samples collected in the field.

Later life In 1964, she married petrologist Robin Sanderson, and was required by civil service rules to resign from her job. Robin Sanderson had been working at the British Geological Survey but shortly after their marriage he took a curatorial position at the Natural History Museum. On retirement from that role, he worked as a consultant geologist, and specialised in the analysis, identification, and sourcing of stone for use in architectural reconstruction work. Since this was closely aligned with the work Sanderson had been doing during her career, Sanderson provided advice to her husband in this work.

Sanderson had two sons. She died on 6 May 2016 in London.

Legacy Sanderson's example inspired geologist Heather Nicholson to undertake a field-based MSc, mapping Waiheke island, completed in 1954.

In 2017 Sanderson was selected as one of the Royal Society Te Apārangi's 150 women in 150 words.

Selected works