Discrimination by healthcare providers could affect immunisation rates – study

Maori father helping his daughter to ride bicycle in backyard.

Interactions between parents and healthcare providers could have a big impact on the wellbeing of our children, according to new research.  The way parents and healthcare providers interact has lasting implications for children’s health, new research has found – and that includes immunisation uptake. Released today, the report is based on research by AUT’s NZ … Read more

The Bulletin: Auckland drought leads to fears of severe water restrictions

Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Auckland drought leads to fears of severe water restrictions, exclusive new poll results on government’s Covid-19 response, and is a resolution coming at Ihumātao? The Auckland water crisis isn’t getting any better, and the city’s leaders are getting extremely nervous about the coming months. That is … Read more

Why are we still pitching voluntourism in universities?

Back to university today? Beware the flashy voluntourism brochures promising a chance to save the world, writes AUT lecturer Daniel Crouch. It was my first day as a lecturer, February 2018, and I was feeling pretty nervous as students filed in. Just before the nine o’clock start, a young woman approached me at the front … Read more

How to Live Together: A sprawling art show about a culture at boiling point

Who makes up the royal ‘we’? Lana Lopesi reviews a massive show at ST PAUL St Gallery in Auckland that investigates questions of community, culture and conflict. How to Live Together at ST PAUL St Gallery could hardly have been better timed, opening just days before the protection of Ihumātao in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland reached … Read more

The Bulletin: More deportations loom with proposed Aussie law

Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: More deportations of NZers loom with proposed Australian law, authorities not probing root causes of truck crashes, and AUT under fire for Tiananmen Square event not going ahead.  The deportation of New Zealanders from Australia could intensify under new, tighter visa laws being proposed. Radio NZ reports … Read more

The Bulletin: Moderate swing in first post-Christchurch poll

Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Moderate swing towards govt in first poll after CHCH attack, captured Kiwi nurse named by Red Cross, and a hard look at life after prison. The first poll since the Christchurch mosque attacks shows a moderate swing towards PM Jacinda Ardern and the government. The One News Colmar-Brunton poll … Read more

When sharing food means so much more

Proceeds from the sales of a new cookbook that shares recipes and stories from people from refugee and migrant backgrounds will go towards funding a new scholarship. Sakina Ewazi, a visual arts graduate originally from Afghanistan, weeps quietly during the minute’s silence. We’re at Ōtāhuhu library in south Auckland for the launch of Tastes of … Read more

A chef, a plumber, a developer and an engineer on what it’s like to work in their field

Last week, a study was released listing the top 20 jobs New Zealanders should be studying for the future. This week, we asked those working in four of those jobs to explain how and why they chose their careers and what advice they’d give to students today. Chef Brody Jenkins (Little Easy/Jo Bros Burgers) What do … Read more

Can Kiwibuild be salvaged? A building industry expert weighs in

The much-vaunted Kiwibuild programme isn’t going to come close to reaching the initial house building targets. So what has gone wrong? And can it be salvaged? AUT expert Professor John Tookey answered some of our questions. The numbers on Kiwibuild are bleak. Thirty three houses built to date. A target of 1000 for the first … Read more

Planet FM: the nicest radio station in Auckland

Leonie Hayden went in search of the people behind community access radio station Planet FM, and their newly minted and very silly Twitter account. She discovered a group of people who love their jobs and the communities they help.  Community access radio station Planet FM gives good content. If you had any investment in this … Read more

The lasting legacy of a Pākehā teacher who believed in the power of te reo Māori

At the beginning of Te Wiki o Te Reo 2018, a new app was launched that translated images into Māori. Karyn Tattersfield looks at the legacy of John Moorfield ‘s famous dictionary, and the revolutionary new technology of Kupu.  The extent of the late Professor John Moorfield’s impact on te reo Māori is hard to quantify. … Read more

How is a major contractor going bust in the middle of NZ’s building boom?

Henry Oliver asked John Tookey, AUT’s deputy head of the School of Engineering, Computer & Mathematical Science, to explain how Ebert Construction is going bust just as New Zealand’s building industry is supposed to be ramping up. This morning, construction company Ebert Construction went into receivership, leaving workers on several major projects across the country … Read more

Green to be seen? How we self-justify our consumer hypocrisy

Can you ever really be wholly virtuous with your shopping choices? New research from AUT looks at how we balance our good and evil sides when we consume. Are you green to be seen, or do you really care about the environment? Emily Writes talks to AUT’s Sommer Kapitan about consumers’ conflicting motivations. She was … Read more

Get a haircut, a degree, and a real job: Why a university education still matters

There’s an increasing belief that you don’t need a degree to get a 21st century career. In the first of a two-part series on the future of tertiary education, AUT vice-chancellor Derek McCormack argues that New Zealand’s universities have an essential role to play in our changing world. I’m constantly asked about the relevance of … Read more

Bigger than agriculture: How design became a multi billion dollar industry

According to a new report, the design sector contributed over $10 billion to the New Zealand economy in 2016. Henry Oliver asks Thomas Mical, the head of AUT’s School of Art and Design, what that means for New Zealand design. Designers know that their work creates value, but a recent report from DesignCo – commissioned … Read more

Ethnicity and diversity: Why we need top of the cliff solutions

The experiences of migrants and refugees are addressed in an annual summit hosted by AUT’s Immigration and Inclusion Research Group. This year a range of speakers will be tackling the workplace. “We are in a woven universe, so how do we create a weave that doesn’t fray?” This is the question at the core of … Read more

The vilification of ‘the Māori mother’ in Aotearoa: family violence and victim-blaming

New Zealand’s shameful rates of family violence place us at the bottom of the heap when it comes to intimate partner violence and child abuse in the OECD. Māori are among the greatest offenders and victims alike. Simon Day spoke to Denise Wilson about the history of family violence in this country and her solution … Read more

Why cannabis reform needs to be done with Māori, for Māori

Māori are the greatest victims of New Zealand’s war on drugs, but many Māori leaders are opposed to ideas of decriminalisation or legalisation. Professor Khylee Quince spoke to Simon Day about why tikanga Māori needs to be at the heart of drug reform.   It’s a stat the needs to be repeated: although making up … Read more

Bill Reichert of Garage Ventures calls for the scrappy standout in the entrepreneur crowd

Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. Much of what we talk about in entrepreneurship in NZ comes to … Read more

Auckland Transport says the universities support its controversial bus plan. But is that true?

AT has defended its attempt to keep buses on Victoria St – thus sabotaging plans for a park along that road – by claiming the support of both the University of Auckland and AUT University. What do the universities say? Remember that plan to turn Victoria St into a limited-access roadway with a park all … Read more

Q&A special: An AUT expert answers your questions about driverless cars

Last week we invited you to lob your questions regarding autonomous cars at AUT professor Reinhard Klette, New Zealand’s foremost expert on the subject. Today he responds to a selection of the many questions he received, and explains why driverless cars might not be as close as you think.  Professor Reinhard Klette, former professor at … Read more

‘Science is this spectacular, dramatic journey of discovery’: Talking with Dr Brian Greene, the man who saw what Einstein missed

As NASA announces the discovery of seven ‘Earth-like’ planets in deep outer space, Don Rowe chats to certified super genius Dr Brian Greene about space, the multiverse and the frontiers of theoretical physics. It took seven and a half minutes before the conversation turned to wizards. Professor Brian Greene, co-founder of the World Science Festival, specialises … Read more

The young and the homeless: New Zealand’s big human rights fail

A group of AUT students have banded together to make a documentary on our growing homelessness problem – and to argue that by failing to act, New Zealand could be in contravention of its international human rights obligations. “I contemplated why I should even be alive right now, when I can’t even put a roof … Read more

Summer reissue: A property expert answers your questions about the housing crisis

In October we invited you to lob your Auckland housing crisis questions at AUT professor John Tookey, an expert on the subject. Here he responds to a selection of the many questions he received, and explains why – spoiler alert – there are no easy answers. John Tookey is a Professor of Construction Management at … Read more

New Zealand culture is great at enabling creativity. Why is it so bad at helping ideas spread?

As a nation, we pride ourselves on our creativity, but when it comes to translating great ideas into successful businesses, New Zealand is still trailing behind. Colenso co-founder and serial entrepreneur Mike Hutcheson looks at what’s going wrong. I believe innovation to be the realisation of creativity, but innovation is a two-sided coin: one side … Read more

Business Is Boring #30 – AUT Vice-Chancellor Derek McCormack on the changing nature of work and education

‘Business is Boring’ is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. Making it in the modern economy is no easy thing. Traditional career … Read more