Cindy Baxter is at COP25 – her 17th climate change conference – and for the first time, New Zealand is one of the good guys. But are we? As we head into the second week of the climate talks in Madrid, I’ve been reflecting over the first week, and the strange position many of us … Read more
Life expectancy is increasing all the time, and now actuaries and retirement experts say young people need far more information on what they’ll need to do with their money if they live to 100. Don’t worry, we’re here to help. The message from the Retirement Income Interest Group of the New Zealand Society of Actuaries … Read more
Clean tech could be a man-made solution to the man-made problem of climate change. Callaghan Innovation is encouraging local innovators to develop their ideas for a lower-emissions planet, with their 2019 C-Prize challenge. In New Zealand, far away from the rest of the world, we often forget that our knack for innovation is highly regarded. … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Fletcher Building holds AGM at crucial time for company, chances of Manus Island refugees being settled in NZ increases, and more NZ First Foundation documents emerge. To lead us off today, a look at the AGM of a hugely important company. Ihumātao has been forced onto … Read more
Z Energy is New Zealand’s largest petrol retailer, yet its CEO says he’s dedicated to mitigating climate change. Alex Braae spoke to Mike Bennetts about how that apparent contradiction can work. For the boss of a retail business, Z Energy CEO Mike Bennetts spends a lot of time talking down his own product. In a … Read more
The government will put $26 million towards a partnership that aims to measure global methane emissions from space, and mission control will be right here in this country. What’s all this then? The Environmental Defense Fund – based in the US which explains the incorrect spelling – has big plans to take the fight against … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Massive day of trade developments for NZ’s relationship with Asia, Bill Cashmore retains top Auckland jobs, and trial of man accused of killing Grace Millane begins. The government has secured a breakthrough on trade with China, but not everyone will be entirely happy with it. Interest reports … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: National releases discussion document on social services, new sea level rise research raises inundation fears, and updates from Wellington’s messy mayoralties. National has released a discussion document on social services, in order to shape their policy into the election. It’s the latest in a series of discussion documents … Read more
With over 15,000 public submissions on the bill, the Environment Select Committee had a lot to think about. Here’s everything they did – and didn’t – seek to change about the Zero Carbon Bill. Please do not print it out, but let it be known that the Environment Select Committee has published its report on … Read more
Ten moose were upended into the Dusky Sounds in 1910. Now, their descendants are getting their day in the sun. The climate crisis is affecting wildlife all over the country: rockhopper penguin populations are in drastic decline, tuatara eggs aren’t hatching females, and the ice walls keeping predators away from kea are melting. But it’s … Read more
The actions of New Zealanders on land are increasingly harming the ocean’s ability to sustain life. Alex Braae looks at a worrying new government paper on the marine environment. What’s all this then? A new report from the Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ has sounded alarming warning about state of the massive area … Read more
Her incredible international campaign to challenge world leaders on the climate emergency has made Greta Thunberg the favourite to win the Nobel Peace Prize tonight. Adam Currie questions why the public are so keen to hear the Swedish teen’s message over the indigenous youth who raised their voices long before Greta. One year before Greta’s … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Meth prices drop to record lows, dozens of arrests at Extinction Rebellion protests, and an excellent data dive into land sales to overseas forestry interests. In a worrying sign for wellbeing, the price of meth in many parts of the country has plunged to new … Read more
Yesterday’s Extinction Rebellion protests may have caught the media’s attention – including The Spinoff’s – but do such small-scale disruptive events actually do more harm than good? There’s something beautiful in the air. People are striking and protesting in numbers unheard of for a generation or longer. Issues like inequality and climate change have reached … Read more
Tomorrow Wellington will be the first city ‘disrupted’ in a series of protests by global environmental group Extinction Rebellion. Its spokesperson Dr Sea Rotmann explains why they’re choosing disorder. Last week School Strike 4 Climate organised 170,000 people – that’s over 3.5% of Aotearoa’s population – to take to the streets to demand action on … Read more
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington. AUCKLAND 1 Talking to Strangers: what we should know about the people we don’t know by Malcolm Gladwell (Allen Lane, $40) Auckland … Read more
The loss of Antarctic ice sheets will likely cause a sea-level rise of 20 metres in coming centuries, a Victoria University-led study says. The earth is heating up and the planet has been here before. A new study into the mid-Pliocene’s climate reveals how today’s polar ice sheets may respond to climate rises expected this … Read more
The groundswell of protesters across NZ on Friday is cause for optimism. But if results don’t follow, the calls for more direct action that confronts the status quo will grow, writes Peter McKenzie. Half an hour after the #SchoolStrike4Climate marchers began arriving at parliament, organisers got worried. Two young student coordinators, in pink high-vis vests, … Read more
Freshwater ecologist Dr Mike Joy makes a plea to politicians and the public, urging them to trust that the people who study water quality know what they’re talking about. Imagine you had just stepped onto a plane, and the captain’s voice came over the intercom. “We’ve been held back from take-off while the engineers look … Read more
On the tenth anniversary of the tsunami that claimed 143 lives in Samoa, Sapeer Mayron speaks to the people who were there. Sapeer Mayron is a reporter for the Samoa Observer, covering the 10th anniversary of the 2009 Tsunami. Ten years have passed since a devastating tsunami thrashed the shores of Samoa, and took the … Read more
Organisers estimate that 170,000 New Zealanders have joined the strike for the climate around the country. Here’s what went down. More than 40 #climatestrike events took place this afternoon around New Zealand, as part of a global movement calling for urgent action on the climate crisis. The core of the strike was school students, but … Read more
The School Strike 4 Climate has been widened to a general nationwide strike. Ten of thousands of New Zealanders are expected to skip work and classes today. Here is your guide to what’s going on, and where. What and when? The School Strike 4 Climate movement has invited people of all ages to a nationwide … Read more
From declaring a climate emergency to setting a 1.5 degree regional target, Auckland Council has repeatedly emphasised its commitment to doing its bit to tackle climate change. The question is, how exactly does it plan to do that? Acting chief sustainability officer Alec Tang explains. The Spinoff: Tell me about the key areas Auckland Council … Read more
The big boys are here and they want to make it clear: they do not like young women raising their voices. Josie Adams on Mike Hosking and Duncan Garner’s visceral reactions to a tearful 16-year-old telling them to emit less. Teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg’s global reprimand at the UN this week was delivered in … Read more
Yesterday Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern delivered two speeches on climate change to the United Nations in New York. This is what she said. Keynote Address to UN Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit Private Sector Forum Mr Secretary-General, leaders, ladies and gentlemen. Recently in New Zealand our journalists, like many around the world, took part in the … Read more
Carla van Zon, former artistic director of the Auckland Arts Festival, issues a call for artists to make their voices heard in the battle against climate change. I am passionate about the arts and believe art can change lives, attitudes and even the world, individual by individual. I also believe that art is pivotal to … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Indonesia to send contaminated recycling back to NZ, LAWA report shows water quality dropping at more sites than not, and Spark Sport suffers harsh weekend. Shipping containers full of contaminated recycling could be shipped back to New Zealand, Anna Whyte from One News reported near the end of … Read more
Covering Climate Action: Ahead of the UN’s Climate Action Summit, artist Joseph Michael and composer Rhian Sheehan teamed up to create Voices For The Future, a 30-minute installation projected onto the UN buildings. The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. Join us here! Joseph Michael is walking along Wakefield … Read more
Covering Climate Now: Ruby Porter looks into New Zealand’s future when the sea level rises 10, 25 and 80 metres, and finds out how much of Auckland will be left. The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. Join us here! I grew up in Ponsonby, but the only bay I … Read more