Sealark Exploration Scouring the Pacific
“The nature of [World War Two], scattered as it was across thousands of miles of sea and sand, meant that many people, ships, and aircraft disappeared without a trace,” BC Cook writes for Marianas…
News of New Zealanders via Global Media
New Zealand Part of Growing Wellbeing Network
For a small but growing network of countries, the world’s go-to metric of economic health is no longer fit for purpose, Sam Meredith reports for CNBC. Mostly led by women, Finland, Iceland, Scotland, Wales…
NZ Bans Cigarette Sales for Those Born After 2009
New Zealand has adopted a steadily rising tobacco-purchase age and mandated the near-elimination of nicotine from all cigarettes sold in the country, pushing forward on a plan to create a smoke-free nation as other…
Pioneering Physicist Mark Warner a Selfless Mentor
We are all familiar with elastic bands and other soft, rubbery materials, but familiarity should not diminish our surprise at their properties. What other solids can be stretched many times their original length without…
Hamish Kilgour a Freewheeling Musician With Worldly Reach
Hamish Kilgour, a founding member of the New Zealand band the Clean, who was celebrated among fans of underground music for his propulsive drumming and his countercultural approach to life, has died in Christchurch,…
Auckland Couple with New Baby Looks Ahead
Tuesday 15 November 2022 marked the day that the global population reached 8 billion, according to the United Nations. The impact of this is far-reaching, putting additional pressure on already stretched resources and challenging…
New Zealand First to Try Taxing Cows’ Gas Emissions
In a nation with seven times more livestock than people, taxing farmers for herds’ greenhouse gas emissions is a controversial proposal, Hicks Wogan reports for National Geographic. In October, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern unveiled a…
Four Day Week’s Charlotte Lockhart Speaks to CNN
In a recent CNN Audio podcast from the series, Downside Up, New Zealander Charlotte Lockhart, founder of the non-profit 4 Day Week Global, joins Americans Anne Helen Petersen, author of Out of Office…
Running Legend Sir Murray Halberg Our Olympic Hero
Sir Murray Halberg, New Zealand Olympic 5000m champion in 1960, two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist and multiple world record-breaker, has died aged 89, Jason Henderson writes in an obituary for Athletics Weekly. Halberg achieved greatness…
Antipodes’ Penguins Lay Eggs Doomed to Die
In 1998, a team of researchers made the three-and-a-half day trek to the isolated Antipodes Islands in the South Pacific to study one of its few residents: the enigmatic and endangered erect-crested penguin. “These…
Supreme Court Rules Voting Age of 18 is Discriminatory
New Zealand’s Supreme Court has ruled that the country’s current voting age of 18 is discriminatory, meaning parliament must discuss whether it should be lowered, Alys Davies reports for the BBC. The case was brought…
NIWA Scientists Say Tonga Eruption Record Size
A team of oceanographers, scientists and marine geologists headed by the New Zealand National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) investigating an underwater volcano that erupted on 15 January 2022 in the Tongan…
Cultural Champ Ken Gorbey Relishes Ninth Decade
Arts alumnus Ken Gorbey tells Megan Fowlie, reporting for Auckland University’s Ingenio magazine, that he is treating his ninth decade as he would a museum exhibition: he’s determined to make it an engaging experience. The…
The Night Aotearoa Won More than a Rugby Match
“The Women’s Rugby World Cup was a milestone for seeing Māori culture and worldview deeply embedded in Aotearoa’s national identity,” Tāmaki Makaurau- Auckland-based photojournalist and writer Cornell Tukiri (Ngaati Hikairo, Ngaati Whaawhaakia, Kāi Tahu)…
Female Lawmakers Outnumber Male in Parliament
For the first time in New Zealand’s history, a majority of its lawmakers are women, Nick Perry writes for Associated Press in a story published by the Los Angeles Times. Soraya Peke-Mason from the liberal…
Diary of Polar Explorer Clarence Hare Published
Early explorer New Zealander Clarence Hare, who survived being lost in Antarctica long before retiring to Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, has had his famous diary published for the first time, 55 years after his death,…
Code of Adobe Engineer Alan McLachlan Lives On
It’s likely Auckland-born Alan McLachlan’s code is running on your computer right now, Lizzy Lawrence writes for tech news site, Protocol. McLachlan, an engineer who helped create the PDF, has died in San Francisco….
Researchers Marvel at Godwit’s Migratory Flight
Tens of thousands of bar-tailed godwits are taking advantage of favourable winds in September and October for their annual migration from the mud flats and muskeg of southern Alaska, south across the vast expanse…
Descendants of Moriori Call for More Recognition
“Of all the peoples in the world who suffered during the course of the spread of English across the globe over the last 400 years, one of the groups that suffered the most were…
PM Jacinda Ardern Recalls Queen’s Good Advice
In a September interview with the BBC, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the Queen told her she had to “just get on with it” when asked for advice about being both a leader and…
New Zealand Sees Greatest Jump in Wealth in World
New Zealand experienced the greatest increase in adult wealth in the world in 2021, according to a new report by investment bank, Credit Suisse. Brady Knox, writing for the Washington Examiner, says the bank…
Even in Liberal-Leaning NZ Anglican Church Divided
Divisions over the acceptance of homosexuality have raised doubts about whether the Anglican Church can remain united, a conflict that has played out both on a global level and inside even liberal-leaning countries like…
New Zealand Mourns Death of Queen Elizabeth II
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has remembered Queen Elizabeth II as “extraordinary” in remarks echoed by leaders across the political spectrum as the country marked its first day of mourning for the monarch’s death, Charlotte…
Jacinda Ardern Implores Nuclear Weapons States
“Our world is at greater risk of nuclear catastrophe than at any time since the height of the cold war. Growing superpower tensions and two decades of stalled progress on arms control have pushed…
How the World’s Most Spongy City Tackles Floods
Auckland was recently named the most spongy global city in a report by multinational architecture and design firm Arup, thanks to its geography, soil type, and urban design – but experts warn it may…
Margaret Urlich a True and Rare Talent
Auckland-born Margaret Urlich, an Aria award-winning singer and one of New Zealand’s most successful musicians, has died at her home in New South Wales’ Southern Highlands, aged 57. Michael Sun of The Guardian looks…
Melissa Lee Highlights Parliament’s Diversity
Melissa Lee, the first and only Korean-born member of the New Zealand Parliament, is a go-to person for Korean nationals living in New Zealand, Kwon Mee-yoo writes for The Korea Times. First elected in 2008…
Endangered Kākāpō Gets Big Population Boost
The population of New Zealand’s endangered flightless kākāpō has increased by 25 per cent in the past year, bringing it up to 252 birds, the highest number since the 1970s, the ABC News reports. “There…
Support for Aotearoa Name Change Gathers Momentum
As the people of New Zealand confront their nation’s troubled past with colonisation and denying rights to Māori, a name change is being considered as a part of its own reckoning, NPR correspondents report. A…
Natural History Museum Returns Moriori Remains
London’s Natural History Museum has returned 111 Kōimi T’chakat Moriori (Moriori skeletal remains) to New Zealand, as part of the largest single repatriation of such remains to date. The remains of the indigenous people of…
New Zealand Designating Two US Groups as Terrorists May Have Global Impact
“New Zealand recently designated two US far-right groups, the Proud Boys and the Base, as terrorist organisations. This puts them in the same category as groups such as the Islamic State and makes it…
NZ Inflation Research Discussed in NY Times
“What’s worse, higher inflation or higher unemployment?” Peter Coy asks in The New York Times. “The answer is actually pretty straightforward: Higher unemployment is worse than higher inflation if you go by the feelings…
New Zealand’s Borders Open for Business
After more than two years, New Zealand is fully reopening its borders and welcoming back all international travellers, Charmaine Jacob reports in a CNBC story. The country is reopening on 31 July, some three…
Tā Moko Undergoing Unprecedented Renaissance
The traditional art of Māori tattooing, known as tā moko, was at risk of total extinction after New Zealand’s brutal colonial-era efforts to suppress indigenous culture. But 50 years later, tā moko is far…
Surgeon Harold Gillies Worked Wonders in WWI
Lindsey Fitzharris’ new book The Facemaker recounts the life and work of the pioneering reconstructive surgeon New Zealander Harold Gillies, a specialist in mending those who survived the mechanised slaughter of World War I…
Retracing the Last Sailing of Kerry Hamill
Kerry Hamill was a great letter-writer, so his family knew something was wrong when his carefully penned correspondence stopped in 1978. The young New Zealander accidentally sailed into Cambodian waters and was then captured,…
National’s Christopher Luxon Looks to Lead
New Zealand has become fearful, inward and negative as a result of its Covid settings and owes its expatriates an apology for locking them out during the pandemic, Christopher Luxon, the man vying to…
Helen Clark Co-Chairs New Global Health Commission
A new global health commission established by London think tank Chatham House, co-chaired by former prime minister Helen Clark and former president of Tanzania Jakaya Kikwete, seeks to strengthen worldwide medical systems to ensure…
Allbirds to Support US Staff Seeking Abortions
New Zealand-American company Allbirds says it will cover the costs of any US-based staff who need to travel for an abortion after a Supreme Court ruling led to bans in some states, New Zealand…
Innovative New Zealanders on Forbes Under 30 List
Four young New Zealanders have made this year’s Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list. They are: founder of the Conversion Therapy Action Group Shaneel Lal, 21; Emily Au-Young, 29, co-founder of period social enterprise,…
How the Soldiers Who Met Harold Gillies Recovered
A history of pioneering first world war plastic surgeon Harold Gillies gives due weight to the stories of the men he treated, The Guardian’s Wendy Moore writes in a review of a new book…
Ketanji Brown Jackson Applauds New Zealand’s Assault Weapons Ban
Future Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was seen applauding New Zealand’s assault weapons ban during Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s recent commencement speech at Harvard University as gun control rhetoric escalates among lawmakers following…
Sea Lions Continue Mainland Investigations
Sea lions are returning to New Zealand’s mainland after being hunted to near extinction in the 19th and early 20th century. Now, local people are learning to live with their new – very curious…
Climate Risk Potential for New Zealand Hydropower
With climate change set to bring more severe and frequent storms to some parts of the world and an increased risk of drought to others, for countries like New Zealand which relies on hydropower,…
A Question of Dialect for US-Based Abby Walker
To think or not to thank. That is the question that New Zealander Abby Walker and collaborator Janet van Hell might ask. And this is not about a mental exercise or simple courtesy. It…
Working with Assertive China a Must, Says PM
New Zealand has been aware for some time now of a “growing assertiveness” and a “growing interest” in its region – explicitly from China, according to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Karishma Vaswani writes for…
Composer Lyell Cresswell Globally Lauded
As a composer, everything Wellington-born composer Lyell Cresswell produced was pointedly genuine, Ken Walton writes in an obituary for The Scotsman. His output was immense, covering all genres from solo voice and chamber ensemble…
Blue Plaque to Honour Margaret Scott Hawthorne
Trailblazing Irish campaigner Margaret Scott Hawthorne who made “an outstanding contribution” to women’s rights in New Zealand has been recognised with a ‘Blue Plaque’, which was unveiled on the Main Street in her birthplace,…
Bruce Glavovic Urges Climate Scientists to Strike
Sometimes, Massey University professor Dr Bruce Glavovic feels so proud to be an environmental scientist, studying coastal planning and teaching future researchers, that it moves him to tears. Other times, he wonders whether any…
Temel Ataçocuğu Walks for Peace Back to Mosque
It’s been three years since Christchurch faced a horrifying attack – and now survivor Temel Ataçocuğu has finally returned to the scene of the crime, Mehek Mazhar reports in a story for CBC Radio. Ataçocuğu…
Hundreds Held After New Zealand-Led Investigation
A two-year investigation led by the Department of Internal Affairs in New Zealand has resulted in the arrests of hundreds of people around the globe on charges of possessing and sharing child sexual abuse…
Māori Party Asks QEII for Divorce to Heal Colonial Wounds
Among celebrations for the 70th anniversary of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, the Māori Party has proposed New Zealand’s “divorce” from the British Crown to heal wounds left by the colonisation of native…
New Zealand Bans LGBT+ Conversion Therapy
New Zealand has passed legislation banning conversion therapy based on a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression. The Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill was passed almost unanimously with 112 votes in favour and…
Va’aiga Tuigamala a Huge Presence on the Field
Samoa-born Va’aiga Tuigamala, a former All Black, and rugby league player for Wigan Warriors and Newcastle Falcons dual-code international, has died in Auckland at the age of 52, BBC Sport reports. Tuigamala, nicknamed Inga the…
Thinking Differently with Alice Boyes
Greymouth-born former clinical psychologist, writer Alice Boyes, speaks with the UK’s New Statesman about the value of thinking differently, border restrictions in New Zealand and her experience of IVF. Boyes, who is now the…
Rugby League Farewells Legendary Olsen Filipaina
Pioneering Kaikohe-born rugby league great Olsen Filipaina has died at the age of 64. Filipaina was a trailblazer, George Clarke writes in a story published online at Australia’s 7News, becoming one of the first…
