Slip Away
NZ’s Slipper Island features in a Guardian list hailing the world’s top 5 exotic escapes. “On a private island off the Coromandel Peninsula you can swim off the white-sand beach and fish for snapper. Stay in…
Tag Archives: New Zealand
At the Forefront of Disease Control
Professor Neil Pearce, Director of NZ’s Centre for Public Health Research, was elected President of the International Epidemiology Association (IEA) at the recent World Congress of Epidemiology held in Bangkok. The first ever president from the Southern Hemisphere,…
Nile by Mile
NZer Cam McLeay is co-leading an expedition aimed at accurately measuring the length of the River Nile. The six person team began their journey at Rosetta, Egypt, and will travel through Sudan, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and…
Prussia of the Pacific?
A Guardian columnist points out an eerie similarity between the recent elections in NZ and Germany. Both were held on the same weekend and both delivered a spectacularly close finish between the two dominant centre-right and centre-left…
Major Campbell
2005 is undoubtedly Michael Campbell’s year. Not content with winning the US Open last month, Campo has snatched a “knife-edge” victory in the HSBC World Matchplay Championship at Wentworth. Past winners of the esteemed tournament, which boasts…
Less is More
In a study released by the World Bank, New Zealand has been named the most business-friendly nation in the world. The study ranked 155 countries and was based on classic American assumptions of economic success, like…
Future Craft Flies Thanks to Kiwi Know-how
NZ engineer Bill White has designed an ultra-lightweight engine to power a “back to the future” style mini helicopter for US company AirScooter. Christchurch based company Pegasus Aviation began developing the AeroTwin engine in the 1990s…
Aotearoa: The People’s Choice
NZ has been voted the best country in the world and overall winner of the 2005 Condé Nast Traveller Awards in the UK. “The result is gratifying not just because of the win, but because the…
Gold Rush
NZ won a staggering four gold medals at the world rowing championships in Kaizu, Japan. The unbeatable Evers-Swindell twins (Georgina and Caroline) won the women’s double sculls, Nathan Twaddle and George Bridgewater the men’s pairs, Nicky Coles…
Ben Ohau Doing Just Fine
The South Island’s MacKenzie Basin is internationally famous for two things; providing the stunning backdrop to the final battle in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and producing the most consistently high quality merino wool in…
The New Wave
Two NZ companies made international business magazine Red Herring‘s vaunted “Top 100 Private Companies in Asia” list for 2005. Esphion and Argent Networks, both based in Auckland, are rated as companies which could significantly…
Best Put to the Test
Travel & Leisure writer sniffs out the best luxury retreats in NZ – a country where “everyone is a hotelier, or so it can sometimes seem.” After testing the waters at Eagle’s Nest (Russell), Otahuna Lodge…
Wave Watching
The Surfer’s Path features top New Zealand surf spots in its 50th edition. In a gallery of images titled “Aotearoa Light Play”, one of surf photography’s greats Aaron Chang and rapidly rising star Brian Nevins captured…
Drawn to the Edge
Michele Law is currently working the most challenging assignment of her already distinguished legal career. As a lawyer for the UN Office of Constitutional Support, Law is helping to draft Iraq’s first constitution. The Canterbury University graduate…
Kyoto Protocol a “Feelgood Gimmick”
Meanwhile, SMH columnist Miranda Devine says “Our Kiwi neighbours, once smug about ecological superiority, face a cost blow-out from the treaty exceeding $NZ1 billion ($900 million). The farcical result is that even though the country produces only…
Top 10 for 100%
New Zealand has ranked 10th in an index of the strongest brands in the world compiled by marketing research firms Anholt-GMI. New Zealand had positive brand values and managed, like Ireland which came 13th,…
Design on the Money
Auckland based Cabco Group Ltd is to provide hi-tech shopping carts for US retail giants Wal-Mart and H.E Butt. The Wal-Mart deal alone is expected to net the company $50 million per annum. The TV Cart is…
World’s fastest kiwi
Screenwriter and director Roger Donaldson’s film The World’s Fastest Indian was a roaring success at the Cannes Film Festival. It has quickly become the most sought after feature in the Cannes Market…
Sam’s Back
Called by Kerry Packer “the world’s best television executive,” NZ-born Sam Chisholm is back helming Packer’s Channel Nine. In the 90s he turned UK’s BSkyB into a cash cow for Rupert Murdoch. The Auckland born…
Brits on the Move
The Times article explores the current trend of Britons emigrating to NZ, focusing on a young family from Bath who settled in Wanganui a year and a half ago. According to Paul and Estelle Collins, positives…
San Fran Success Story
NZ company Holmes Culley has won the Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (SEAONC) Award for Best Retrofit Project Using Conventional Technology for its strengthening work on San Francisco Piers 1½, 3 and 5. Zander Sirvyer headed…
Rugby Fever Reaches New Heights
The All Blacks demolished the British and Irish Lions in three straight Tests, in one of the most highly anticipated rugby tours of recent years. The hype both at home and in the UK was spectacular,…
Surf’s Up
The powerful, curling waves that draw surfers to beaches will soon be breaking inland, thanks to a novel shape-shifting rubber reef that can be fitted to the floor of a swimming pool. The Versareef,…
Employment Looking Up
According to new figures released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), NZ has the second highest employment growth rate in the developed world. The report shows that NZ’s labour force grew 3.4% last year,…
You Can’t Buy Happiness
NZ born lecturer of economics at Stanford University, John McMillan, believes that the obsession NZ politicians have with raising the country’s per capita income to equal that of Australia is a waste of time. “Any cross-country comparison…
In Defense of Whales
NZ led the anti-whaling nations at the International Whaling Commission meeting in Ulsan. Headed by Conservation Minister Chris Carter, the delegation included officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and DoC, as well as Whaling Commissioner Sir…
Industry in Good Hands
Malaysian Star feature looks at NZ’s thriving film, multimedia and technology schools; specifically Auckland’s South Seas Film and Television School, Media Design School, and University of Technology (AUT), and Palmerston North’s University College of Learning (UCol). “Thanks to…
Kia Kaha Cambo
Michael Campbell held off a late charge by Tiger Woods to win the 105th US Open at Pinehurst, his first major championship. He become the first Kiwi to win a major title since Bob Charles…
Triumph of Nature
Cairo magazine writer admires NZ’s greatest natural resource – the landscape itself – in a hiking tour of NZ. “Once we finally got it was easy to imagine what it had once…
Land of the Free-thinking
New Zealand: Leading a Small Nation Across a Tightrope, offers an in-depth analysis of the abilities and international standing of PM Helen Clark, and outlines the numerous difficulties inherent in “governing a country of free-thinking Kiwis.” The…
Hot Spots Outed
“Scenic, comfortable and tolerant, NZ has always been an attractive destination for gay and lesbian travellers. In recent times things have been getting even better, with gay venues and activities popping up like drag queens in a…
Six Out of Six Sevens
NZ claimed its sixth successive IRB Sevens World Series victory, ahead of the final leg of the competition in France. By the end of the London Sevens tournament in June, NZ had enough overall points to…
View to a Thrill
San Francisco Chronicle travel writer recommends Wellington’s Rawhiti B&B. “On a recent trip to New Zealand, I discovered a wonderful bed and breakfast very close to the centre of Wellington. Rawhiti, a former family home, has fabulous…
4-way FTA
PM Helen Clark has signed negotiations for a free trade agreement spanning four continents. The Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement brings together NZ, Brunei, Singapore and Chile, and will come into effect in January 2006.
Paris in Love
Viva magazine features New Zealand fashion designer Frances Howie, named one of the eight designers to-look-out for by British Vogue. Howie is designing in Paris for one of France’s oldest couture labels,…
Earthly Paradise
A South African couple take a tour NZ by campervan, pronouncing it “Eden on Earth.” Highlights include the Moeraki Boulders at Omaru, Lanarch Castle, Franz Josef Glacier, Tongariro National Park, Sandspit and the Waipoua Forest.
More than just a pretty face
“Ah, NZ. Land of outdoor beauty, fresh air, long walks over rugged terrain – but, come on, do you really want to fly halfway around the world for something you could find in Cornwall?” The Guardian…
Opposing Views
Free Liberal weblog comments on a Washington Times article detailing NZ’s anti-nuclear stance, military capabilities, and reliance on its more powerful neighbor. “An interesting story about how NZ’s rather modest defense budget and decision to stay out…
International Man of Mystery
Wayne Gould – retired NZ judge turned “international puzzle star” – is responsible for the latest craze in newspaper teasers, Su Doku. Gould discovered the number-based logic test in a Japanese bookstore in 1997. After six years…
Dishing the Dirt
NZ scientists at the Institute of Environmental Science and Research have developed a high-tech yet cost-effective new crime -fighting technique. The revolutionary system uses DNA analysis of the bacteria in soil to match a database of samples…
Sail Away
The Age showcases five of the best NZ cruises on offer; Milford Sound, Hole in the Rock (Bay of Islands), Lake Wakitipu, Inter-Islander crossing, and the Doubtful Sound overnight cruise.
All in a Day’s Work
The Economist reports on ructions to repair the dire finances and arcane structure at Oxford University. Proposals by new vice chancellor John Hood to centralize decision-making and change the way in which dons’ work…
Golden Oldies Return to the Source
Wellington is to host next year’s World Golden Oldies Rugby Festival, the first time the event has been held in NZ since it was launched there 28 years ago. The festival is expected to attract approximately 5,000,…
Closing the Gap
NZ ranks sixth overall in a new study measuring the gap between genders by the Geneva-based World Economic Forum. The top five positions went to Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway and Iceland. The WEF appraisal of 58 countries…
First Win the Sweetest
NZ triathlete Samantha Warriner enjoyed her first major victory, taking out the women’s title at the ITU World Cup in Japan. Warriner finished the event in 2 hours 39 seconds, ahead of Japanese competitors Kiyomi Niwata…
Olympus comes to Aotearoa
Hercules, a Hallmark Productions (US) telemovie starring Leelee Sobieski, Sean Astin, and Timothy Dalton, used the NZ countryside as a stand-in for ancient Greece. “The story requires a bigger-than-life place,” says Dalton. “It needs…
Liddell to Work on Margins
TBR believes the addition of New Zealander Chris Liddell as Microsoft’s CFO should help usher in an era of growing operating margins and a tightening of the fiscal belt. In TBR’s opinion, the hiring…
Right Royal Honour
Rt Hon Justice Thomas Munro Gault is to be the first NZ’er in history to head the Royal & Ancient – the prestigious governing body on the rules of golf recognised everywhere except the U.S. Gault,…
Putting Our Money Where Our Mouth Is
In a show of commitment to the Kyoto Protocol, NZ became the first country in the world to levy a public carbon tax. NZers will now pay an extra $2.90 per week for electricity, petrol and…
Big Boys Taken down
Tourism NZ website New Zealand.com has won the online equivalent of an Oscar – a Webby . The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences named New Zealand.com the top tourism website in the world,…
46 South
New Zealand surfing photographer Paul Kennedy plunges into the Deep South to an emerging big-wave scene. “In New Zealand, size comes at a price. The trade-off for being the only part of the country…
NZ Cancer Rates Third Worst in World
New international research from IRAC show NZ men and women have the third highest cancer rates in the world. Male cancer rates are highest in the United States, Hungary and New Zealand, and lowest in Niger,…
New Law Embraced
Planet Out feature looks at the newly instated Civil Union Bill in NZ. More than 600 couples registered for a civil union in the first week after the law came into effect. The article quotes GayNZ.com…
White Knuckle Fun
NZ’s latest extreme sport – white water sledging – features in the Voice of America. “Instead of a raft, these ‘sledgers’ run the rapids with special flippers and a steerable buoyant board … River sledger Jacob Bradley…
Mutual Milestone
76 Tampa refugees were made NZ citizens on April 8, including the youngest on board Azizullah Mussa (now 17). “I’ve been waiting three years for this day to come. I can call myself a Kiwi now,”…
Regal Eagle Leads the Best
Eagles’s Nest, Bay of Islands, was named NZ’s ‘Number 1 Leading Resort’ at the 11th annual World Travel Awards in Barbados. The luxury homestead has already been voted one of the Top New Hotels in the World…
