Nature | New Scientist
13 December 2002
NZ’s possum epidemic has made unlikely bed-fellows of environmentalists and fur-trappers. New Scientist looks at a globally unique situation, where groups such as WWF actively support the trapping of an animal for its fur and meat as…
Science/Tech | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
10 December 2002
In a bid to be “taken seriously,” members of NZ’s IT community have requested permission to use geek.nz as a second-level domain in the country. The office of the NZ Domain Name Commissioner plans to stage…
Nature | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
10 December 2002
“Somewhere east of New Zealand, where Gondwana’s break-up may have started some 130 million years ago, with New Zealand splitting from Australia, ‘the last resources of mankind’ could be awaiting discovery. So say a crew of German…
Politics and Economics | gooff.com
3 December 2002
“Because of the congenial climate and lack of pollution, Godzone politicians are generally taller and stronger than those cloned overseas. Nestled at the bottom of the world, gravity is stronger and extra strength is required to stand…
Business | Ananova
2 December 2002
NZ-born businessman John Buchanan has been appointed senior independent director of BHP Billiton, effective 1 February 2003. Buchanan was formerly chief financial officer at Britain’s BP.
Politics and Economics | Gulf Business
1 December 2002
“It’s more than just a big farm in the South Pacific, it’s a modern, sophisticated economy with some real niche products.” Gulf Business cover feature highlights the increasingly diverse interaction between NZ and the UAE. In the…
Fashion | I-D Magazine
1 December 2002
“It’s not just about the Datsun’s, you know …” Style bible i-D devotes a section of its Cruise Issue to Kiwi creativity. As well as the obvious candidates – Karen Walker, The D4, Natalija…
New Zealand | GEO Saison
1 December 2002
44-page cover spread on NZ in December’s GEO Saison – Germany’s premiere travel magazine. The article, “New Zealand – Setting out into the Big Freedom,” focuses on ex-pat Germans in Aotearoa, from Northland to Stewart Island. The…
Rugby | Business Day
1 December 2002
A “ferocious all-around display” saw NZ win the first leg of the International Rugby Board World Sevens Series in Dubai. NZ defeated Samoa 36-0 to take their fourth straight victory in the event. The same form didn’t…
Medicine/Health | Guardian (The) | Scoop
28 November 2002
NZ’s “third man of the double helix” Maurice Wilkins has been honoured in the lead-up to next year’s 50th anniversary of DNA. In 1962, Wilkins shared the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with fellow discoverers…
America’s Cup | USA Today
22 November 2002
USA Today ponders Kiwi dominance of the America’s Cup. “No matter that the boats will fly the flags of Switzerland and the United States. The men at the helm are Kiwis, New Zealanders, “mates.” Kiwis are…
Medicine/Health | CNN
20 November 2002
NZ bioengineering group, Christian Cook, have developed a radical method of keeping Team NZ one step ahead of their rivals. Health levels of the 36 sailors are monitored via a daily “blood reading.” The low-frequency ultrasound delivers…
Obituaries | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
16 November 2002
“David Lewis was the most wonderfully fantastic scallywag I have ever met. His love for the ocean can only be balanced by the love of beautiful women for him” (Dick Smith). David Lewis -…
America’s Cup | Washington Post
10 November 2002
“America’s Cup? Why, we call it the Kiwi’s Cup now!” An encounter with “a proper cocky Kiwi” sees Post writer Angus Phillips ruminate over this auld mug called the America’s Cup. This year’s competition sees New Zealanders…
New Zealand | Independent (The)
8 November 2002
The South Island was ranked fourth on the BBC‘s “50 places to see before you die,” clocking in behind the Grand Canyon, Great Barrier Reef, and Disney World. The list was compiled via a phone…
Wine | Washington Post
5 November 2002
American wine guru, Michael Franz, has made a wager that the NZ wine industry (“well organized, unusually cooperative, and marked by a spirit of openness and innovation”) will be producing the best wines outside Europe 20 years from…
Rugby | Guardian (The)
2 November 2002
“Playing New Zealand means battling against the myths, legends and history of the All Blacks. In this professional era the aggression, determination and sheer ferociousness of the New Zealand game make them so hard to beat.” English…
Obituaries | Times (The)
31 October 2002
NZer Betty Molesworth Allen, OBE-awarded botanist and explorer, has died aged 89. Allen made her career in some of the harshest regions in the world; from the rainforests of Borneo, to the cliff-faces of southern Spain….
Science/Tech | BBC News
28 October 2002
Joseph Merrick (the Elephant Man) is still drawing crowds. This time round, Merrick’s deformities are attracting genealogists and scientists, rather than circus-goers. A team of NZ researchers wants to find living descendents of Merrick and take samples…
Sport General | Bernama.com
27 October 2002
NZ runners Jonathan Wyatt and Melissa Moon won the men’s and women’s categories at the World Towerthon in Malaysia. The event involves an 800m run from the Kuala Lumpur Tower entrance, followed by a grueling climb…
Fashion | Stars Online
22 October 2002
Are you looking at us? Rebecca Weinberg, Emmy-Award winning stylist from Sex and the City, was a headlining guest at New Zealand Fashion Week. Weinberg crossed the Tasman in search of The Next Big…
Fashion | Hollywood | Los Angeles Times | Vanity Fair
20 October 2002
“She is a ball of fire in Chinese pajama pants; she is a whirling dervish, a Nepalese tonka with a million faces, a human mandala.” The work of LA-based artist Joanne Gair – the…
Obituaries | Guardian (The) | Washington Post
13 October 2002
Tributes continue to flow for NZ-born former PM of Southern Rhodesia, Sir Garfield Todd. The Washington Post obituary remembers his “rugged good looks, fluent oratory and lucid memory,” and The Guardian calls him “an internationally…
New Zealand | Los Angeles Times
13 October 2002
LA Times‘ Youth Beat offers tips for the budget traveller. “NZ has a reputation for having the world’s best hostels, and one thing that helps to keep the hostel owners on their toes is the Blue…
Politics and Economics | BBC News
10 October 2002
“Top city dame teaches Brit woman a trick or two”: BBC News series on women in business profiles overachieving NZer and head of City of London, Dame Judith Mayhew.”For a glimpse of Britain’s future, look not to…
New Zealand | New York Times (The)
6 October 2002
Turning conventional wisdom upside down New York Times finds that:”isolation, long an obstacle to international tourism, has become a plus in the post-Sept. 11 world. New Zealand, long promoted as clean and green, is now adding “safe.”…
America’s Cup | New York Times (The)
6 October 2002
Warren St. John backgrounds the moguls and money questing for the America’s Cup, pondering at the ‘pet projects’ of sporting tycoons like Larry Ellison: “they have hired the best sailors money can buy, sometimes moving them…
Rugby | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
6 October 2002
The New Zealand Warriors averted an Australian national emergency by falling at the final hurdle in their proud and historic run to the National Rugby League Grand Final, losing to Sydney Roosters 3-8. From ruin two…
New Zealand | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
1 October 2002
In the Sydney Morning Herald: “New Zealand’s most uplifting tourist attraction, a brassiere-hung fence in the Cardrona valley in Otago is being restored. Farmer John Lee will wire 400 bras – sent to him by women…
New Zealand | Travel and Leisure
1 October 2002
Spurred by the America’s Cup (“couldn’t be in a more fabulous setting”) Travel + Leisure checks out the evolving new world styles of Auckland: “The city has evolved over the past two decades from…
Rugby | Observer (The)
1 October 2002
Tours to the Northern Hemisphere winter by the The All Blacks, Wallabies and Springboks saw some interesting pre-World Cup square offs with NZ, France and England (!) jostling for favouritism at the whistle. The match…
Watersports | World Rowing Championships | worldrowing.com
21 September 2002
Living up to expectations, Georgina and Caroline Evers-Swindell powered to gold at the 2002 World Rowing Championships in Seville, continuing a strong lineage of NZ international rowing achievement. Winning comfortably, the twins knocked more than three seconds…
Nature | swissinfo.ch
17 September 2002
” has built up something of a reputation for bringing endangered birds back from the brink of extinction,” the kakapo being a prime example. Armed with electric blankets, video monitoring equipment, and over 100 volunteer nest-minders, NZ…
Medicine/Health | Arts & Letters Daily | Edge.org
9 September 2002
Influential scientist Steven (The Language Instinct) Pinker names New Zealanders Brian Boyd and Denis Dutton amongst his exemplary practitoners contributing towards a third culture “convergence” of art and science. To Pinker, the Nabakov scholar and founder of…
Rugby | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
9 September 2002
“Kiwis break a few hearts.” The New Zealand Warriors continue an impressive NRL season by finishing top of the table and taking out the minor pemiership (and a $100,000 bonus for the club) – meaning…
New Zealand | New York Times (The)
8 September 2002
Writer Luba Vangelova takes a road trip up the “stunningly beautiful” east coast of the North Island – a journey described as “temporal as well as geographical.” Vangelova muses over the locals who ” the lost days…
Politics and Economics | Independent (The)
8 September 2002
Sir Richard Branson continues his upward trajectory in the world of aviation. Branson’s Australian domestic airline – Virgin Blue – is about to triple its fleet by purchasing 40 new jets. The possibility of extending flights to…
Watersports | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
7 September 2002
Australian fly-fishing convert Margie Blok declares NZ an angler’s paradise. Blok describes her chopper ride into the inaccessible headwaters south-east of Lake Taupo as yielding “the ultimate fly-fishing experience”: “…the hypnotic noise of the river and the…
Education | Guardian (The)
3 September 2002
A letter penned by Captain Cook announcing his return from Australasian waters has been discovered stuck behind a picture frame at Brancaster Hall, England. The 200-year old missive “recalls the grim hardship of what is now considered…
New Zealand | Conde Nast Traveler
1 September 2002
US Conde Nast Traveler’s influential “hot list” names the Auckland Hilton, Eagle’s Nest in the Bay of Islands, and the lodge at Kauri Cliffs as the premier places to stay in NZ. Auckland’s
Nature | Kea | Times (The)
1 September 2002
Judy Diamond and Alan B. Bond’s spent hours at an Arthur’s Pass rubbish dump working out the evolutionary significance of the kea: “Keas are giant mountain parrots, and they love cars, especially soft-tops. If you leave…
Politics and Economics | CNN News
29 August 2002
A survey of 102 countries by German-based Transparency International found NZ to be one of the least corrupt states. The annual report claims “to reflect perceived levels of corruption among politicians and public officials.” NZ scored 9.5…
Business | Independent (The)
28 August 2002
Kiwi entrepreneur, Dick Hubbard, profiled in Independent. “A highly unconventional capitalist,” Cereal evangelist Hubbard is NZ’s chief advocate of social responsibility in business, joining international brands such as Benetton and The Body Shop in his claim to…
Fashion | Observer (The)
25 August 2002
6 page Observer spread: Walker uses her distance to advantage, preferring the hilltops of Auckland to the glamour and pace of Europe. “Karen Walker’s lived-in fabrics and homely knits evoke her idyllic New Zealand…
Science/Tech | Salon.com
22 August 2002
“What’s all the fuss about the Wright Bros? All good Kiwis know New Zealand’s Richard Pearse got there first.” With the centenary of his flight looming, Debbi Gardiner, writes in Salon about his place in history and…
Fashion | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
10 August 2002
Ah, to be able to wear fur without fear of red paint. The possum’s status as NZ’s chief environmental menace has encouraged the fashion industry to use its fur for everything from bags to…
New Zealand | Sydney Morning Herald (The)
10 August 2002
NZ slopes get the thumbs up from Oz ski-buffs. The Southern Alps: “bigger than the Swiss, French and Austrian Alps combined” – are praised for their variety, beauty, and value for the dollar in a comprehensive SMH report.
Watersports | Independent (The)
5 August 2002
NZ twins Georgina and Caroline Evers-Swindell continue to impress on the international rowing circuit. The pair won gold at July’s World Cup in Munich and are tipped to do the same at next month’s World…
Rugby | BBC News | Independent (The) | NZ Rugby Sevens
4 August 2002
Kiwi dominance impresses at Manchester where they prove themselves masters of the form: “New Zealand dominate seven-a-side rugby the way that Lance Armstrong lords it over cycling, Tiger Woods bestrides the world of golf and…
Science/Tech | Economist (The)
1 August 2002
The argument over whether environment or genetics plays the bigger part in creating violent dispositions is moving towards a tentative reconciliation. London-based research has proposed that the level of a particular gene – MAOA, which regulates an…
New Zealand | Vogue
1 August 2002
Vogue Living (Australia) visits the gardens of the exlusive Huka Lodge, designed by Suzanne Turley. “With brilliant green lawns punctuated by conifers, native trees and sub-tropical plants, the serene garden of New Zealand’s Huka Lodge encapsulates nature’s…
General | Independent (The)
25 July 2002
NZ was ranked 19th best place to live according to the UN Development Programme’s annual quality of life survey. The report looks at issues such as life expectancy, per capita income, educational opportunities, and…
Sport General | 2009 Manchester | NZ Rugby Sevens
25 July 2002
All-comers finished in the green and gold shadow of Australia, but New Zealand completed a successful Commonwealth Games campaign, finishing a credible 5th on the medal table, with 11 golds in rugby sevens, cycling (Sarah Ulmer…
Politics and Economics | Australian (The)
24 July 2002
NZ representative Paul Cotton responds to Greg Sheridan’s criticism of NZ’s independent defence stance in The Australian (20/7). As Cotton avers, “It doesn’t seem that the Kiwis are suffering too much from just being a ‘very,…
Politics and Economics | BBC News
22 July 2002
Yachts containing more than 50 protesters from NZ, Australia and Vanuatu confronted a ship carrying nuclear waste through the Tasman Sea from Britain to Japan. According to Greenpeace, the cargo contained enough nuclear material for 50 bombs,…
Sport General | Telegraph (The)
22 July 2002
Sebastian Coe reminisces about the grand days of athletics, when athletes focused on ambitious all-round feats. For a middle- distance runner, “no championship season was complete without a tilt at the 800m-1500m double.” He cites NZ legend…