Timothy Welch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Anna Matheson, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington; Craig Elliffe, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Dennis Wesselbaum, University of Otago; Hiran Thabrew, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Julia Talbot-Jones, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington, and Mark Barrow, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
Finance minister Nicola Willis made good on two promises with her first budget – tax cuts and no surprises. But the belt tightening required to do that will have longer-term consequences.
Timothy Welch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
A report released next week argues the real problem with New Zealand’s inadequate infrastructure is not money – it’s the three-year political cycle. We need a 30-year, cross-party national plan.
Tom Baker, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Cristina Temenos, University of Manchester, and Kevin Ward, University of Manchester
City deals are being touted as the answer to NZ’s local infrastructure problems. Lessons from the UK and Australia suggest greater transparency and more coherent planning should be on the table too.
Water runs into a storm drain in a Los Angeles alley on Aug. 19, 2023, during Tropical Storm Hilary.
Citizen of the Planet/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
US cities are doing green infrastructure, but in bits and pieces. Today’s climate-driven floods require a much broader approach to create true sponge cities that are built to soak up water.
Social inclusion gives slum dwellers a voice to advocate for their rights and interests, leading to more inclusive and equitable policies and practices.
Farm workers in South Africa will face difficulty working through heatwaves if global warming continues.
Klaus Vedfeldt/Getty Images
The University of Cape Town’s new report on the impacts of climate change in South Africa found that heatwaves and water stress will affect jobs, deepen inequality, and increase gender-based violence.
The new Royal Courts of Justice in London, opened in 1882 and photographed here between 1897 and 1899.
The Queen's Empire. Volume 3. Cassell & Co. London|Wikimedia
Extreme downpours and droughts, both fueled by rising global temperatures, are taking a toll. Communities trying to manage the threats face three big challenges.
Wetlands at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Maryland shows signs of ‘pitting,’ where areas of cordgrass have converted to open water.
Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program via Wikimedia
A coastal scientist explains why marshes, mangroves and other wetlands can’t keep up with the effects of climate change, and how human infrastructure is making it harder for them to survive.
The Baltimore bridge didn’t stand a chance.
AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson
A civil engineer lays out the physics behind Dali’s crash into the Francis Scott Key Bridge pier.
Lesotho’s Katse Dam, which forms part of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project, with underground tunnels carrying this water to South Africa.
Walter Dhladhla/AFP/Getty Images
The tunnel bringing millions of litres of water from dams in Lesotho to South Africa is to undergo a six-month repair. This could leave residents of Gauteng in South Africa short of water.
New Zealand’s councils are over-reliant on ratepayers to cover increasing costs. Central government needs to help support councils to do the work that helps local communities thrive.