Does New Zealand have more to lose than gain by joining ‘pillar two’ of the AUKUS security pact? The next government will have to decide, with serious implications for the country’s foreign policy.
Both major parties are promising major road projects this election. Meanwhile, the potential for passenger and freight rail to help meet the country’s climate goals seems stuck at the station.
Space exploration is often propelled by competition, driven by national pride and with little thought about consequence. It is time to consider space as a commons, not just a resource to exploit.
Outgoing New Zealand MP Jamie Strange used his valedictory speech to propose a trans-Tasman political union. Wondering how that might work reveals just how different the two countries really are.
The first sign of a new bird flu might be a dead seabird or marine mammal. Better surveillance of migratory birds and wildlife – and better public awareness – is crucial.
With an inflation rate peaking at just 4.4%, Japan seems to be getting something right about managing economic pressures. How does it do this, and should New Zealand revisit its own strategies?
Mike Joy, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
Access to fossil fuels allowed humanity to overshoot Earth’s biophysical limits. The crises we now face are all symptoms of this overshoot, and the only fix is to cut our demands on the biosphere.
The National Party wants a blanket ban on cellphones in school. But international research suggests improving student engagement is complex, and such a policy might even be counterproductive.
Humans have been making symbols for numbers for thousands of years. Different cultures developed their own symbols, but all use addition and multiplication, suggesting arithmetic is a universal truth.
Timothy Welch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
A new report sets out the practical ways New Zealand can improve its urban resilience to flooding due to climate change. But time, rather than money, is of the essence.
The Security Intelligence Service needs public support and trust to do its work well. Adding a degree of transparency to it’s annual threat assessment should help.
New Zealanders will need to get used to bigger defence budgets – and change their attitudes to the military – if the new national security strategy is to be properly implemented.
Dr Wendy Liu, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Anne Bardsley, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Jennifer Salmond, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Kristiann Allen, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Marc Tadaki, Cawthron Institute, and Martin Brook, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
Not all environmental change is obvious. But incremental and cumulative changes can be just as harmful as more immediate and observable events, meaning risk management practices need to adapt.
Alan Bollard, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
The Cold War was an economic standoff as well as an atomic one. The author of a new book describes the minds behind the great ideological battles on that 20th-century front line.
Kevin Trenberth, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
The BlackRock climate fund is a start, but New Zealand needs a comprehensive approach to tackling its various environmental and economic vulnerabilities to the climate crisis.
A vocal minority is calling for sexuality education to be pulled from schools. But my research shows many parents and young people want and need safe places to discuss relationships and sex.
Nearly everyone agrees the 68-year-old Adoption Act is not fit for purpose. So where is the political will for change, and how much longer do families touched by adoption have to wait?
Jane Horan, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
People from NZ charities and not-for-profits told me volunteers and paid staff can spend months on basic banking processes. But just one ‘golden unicorn’ bank employee can make all the difference.
New Zealand faces “more geostrategic challenges than we have had in decades”, according to the defence minister. A broad defence and security reset aims to prepare the country for what may be ahead.
Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences, Auckland University of Technology, and Professor of Political Science, Charles Sturt University