As New Zealand emerges from its Omicron wave, increasing hybrid immunity and access to antivirals mean it’s time to shift the focus of COVID management.
Academic rigor, journalistic flair
University of Otago
Established in 1869 with great vision and foresight from Dunedin’s early settlers, the University of Otago is New Zealand’s oldest university. Today, the university has around 20,000 students, employs more than 3,800 staff, and is a significant educational, economic and cultural force. It has over 150,000 former students and enjoys a prestigious global reputation for outstanding research and scholarship.
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Only half of New Zealand’s roughly 4,000 mollusc species have been seen alive. Now geneticists can decode DNA from shells in museum collections to trace the life histories of extinct or rare species.
New Zealand has ramped up biosecurity measures due to an Indonesian foot and mouth scare, but the disease can have huge impacts well beyond the agricultural economy.
Rising temperatures are having an impact on every aspect of people’s lives. Business is not immune to the volatile weather.
Case numbers are falling in all age groups, including over-70s. This is good news as case rates in older people have been a key driver of the steep rise in hospitalisations and deaths in this wave.
Modelling studies estimate the smokefree generation policy could halve smoking prevalence within 14 years among people aged 45 and younger and achieve a more than a five-fold health gain for Māori.
Legislation now entering parliament aims to make Aotearoa New Zealand smokefree by 2025. Forecast effects show huge potential health gains, especially for Māori.
Based on certain criteria, New Zealand is clearly ‘winning’. But getting policy settings right over the long haul is about more than just having the most favourable assessment on selected criteria.
When the meteor exploded into pieces above New Zealand, it produced a shock wave strong enough to be picked up by earthquake seismometers. But any fragments have likely dropped into the ocean.
At a time of geopolitical uncertainty, New Zealand’s government has distinctive reasons for opposing Putin’s Ukraine invasion and expressing public reservations about China’s ambition in the Pacific.
Research suggests that if vapes had never been introduced, many young non-smokers may not have started using any nicotine products.
In Russia, a draconian censorship regime makes open dissent impossible. But people are finding ingenious ways to express their opposition to the war in Ukraine.
Australia has them, so why doesn’t New Zealand have national or regional fossil emblems? A campaign to change that kicks off today.
When it comes to men’s health strategies, New Zealand has fallen behind countries like Mongolia, Iran and Malaysia. In Men’s Health Week it’s time to ask: what is the plan to save men’s lives?
The government’s COVID policy for schools needs to shift from insisting on attendance to supporting the well-being of children, staff and families wherever they are.
DNA from ancient eastern moa bones is unlocking the secrets of their survival during the last ice age, and providing lessons for today’s threatened species.
The New Zealand government has set the goal of net zero by 2050 but to get there, New Zealanders will need to let go of our big cars and embrace smaller options.
Public health remains the Cinderella of services when it comes to health budgets. But the pandemic has shown why New Zealand urgently needs a better investment approach.
Studies show if medical staff talk about potential side effects in negative terms, the patient’s experience can worsen. We need to consider this ‘nocebo’ effect when talking about COVID vaccinations.
A return of mega cruise liners would go against the government’s express desire to create a new, sustainable tourism model.
Authors
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Professor of Marine Science, University of Otago
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Professor of History, University of Otago
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Senior Lecturer, Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Otago
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Associate Professor in Surgery, University of Otago
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Senior Lecturer in Bioethics, University of Otago
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Associate Professor of Hauora Māori, University of Otago
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PhD Candidate (Ecology), University of Otago
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Associate Professor of International Politics and Principal Research Fellow, Institute for Indo-Pacific Affairs (Christchurch), University of Otago
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Teaching Fellow, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Otago
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Associate Professor in Health Promotion, University of Otago
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Professor of International Relations, University of Otago
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Senior Lecturer in Marketing , University of Otago
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Lecturer in Bioethics, University of Otago
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Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago
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Professor of Ecology, University of Otago
