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'Every little bit counts':

The Government has announced significant increases to Superannuation, main benefits and student supports as part of a "bread and butter support" package coming into effect on April 1.It's expected to cost an additional $311 million, but the Government said it means about 1.4 million New Zealanders will "not go backwards" as most of the changes are aligned with increases in inflation.The announcement comes on the same day StatsNZ revealed food prices rose 12 percent in the year to February, the h...

Putting trees back

Around the world, cities are trying to boost their tree cover - and here in New Zealand, it's no different.While trees have been in the news for smashing into houses and damaging powerlines during the recent storms, there are many benefits to having them in our streets, parks and backyards.Erika Commers, urban forest team leader at Auckland Council, manages half a million trees on streets and in parks in our biggest city.Just 18 percent of Auckland's urban area is covered in trees - the council ...

Auckland's Pasifika Festival

Auckland’s beloved Pasifika Festival is going back to its roots this weekend, returning to Western Springs and to the village atmosphere it has long been known for.The festival kicks off on the main day, Saturday, officially opening the eight villages to the public through to Sunday.The villages will feature 11 nations in the Pacific - Cook Islands, Fiji, Hawaii, Samoa, Niue, Tahiti, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Kiribati and Aotearoa - and will house all the traditional and contemporary Pacific Isl...

There will be 30,000 fewer school-aged children

Schools in Wellington and Auckland will suffer the biggest losses as the population of school children drops during the next 10 years.Education Ministry projections provided to RNZ show Canterbury was the only region expected to have more school children by 2032.The estimates suggest rolls at primary and secondary schools would fall nearly 30,000 or four percent nationally but in the Wellington region they would drop 11 percent, or 8707 children, to reach 71,972 by 2032.In the same period Gisbor...

Swarbrick comes out swinging

Auckland Central MP Chlöe Swarbrick says a growing tide of disquiet with the proposed budget cuts to a range of council services encouraged her to help people submit feedbackA sweeping suite of cutbacks in Auckland’s mayoral budget proposal has spurred Auckland Central’s MP to launch a guide to the submissions process and encourage Aucklanders to have their say on the proposed changes.Chlöe Swarbrick says the wide-ranging cuts to services could have a damaging effect on progress on social ...

A growing plastic smog is choking the world’s oceans

KEY POINTSMore than 170 trillion plastic particles weighing roughly 2 million metric tons are afloat in the world’s oceans, according to new research.To tackle the plastic problem, the researchers call on lawmakers to urgently enact policy measures that focus on source reduction and reuse.U.N. member states are scheduled to meet this spring to develop a legally binding instrument on plastic pollution.Link to article: Pollution: Over 170 trillion plastic particles in the world's oceans (cn...

NZ landfill boss sees alarming rise in clothing waste

Promising to deliver the latest trends rapidly from catwalk to consumer at knock-down prices has seen a new wave of global clothing brands like Spain’s Zara, Sweden’s H & M and China’s Shein experience phenomenal growth to dominate the world clothing industry in just a few decades.The owners of those companies, like Zara’s Armando Ortega, have amassed vast wealth to become some of the richest individuals on the planet.Shein, started by 30-year-old Chinese engineer Chris Xu, has an es...

An 85-year Harvard study on happiness found

In 1938, Harvard researchers embarked on a study that continues to this day to find out: What makes us happy in life?The researchers gathered health records from 724 people from all over the world, asking detailed questions about their lives at two-year intervals.As participants entered mid- and late-life, the Harvard Study often asked about retirement. Based on their responses, the No. 1 challenge people faced in retirement was not being able to replace the social connections that had...

Partnership means

Treaty partnership is a widely-used term, thrown around by local and central government departments and staff.But so often it seems like an abstract concept assigned to the wider organisation, not something individuals themselves are committed to.I want us to think about our responsibilities at an intimate and daily level. To consider what it really means, from a personal perspective, to be one half of the partnership. It requires conscious effort and a willingness to embrace discomfort.I’m fo...

PM hopes schools and pre-schools strike

The prime minister hopes a last minute meeting with teachers will avert next week's schools and preschools strike action.About 50,000 teachers have planned to walk off the job on Thursday but Chris Hipkins said the government was working hard to resolve the dispute.He said he acknowledged the issues raised by the union and wanted more negotiations, to make progress toward an agreement.Kindergarten teachers said this week's planned strike would be the first time they joined their primary and seco...

Truancy is more than

Political parties are falling over themselves to provide solutions to our truancy rates. Aaron Hendry explains why we need to move away from viewing schools as simply educational institutions - and how. Recent data detailing a significant drop in school attendance has highlighted the continued challenge we’re facing just getting our kids to school.In term three last year, under half of our rangatahi enrolled in school, made it to class. That’s 46 percent of young peo...

Rewi Spraggon:

If you were at Te Matatini last week, there’s a good chance you’ll have had some kai from the hāngi master Rewi Spraggon and his team. Rewi prides himself on running the only large scale commercial hāngi operation in the country that produces hāngi food the old way. Not in those new-fangled steamers thanks very much — but in an earth pit, over carefully selected and heated stones.Here he is talking to Dale, after the flooding in Auckland and before the cyclone, about keeping the hāngi ...

PM Chris Hipkins at Polyfest

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Dame Margaret Brimble makes history

Neurological drug discovered by University of Auckland scientist Dame Margaret Brimble wins FDA approval to treat Rett syndrome.A neurological drug discovered by Distinguished Professor Dame Margaret Brimble of the University of Auckland has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (the FDA). The announcement came through from the FDA on 11 March 2023. Trofinetide which will be marketed as Daybue (TM) and will treat Rett syndrome, a condition causing symptoms similar to cer...

Local Focus: ‘Big Brothers Big Sisters’

Link to video: Local Focus: ‘Big Brothers Big Sisters’ changing children’s lives in Hawke’s Bay - NZ Herald...

Under the influence?

For seven years, Medicines New Zealand has promised that drug companies will disclose their gifts and payments to health professionals. Now they finally have. Nikki Macdonald analyses the first data dump, and asks what it means, and what’s missing.At last we have a number: $456,418.95.It’s not a complete number. And it’s probably not a very representative number. But it's a number and that’s progress.Since drug companies were slapped with billion-dollar fines for illegal marketing in the...

Researchers call for Te Ao Haka

New research has revealed the benefit of giving Te Ao Haka mana ōrite (equal status) in the New Zealand curriculum.Ngā whai painga o Te Ao Haka is the latest release from Te Wāhanga – New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER), examining how the new mātauranga Māori qualification can support teachers, students and whānau.As part of the Te Ao Haka qualification, students are encouraged to explore foundational knowledge of haka, and their own creativity within it.It was first est...

Calls to remove rongoā Māori from Therapeutics Bill

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Waking the tūpuna

I imagine there was a point in Rachel Buchanan’s book research when she considered the glittering threads of her story like a spider.There would’ve been something in the epic story of the Motunui epa to catch each of her eight eyes — Rachel has worked as a journalist, archivist, academic, curator, historian and speech-writer, and her whakapapa Māori is Taranaki and Te Ātiawa.First, there are the epa themselves. They are a superb set of sinuous figures carved into tōtara panels, most lik...

Teachers' strike a bitter pill to swallow

Parents appear to have mixed views about the prospect of a one-day mega-strike by 50,000 school and kindergarten teachers closing hundreds of schools next week.Members of the Post Primary Teachers Association and the Educational Institute said the Education Ministry's offer of a $6000 pay rise over two years was not good enough and they would strike on Thursday.They warned teachers were burnt out and needed pay and conditions that would keep them in the job and attract others to the profession.P...

Cyclone Gabrielle: Rotorua to rock as

Six Te Arawa kapa haka made it to Te Matatini this year and five of them made it into the top 12 finalists. Now they have returned home to raise pūtea for whānau affected by Cyclone Gabrielle in Te Tai Rāwhiti and Ngāti Kahungunu on Sunday at Te Kouramāwhitiwit (the Rotorua lakefront).It will be a day for whānau to gather, a chance to connect with Māori culture and a time to give gratitude and assist those that who support and aid the most.Watu Mihinui, of Tuhourangi - Ngāti Wahiao desce...

Māori band hits 1 million streams

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NZ chemist on the brink of history

A New Zealand chemist is on the brink of history, with her breakthrough treatment for Rett Syndrome.Distinguished Professor Dame Margaret Brimble and her team has been working on the drug for 20 years.They expect to hear within days whether their treatment Trofinetide has been granted final approval by the US Food and Drug Administration.Brimble told Mike Hosking it'll be a life changer for babies born with the syndrome.Link to commentary: NZ chemist on the brink of history with breakthroug...

New Zealand Army: NZ Army Band cover '35' by Ka Hao ft. Rob Ruha

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Te Whatu Ora CEO

Te Whatu Ora's Chief Executive has fronted up over a website data botch up.The agency has today apologised after posting the wrong information, falsely recording near-perfect wait time figures for some areas in November and December.The department maintains the underlying data collection is robust and the mistake was made during the publication process.Chief Executive Margie Apa says the error was spotted late yesterday afternoon and she was notified this morning.Link to commentary and article:&...