Month: September 2023

Between 2013 and 2019, Scion led a six-year collaborative research programme to address the threat of Phytophthora species to New Zealand’s natural and agricultural forest estates. As part of the programme, called Healthy Trees, Healthy Future, several mana whenua groups sent their kauri seeds to Scion to be tested for resilience against Phytophthora agathidicida (PA), […]

Since 1998, the New Zealand International Science Festival has inspired curiosity and genius in the minds of attendees. The latest was no exception. Staged in Ōtepoti Dunedin, the festival programme offered 90+ stirring events.   With accessibility in mind, 2023’s programme was available digitality through the festival hub. And now, with July’s festival wrapped, comes the […]

How do you plan to have better biodiversity on your farm, in a way that works with your farm? This pātai, says Esther Richardson, set the stage for BioHeritage-funded Farming with Native Biodiversity’s pilot.  “The challenge we were working with,” says Esther, project lead for the pilot, “is that not everyone has an understanding of […]

Fun fact: Josie Mainwaring has a Bachelor of Architecture from Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington.   “I liked the idea of solving environmental problems with built solutions,” says Josie. “But when I got into practice, I found that you didn’t get to do much of that.”    After a five-year mini-career in architecture, Josie […]

There are two stairways at the Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery that wind up to the galleries that house the Ihirangaranga / Resonances of the Forest: Toi Taiao Whakatairanga exhibition. The front stairway is white and yellow. If you look down while you are climbing, you appear to be gazing into the eye of the […]

The Australasian Myrtle Rust Conference was the first of its kind – a multi-day conference dedicated entirely to Austropuccinia psidii (the pathogen that causes myrtle rust) and the many plants this disease impacts. The conference was well attended by delegates from Australia and New Zealand, as well as delegates from further afield, including the US […]

Ngā Pī Ka Rere – Early Careers Network was established in 2019. From its inception, the focus has been on advocating for and supporting early career aspirations within the Challenge. Ngā Pī Ka Rere is currently being co-led by Symon Palmer (Ngāi Te Rangi; Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington), Aisling Rayne (Cawthron […]