Internationally acclaimed New Zealand architect and researcher Professor Anthony Hoete has returned from the United Kingdom to help revive ancient Māori construction techniques. He will lead a team from the University of Auckland that aims to rebuild a historic Bay of Plenty wharenui (meeting house) that was destroyed in the 1931 Napier earthquake. The reconstruction, […]

Large-scale research into a wide variety of algae is a step closer for Aotearoa New Zealand’s first state-of-the-art aquaculture facility for macroalgae cultivation, with the granting of a seaweed and freshwater algae fish farming licence to the University of Waikato and WaikatoLink Ltd. Aquaculture Senior Research Fellow, Dr Marie Magnusson was instrumental in setting up […]

Hawke’s Bay artists have collaborated to create 20 giant apple sculptures, which will feature in an upcoming art trial across Hastings city. Brazilian-born artist Mauricio Benega, who initiated the project,​ wanted to bring something to the region to highlight its reputation as the country’s biggest apple grower. With funding support from the Hastings District Council’s […]

A private hospital in Hastings has opened a new $11-million day surgery complex. Royston hospital officially opened the new building last week. The facility, which will be used mainly for orthopaedic surgeries, includes two operating theatres. Evolution Healthcare, which owns Royston Hospital, chief executive Sue Channon said that the new surgery complex has been praised […]

New Zealand will sign a “strategic partnership” agreement with Malaysia, promising greater co-operation on counter-terrorism and indigenous collaboration. The decision to sign the partnership document was made at a meeting between New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta and her Malaysian counterpart Dato’ Saifuddin Abdullah in Kuala Lumpur last week. “We’ve had a long-standing partnership with […]

Young creatives and aspiring entrepreneurs now have the opportunity to kickstart their own businesses with the help of a new accelerator programme based at Impact Hub Waikato. The Co-Creatives accelerator is open to anyone aged 16–35 with an artistic or creative skill and a desire to build a business around this. The programme will consist […]

With borders fully open, New Zealand is expected to regain its international students, tourists and investors, however, analysts predict a slow return of visitors in the short term. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said in a speech at the China Business Summit in Auckland last week that the opening of borders was a significant moment. “…we […]

New Zealand has been ranked the second most peaceful country in the Global Peace Index 2022 report, a place it has held since 2017. The annual report, compiled by the Institute for Economics & Peace, measures the “peacefulness” of countries using 23 indicators across the domains of societal safety and security, ongoing domestic and international […]

This year’s grape harvest is up 44% from 2021, providing a much-needed boost to dwindling wine stocks. “There is no doubt we urgently needed an improved harvest this year after cool weather and frosts impacted Vintage 2021,” New Zealand Winegrowers Chief Executive Philip Gregan said. According to the 2022 Vintage Survey, the total grape tonnage […]

Police officers in Ōpōtiki gave a tiny owl a ride after they found it wandering on the road. The Bay of Plenty Police said in an Instagram post that Senior Constables Marty Madsen and Willy Searle, who were working a late shift in Ōpōtiki, spotted the animal and initially thought that it was a hedgehog. […]