Environment – Views & Research

Street side planter in the third block of the George Street upgrade, Ōtepoti Dunedin.

Dunedin’s inner-city greening project shows even small spaces can be wildlife havens

Jacqueline Theis, University of Otago; Barbara I.P. Barratt, University of Otago; Connal McLean, University of Otago, and Yolanda van Heezik, University of Otago

Communities must be central to climate adaptation strategies – 10 insights to guide national policy

Bruce Glavovic, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University; Derrylea Hardy, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University; Huhana Smith, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University, and Martin Garcia Cartagena, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University

A flooding river, with a road sign in the foreground and a flooded car in the background.

Thunderstorms are noisily kicking off summer in NZ – what’s driving them?

James Renwick, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

NZ’s earliest climate change debate: the 150-year-old feud over glacial retreat

Ciaran Doolin, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

Haast’s 1866 watercolour painting of the Lyell Glacier.

The fire is out, but Tongariro is now at risk of losing its unique biological legacy

Julie Deslippe, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

Two people walking along a track in a burnt landscape

NZ is taking aim at feral cats. Are we ready for the ethical and practical implications?

Courtney Addison, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

Auditory illusions: new research discovers how our ears play tricks on us

Sam Schwarzkopf, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau

A new way to measure the age of dolphins opens a window onto the lives of these iconic animals

Evi Hanninger, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University; Emma Betty, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University; Karen A Stockin, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University; Katharina J. Peters, University of Wollongong, and Livia Gerber, CSIRO

COP30: Pacific leaders now have world court backing to call countries to account over climate risk

John Sibanda, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

COP30: climate law changes mean NZ could retreat from its international obligations

Cathrine Dyer, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

The government’s dismantling of climate laws breaks years of cross-party agreement

Barry Barton, University of Waikato and Jennifer Campion, University of Waikato

An illustration of an space view of north America, with satellite connections and rocket launch sites

The threat of space terrorism is no longer science fiction, but we’re ill-prepared to combat it

Anna Marie Brennan, University of Waikato

COP30: NZ’s lack of climate ambition undermines global goals and free-trade agreements

Nathan Cooper, University of Waikato

Climate change minister Simon Watts at a media briefing.

A deadly hornet has reached NZ – we can all help stop its spread

Phil Lester, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

An Asian hornet (right) hunting honeybees as they emerge from the hive.

Spiders inspired biologists to create artificial webs to capture airborne DNA for biodiversity monitoring

Angela (Ang) McGaughran, University of Waikato and Manpreet K Dhami, Bioeconomy Science Institute

A tiny fossil suggests bowerbirds once lived in ancient New Zealand – new research

Elizabeth Steell, University of Cambridge; Alan Tennyson, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa; Nic Rawlence, University of Otago, and Pascale Lubbe, University of Otago

An adult male regent bowerbird with outstretched wings, showing bright yellow plumage

Protected areas in the Hauraki Gulf nearly triple under a new law – but it comes with a catch

Conrad Pilditch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau and Simon Francis Thrush, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau

Aerial view of Browns Island, Motukorea, in the Hauraki Gulf looking towards Auckland's eastern suburbs.

NZ’s government wants tourism to drive economic growth – but how will it deal with aviation emissions?

Robert McLachlan, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa – Massey University

Low-angle view of a plane flying into a sunset

Reform of NZ’s protected lands is overdue – but the public should decide about economic activities

Valentina Dinica, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

Aerial view of native forest and a river

A ‘lack of ambition’ over livestock emissions targets now threatens NZ’s reputation and trade

James Renwick, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington

New Zealand's Minister of Climate Change Simon Watts at a media stand-up.