Rnz: Our Changing World

Ketamine was first developed as an anaesthetic, and today is taken by some as a party drug. But since 2000, research has emerged showing it is also helpful as a medication for some people with treatment-resistant depression. While initial studies used ketamine injections, recent research has shown the advantages of taking it in oral form. Now clinical trials are underway to determine if a New Zealand-developed ketamine pill is safe and effective enough to get the regulatory tick. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In the Auckland suburb of Mt Albert there's a particular brand of doomsday prepping going on. Our Changing World visits the Bioeconomy Science Institute to meet some scientists figuring out how to build an army of Samurai Wasps just in case Aotearoa is invaded by Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs.Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:MPI's website has more detail on the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug and what to do if you find one.From December 2025 a new biosecurity inflight video about being vigilant is being played to incoming visitors.Our Changing World did a deep dive into the impact BMSB would have on New Zealand, back in 2019. Guests:Dr Gonzalo Avila, Senior Scientist - Biological Control, New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science LimitedKarina Santos, Senior Research Associate, New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science LimitedDr Scott Sinclair, Manager, Operational Readiness - Plant & Environment, Biosecurity New Zea

Our Changing Word heads to Whangārei to speak to a Northland Regional Council scientist whose been using stormwater drains to estimate the scale of our plastic pollution problem. Plus, just outside Christchurch, one of New Zealand’s biggest lakes is home to the ‘canary in the coalmine’ of wetlands. The secretive and elusive Australasian bittern seems to be in trouble - how can we help? Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:Join Alison Ballance on a kayak across a lake to listen to some booming bittern crooners.Listen to the nine to noon interview with John Sumich about the 2025 Matuku muster.The research into microplastics was part of the AIM2 project, which was reported on in 2021 as part of the OCW episode ‘Unwelcome visitors’.Another source of microplastics is textile waste, but an international project is looking to a future where our clothes are fully biodegradable.Guests:Richard Griffiths, Northland Regional CouncilPeter Langla

In Dunedin the local tree crop association has been looking after a heritage apple orchard, but some mixed up labels meant they weren’t quite sure what varieties they had. A chance encounter at a public open day sets one young researcher on a scientific quest to ID them all. Plus, in a nursery in Rotorua, a propagation scientist is figuring out the best way to grow a native tree from cuttings. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Take a (very) large egg, some insects (plus specially developed food), and a safe place to put on weight for a while. This is how you grow a kiwi, and improve wild survival rates from 5% to 65%. With over 2,600 hatches across their 30 year history, the National Kiwi Hatchery have a lot of experience under their belt, but there's always more to learn from our iconic national bird. Our Changing World visits the hatchery to learn how they combine conservation and eco-tourism to help grow kiwi numbers. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:Operation Nest Egg has also been a great success for the rowi kiwi, the only remaining wild population of which lives in Ōkārito on the South Island’s West Coast.In July 2025 little spotted kiwi were found on New Zealand’s mainland for the first time in 50 years. Two chicks and eggs were subsequently brought to Willowbank Wildlife Reserve in Christchurch to allow them to get to stoat-proof weight.With

In the Kaimai Mamuku ranges iwi-led conservation projects are tackling pests, removing weeds and planting natives to restore their whenua. Ngāti Hinerangi’s Wairere Mahi project has been trapping around the Wairere falls, and restoring a nearby system of lakes. The projects were born from the Jobs for Nature fund established by the government during the Covid-19 pandemic. But with that fund now finished where will the money to support future conservation work come from? The Manaaki Kaimai Mamuku Trust supporting these projects has some ideas. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:Jobs for Nature also supported an iwi-led wetland restoration project just outside Dunedin.In 2024 The Detail spoke to a number of Jobs for Nature supported projects that were nearing the end of their funding.The Turning Point video series followed some of the kaimahi working on different Jobs for Nature projects across Aotearoa.Country Life’s Dollars fo

A native species is taking over a jewel-in-the crown marine reserve. But what can be done? Centrostephanus, the long-spined urchin, is munching its way through the world-renowned rock walls and kelp beds of the Poor Knights Islands. DOC, University of Auckland scientists and a local hapū are running removal trials to investigate whether this might be a way to manage its march. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

New Zealand is third in the world for the number of orbital rocket launches from our shores, sitting just behind the US and China. Phil Vine discovers some of the challenges raised by our push into the unknown and how it is changing the final frontier.Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:Through a science experiment on the ISS, New Zealand researchers have been taking advantage of the unique conditions in low earth orbit to investigate commercial opportunities. While New Zealand is well known as a place from which to launch rockets, we do not have a lot of our own hardware in space (the University of Auckland does have TPA-1 CubeSat). But that might be about to change.Tech bros turned space bros like Elon Musk are making big waves out in orbit. The latest news is that Musk is hoping to harness the sun through satellites to power AI data centres.The New Zealand government's biggest investment in an international space missio

We know there are issues with sustainability within the fashion industry - can science help create a better future? Claire Concannon visits the Bioeconomy Science Institute in Rotorua to learn how New Zealand scientists are contributing to a massive multi-national project aimed at shaping the textile industry of tomorrow. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:UPWEARS has their own research project page if you want to learn more.Learn more about how the Bioeconomy Science Institute (formally Scion) is figuring out how to make new materials and products using bio-waste products rather than fossil fuels.The rise of synthetic fibres impacted the wool industry here in New Zealand, although some entrepreneurs and weavers are making it work for them.Guests:Dr Yi Chen, Bioeconomy Science Institute, and UPWEARSDr Robert Abbel, Bioeconomy Science Institute, and UPWEARSSean Taylor, Bioeconomy Science Institute, and UPWEARSLouise Le Gall, Bioec

Since 2018 there's been a massive effort underway to clear over 110,000 hectares of South Westland of possums, rats and stoats. As the pest numbers have dropped the native flora and fauna seem to have flourished. The eradication stage is now nearing completion, and the focus is switching to maintenance. What will it take to keep the pests out long-term? And what can be learned from this large-scale project that could be used elsewhere in Aotearoa? Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:Read/Listen to the rest of the reports from Tess Brunton’s reporting trip to the West Coast, about the eradication project, the work of species dogs, the feedback from tour operators and how rowi, New Zealand’s rarest kiwi, has been helped come back from the brink.For more on the use of AI in pest management project, listen to how the Southern Lakes Sanctuary team have been making use of it at Wye Creek.Guests:Chad Cottle, Predator Free South WestlandEt

Some insects communicate using a secret language that we can’t sense – a language of vibrations. Now researchers at the Bioeconomy Science Institute are starting to decode what insects are saying to each other. They hope to harness this knowledge to develop new, chemical-free methods of pest control to help farmers and growers. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:Insects can also be recruited to help. For example, insects can be released into New Zealand for biocontrol in the effort to combat invasive weeds.While we often talk about the impact of invasive mammals on New Zealand’s bird life, they are also a problem for native insects too.We’ve got some invasive pest spiders here too, but researchers are trying to figure out if they can trap them by developing a special spider perfume.Guests:Dr Mark MacDougall, Bioeconomy Science InstituteDr Lloyd Stringer, Bioeconomy Science InstitutePete Mundy, Castle Rock OrchardsDr Rachael Horner

When do humans begin to interact with the world, and develop our sense of self? When we are born? Or might it start even earlier than that? Our visual systems are a key way that we perceive the world. New findings from the University of Waikato have shown that light can enter the womb and that we might already be learning about the world before we arrive in it. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:Listen to Our musical minds to learn why, to psychologists, humans’ musical ability is just weird.Like our sense of vision, our ability to hear also involves physical inputs from the world around us combined with the processing and prior knowledge of our brains. But sometimes things can go a bit awry, such as happens for those with tinnitus.Our visual system is evolved for daylight, but what about those creatures that live in the deep darkness, such as squid.Professor Vincent Reid’s early research in this area was covered by RNZ podcast ‘

A Southland company is growing red seaweed as a supplement that’s been shown to significantly reduce methane emissions in beef and dairy cattle. In our last summer science series episode, Cosmo Kentish-Barnes of the Country Life team heads to Bluff to learn more.Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more: You can read Cosmo Kentish-Barnes' story about this topic, Red seaweed cuts methane emissions from cattle, scientists say.Cosmo signed off from the Country Life team earlier this year, after 17 years as the show's South Island producer. You can listen to his final episode.There are also pāua and whitebait farms operating out of the Ocean Beach Aquaculture Hub in Bluff. Kate Evans visited both ventures in a 2024 episode of Voice of Tangaroa, Fish out of water.Guest:Brent Jackson, production scientistGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Why do we spend more than we need to? Is it mood, FOMO, the desire to impress? Or maybe some tricky behavioural triggers we're not even aware of? Our summer science series continues with an episode of the RNZ podcast Thrift, in which Katy Gosset gets to the heart of the matter with a consumer behaviourist, and shares some tips to stop us spending.Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more: You can read about the psychology of spending in RNZ's story: Why do we spend more than we need to?Thrift is an upbeat podcast that offers wise ways to beat the cost of living crisis and get the best from your money. Listen to more episodes of Thrift.Guest:Ekant Veer, consumer behaviouristGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

We’d all like to know how to live long healthy lives, and Kim Hill is no different. In this episode of Kim Hill Wants To Know, she talks to geneticist Dame Linda Partridge about the scientific breakthroughs that could mean the end to aging as we know it. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:In 2023, Our Changing World spoke to researchers about what happens to our muscles as we grow and age.Kim Hill Wants To Know sees Kim back asking questions in her inimitable style. She has conversations with guests from around the world about topics that spark her interest and will do the same for you. Listen to more episodes of Kim Hill Wants To Know.Guest:Dame Linda Partridge, geneticistGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

We all love a good crunchy apple – but how do they stay like that for months after being picked? The Our Changing World summer science series continues with an episode of Here Now. Kadambari Raghukumar travels to Hawke's Bay to find out from South African-born scientist Nicolette Neiman. For plant physiologists like Nicolette, the thrill is in finding ways to make that possible – delivering a crunchy fruit fix to the world almost any time of the year. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:Read Kadambari Raghukumar's article, How do New Zealand apples stay crisp from tree to table?Here Now is an RNZ podcast about the journeys people make to New Zealand, their identities and perspectives, all of which shape their life here. Listen to more episodes of Here Now.GuestNicolette Neiman, plant physiologistGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

This week on the summer science series we play an episode of Country Life called Dollars for Nature. Can biodiversity credits fix New Zealand's conservation woes? In June, the government announced they were supporting the expansion of a voluntary credits nature market through pilot projects across New Zealand. Sally Round found out more.Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more: You can read more about biodiversity credits in Sally Round's story, Dollars for nature - can biodiversity credits fix NZ's conservation woes?Earlier this year Our Changing World visited the Eastern Whio Link conservation project, which set up its own biodiversity credits scheme - you can listen to that episode here.Country Life is an RNZ podcast that takes you all over the motu to hear the extraordinary stories of everyday rural New Zealand. Listen to more Country Life episodes.Guests:Sean Weaver, chief executive at business consultancy EkosHay

Nobody knows how many feral cats roam New Zealand, but estimates are in the millions and they’re a major threat to our native species. They've infiltrated almost every landscape, from coasts, to farms, to National Parks like Fiordland. Plus they’re wily and trap-shy, making them a tricky predator to tackle. RNZ's In-Depth reporter Farah Hancock speaks to some people on the front lines of the battle against feral cats. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.In this episode:00:00 – 00:59 Introduction to bonus episode01:00 – 03:24 Background to feral cat problem03:40 – 10:30 Playing ‘poos clues’ & trapping cats with hunter Victor Tinsdale10:40 – 15:00 Daniel Cocker on how cats are threatening the dotterels on Rakiura15:20 - 16:20 Farah explains how secondary poisoning works16:30 – 19:42 Objections to 1080 use on Rakiura, and efforts to address these20:18 – 24:08 Brad Windust with cat poo smelling dog Wero24:09 – 24:44 CreditsLearn more:Read the

On three small predator-free islands off the coasts of Fiordland and Southland, preparations are underway for what many hope will be the biggest breeding season ever for the kākāpō. Alison Ballance returns to report on New Zealand’s most famous parrot in the Kākāpō Files Season II. She chats to Claire about why this season of the podcast is shaping up to be quite different to the first. Plus, analysts from the Science Media Centre summarise the massive science sector changes that have happened this year, and what is on the horizon for science in 2026. Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The wetlands and surrounding forests of Te Awarua o Porirua, or Porirua Harbour, were once rich food baskets for Ngāti Toa Rangatira. But decades of development throughout the catchment - large-scale deforestation, road and rail building and urban growth - have brought sediment and pollution into the harbour, damaging the habitat. Veronika Meduna meets some of the team working to restore the harbour to its former plenty.Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Learn more:Julian Wilcox recently spoke to artists Jasmine Arthur and Te Rauparaha Horomona about Ngati Toa in Porirua and the opening of a new exhibition Mutumutu ki Mukukai Freshwater to Salt Water.Ngāti Toa Rangatira celebrated the return of their sacred maunga, Whitireia, to iwi ownership earlier this year.Alison Ballance visited both Porirua and Wairarapa in 2018 to explore how environmental impacts travel from the hills to the sea and what communities are willing to do to make their wa