It was a team effort to bring Altavady Barn back to life, farm manager Kate Faulks says.Kate and her husband Adam took over the running of the 623ha Altavady farm at Awamoko about seven years ago, for dairy grazing and beef. At that stage there were discussions about demolishing the barn, which had seen better days.“When we first came here, the goal was around farm operations. So the barn definitely wasn't part of that picture, it was actually almost in the way,” Kate says.But after taking a closer look, she pressed pause on the demo plans.“I came in and had a look at it, and it just had all the original floors and things. It looked in a state, but you could see it had potential.”North Otago man Ted Aubrey obtained Altavady farm by ballot after World War One, and was behind the planting of the prominent ALTAVADY hedge on the Awamoko hillside, which the Faulks regenerated in 2021.When Kate and Adam took over the farm in 2018, they kept in touch with former owners, Henry and Jude Aubrey, and learned about the barn’s history as a community hub, and party venue.“I was like, let's just leave it. It might happen again.”Before... Altavady Barn as it was when the Faulks took over the farm. Photo: SuppliedThe couple, who have five children ranging in age from one to nine, didn’t touch the barn for more than five years, but once they had farming operations under control, the conversation turned to diversification.They looked at the resources they had available - a worker of theirs at the time was a qualified builder, there is also a roofer and electrician in the family, and Kate’s father Simon is a handy joiner - restoring the barn seemed a no-brainer.“So a lot of it was done pretty much in-house . . . and so we saw it as a relatively good opportunity to get it done cheaply and just see what we can make of it.”They tried to source used corrugated iron sheets to replace the old cladding, but it was going to cost just as much as new, so that’s what they went with.The windows have all been replaced, along with the doors.“They were warped and all ruined and Dad made [the new ones] in his workshop,” Kate says. “So they're all macrocarpa.”All the old door hinges were cleaned up and bent back into shape, except for one set.Kate and Adam contemplating the task ahead. Photo: Supplied“I was short two hinges, so Apex Engineering cut me some. It was great.” The restoration took about 18 months.“You know, we had to still run the farm and then chip away at this as well.”Progress was sped up by the impending wedding of Adam’s sister last December, and it was good to have the deadline to work to, Kate says.Restoring the heart rimu floors was the biggest undertaking, and a lot of old floorboards had to be removed.“And then it got replaced with macrocarpa, because we couldn't get the rimu. But it's kind of cool because when we were doing it, you could really tell where we've done the patch work . . . You can see the old barn and the new life we've added to it.”Water damage had also warped some of the wood, so it had to be professionally sanded back, before being sealed and polished. The Aubreys told the Faulks’ they thought the barn was built between 1925-30, so it is close to 100 years old.A bird's eye view of the completed renovation. Photo: Supplied“It's built on lots of stone piles, because originally it was to store chaff bags. But then they said it really quickly just got used for parties.”Kate says she is always talking to people who have memories of being at the barn.“It's amazing . . . people I talk to in the shops, my accountant, people like the lawyers, everyone's got a story where they used to come up here for barn dances and stuff, and so I absolutely love that, and it's quite cool to be able to give it another lease on life.”From 1917 to 1967 New Zealand’s licensed venues had to close by 6pm, and the barn became a “local watering hole”.“They'd have beer tankers come in,” Kate says.Barn dances were held with live music and relationships that began at the barn, blossomed into 60-year marriages, she has been told.While it’s not an official venue for hire, people can get in touch if they have a private special occasion.Kate and Adam are excited about the prospect of a new generation creating their own stories at the barn.“We love to be able to welcome people onto the farm, that’s really important to us, because Altavady has got such a strong history - both the farm and the barn.”The Faulks family (from left): Darcy (7), Sage (4), Kate, Rio (2), Hazel (9), Adam and Ray (1). Photo: Supplied

The public has played a crucial role in the arrest of a man in Ōamaru yesterday, following three serious incidents in the space of 24 hours, which landed two people in hospital.A 27-year-old Ōamaru man faces several charges which include four counts of assault with intent to injure, wounding with intent to commit grievous bodily harm, and two counts of burglary.Sergeant Tony Woodbridge says investigations are ongoing into the incidents, two of which involved offenders allegedly entering residential addresses.The first occurred on Queens Crescent at 11.45pm on Tuesday (May 6), where one person was assaulted, while the second assault occurred at a Thames Highway address at 4am on Wednesday, Sgt Woodbridge says.Two people were taken to Ōamaru Hospital with moderate injuries.On Wednesday, police were called to an assault at Centennial Park at 4.20pm, where a woman had been knocked unconscious.A white station wagon then drove at the offender, before ramming a black Subaru Legacy, which the alleged offender then left in, police say.The victim left the scene in the station wagon.Sgt Woodbridge says the incident occurred in a busy area with several people around and hockey games being played nearby.“We would like to hear from anyone who was near the Centennial Park carpark, who saw or filmed the assault, or the vehicles leaving,” he says.While incidents like this are “unsettling”, those involved are believed to be known to each other.“I want to assure the Ōamaru community that these were not random acts of violence, and we are doing everything we can to hold those responsible to account,” he says.“We are still working to determine why this offending took place, and inquiries are ongoing to locate other people who may have been involved.“Police want to thank the members of the public who have assisted us with information so far.”Police still want to hear from anyone who may have witnessed these events or has information that can help them.Call 105 using the reference number 250507/6833, or phone Crime Stoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Two Government budget moves revealed this week, which directly affect teachers, have had a lukewarm response from one North Otago primary principal.RNZ reported that leaked documents from the Education Ministry show the Kāhui Ako programme is set to be disestablished, with the allocated $118m budget to be diverted to support disabled learners. Meanwhile, Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke Van Velden announced yesterday a stop to all pay equity claims and made it harder to lodge new ones. Claims were concentrated in the public sector, with costs to the Crown of all settlements so far totalling $1.78 billion a year, the minister said.Two different representatives opposed to the move have called it “an attack on women”, and “a dark day for women”.The move will disproportionally affect women, as the claims mostly involve female-dominated sectors such as care work, nursing, and social work, as well as teaching.Weston Primary School Deidre Senior, who is co-lead principal of the Whitestone Kahui Ako, responded to the Waitaki App’s questions while attending a course in Dunedin, where she was listening to an international speaker highlight a projected global teacher shortage of 65 million by 2030.She called the move to cancel pay equity claims “deeply disappointing”.“Teachers have been engaged in this process for over two years, under both the previous and current governments. To have it cancelled so abruptly feels like a dismissal of our profession, and it adds to the uncertainty we already face.”New Zealand is not immune to the teacher shortage, she says.Weston School principal Deidre Senior. Photo: Supplied“We're already in the midst of a workforce crisis. If we want to attract and retain passionate, skilled educators, the government must prioritise investment in the people who teach and care for our children.”The Kāhui Ako, also known as Communities of Learning, scheme was an initiative of the 2014 National-led Government The scheme groups schools and early learning centres, within the same district, together to work on common problems. There are two Kāhui Ako in the Waitaki, the other is Waitaki Ara.Deidre says if the scheme is being disestablished, the decision must be “balanced by new initiatives that both suppot children - regardless of their needs - and demonstrate genuine value for teachers and the work they do”.“I understand that funding in education is always limited, and tough decisions must be made,” she says.“The Whitestone Kāhui Ako has been a valuable network for our cluster of 12 schools, enabling collaboration and supporting teacher development. For example, we were able to provide three years of Structured Literacy PLD (professional learning and development) to all staff through Kāhui Ako funding well before it became a government mandate.However, Deidre acknowledges tamariki must be the top priority, and teachers are seeing a noticeable rise in complex needs such as neurodiversity, trauma-related behaviours or simply the need for extra learning support.   “If the intent behind redistributing funding is to ensure every school has better access to resources to meet these needs, then that’s something I can support in principle. But the key question is how this will be implemented, and whether schools will genuinely feel supported where it matters most.”

Coming up with more than one way to use farm land is almost a necessity these days, and a workshop held in the Waitaki last week offered inspiration for farmers and land owners looking to diversify.The event was a collaboration between Waitaki District Council and the NZ Institute of Primary Industry Management (NZIPIM) and was attended by close to 100 people.The aim was to help farmers and rural professionals understand new market opportunities and how to diversify their farms based on the region’s climate and landscape.It was hosted at Altavady Barn, near Awamoko, by council business and enterprise growth lead Rebecca Finlay and NZIPIM North Otago/South Canterbury board and committee member and farm advisor Julian Gaffany.NZIPIM is the professional body for rural professionals in New Zealand, primarily farm consultants, and has about 1400 members nationwide.Rebecca said she hoped the event would help provide those attending with the confidence to “explore practical sustainable and profitable ways to diversify their land use”.Speakers included Waitaki MP Miles Anderson; Temuka commercial grower Hamish McFarlane, Barkers of Geraldine representatives Kim Whitman and Craig France, and Agritourism operators Kate Faulks (Altavady Barn), Nic Ruddenklau (The Little Red School House) and Liz Hayes (Nest Treehouses).Miles spoke about his experiences as the third generation running his family’s farm and the sheep scanning business he founded to subsidise the farm income. This took him off-farm and away from his family regularly.“I was away a lot when my kids were growing up. But, you know, most people know that you have to make some trade-offs to get ahead, and that's what we were prepared to do as a family,” he said.“In an ideal world, we would be able to create an environment where farming businesses were enough to sustain themselves and raise a family on, and ways that diversify our land and increase profitability on it to allow us to work, live and play exactly where we want to be, at home, that's definitely something to be investigated,” Miles said.Diversification helps ensure long-term profitability and resilience amidst climate change, market changes and shifting consumer preferences. It can also ensure succession, which is an important part of many farms' plans for the future, he said.A presentation from Mīti's Daniel Carson showed the potential his product could have for Waitaki dairy farmers. Image: Supplied/Daniel CarsonDaniel Carson shared the possible benefits for the Waitaki from grazing non-replacement dairy calves and allowing them to have a longer life, before using them to produce the low-carbon beef snack, Mīti. Medical herbal expert Phil Rasmussen spoke about his work, the history of medicinal plants, and the relevance and potential of the Waitaki Grown medicinal crop trials he is consulting on.Waitaki Grown is a small group of local farmers and council economic development team members who have been working together since September 2023, through the Government’s Better Off fund.The group chose five medicinal crops - peppermint, baical skullcap, withania (sometimes better known as ashwaganda), liquorice and astragalus, which research indicates should grow well in the Waitaki topo climate.Rebecca explained how Waitaki District Council adopted an economic development strategy in September 2022, which moved away from focusing exclusively on tourism and recognised other pillars of the economy which drive it.“Land and water” is one of the main five pillars.“Enabling sustainable, resilient, primary industry fit for now that will endure into the future as a key strategic opportunity.”Hamish McFarlane and North Otago farmer Jo Hay then shared insights from a recent trip up north as part of the Rural Leaders Value Chain Study cohort, visiting apple, kiwifruit, milk and meat producers, and observing advances in innovation and distribution.A pre-event survey, identifying why diversification is important to attendees, highlighted four main themes: to spread risk - “you shouldn’t put all your eggs in one basket”; to have a new point of interest - so doing something that provides interesting options outside the usual farming; and to be more environmental.“And you also want to be profitable,” they said. “A second income stream, a key to succession, to remain on-farm and increase agency around your farming business.”Following the event, one person's feedback was "it was an inspirational line-up of speakers (who did not disappoint), and diversification is an aspiration of many farmers so its good to keep up with any exploration along this line".Rebecca said the event was a “great recipe for action” and it showcased “quiet, creative innovation, which is a hallmark of the Waitaki”.Paying close attention. Photo: Supplied/Kate Faulks

By RNZ Education correspondent John GerritsenThe number of high-achieving teens who go overseas after finishing school has reached an all time high - but it is not clear why.An Education Ministry report shows that among the 10 percent of 2023 school leavers with the highest NCEA attainment, 370 or six percent were overseas last year - up from between four and five percent over much of the pre-Covid years.In addition, 12 percent of 2023 school-leavers with international school qualifications (110 students) and 10 percent of leavers from private schools (300 students) were overseas.For all three groups, the percentages were the highest on record in the past 15 years.Listen on Morning Report here: Study shows top students likely to go overseas after finishing high schoolThe ministry's report was aimed at establishing if New Zealand's highest-achieving school leavers were increasingly choosing to study overseas.The report said a total of 2120 of 2023's school-leavers were overseas in 2024, but it was not clear how many had enrolled in foreign tertiary institutions.It said the trend broadly mirrored an overall increase in New Zealanders going overseas, but high achievers and students who went to expensive schools were more likely to be overseas than others."The analysis suggests that higher-performing school leavers are increasingly choosing to go overseas after finishing school, and it may be supposed that many of these are likely to be also choosing to study overseas."The report said it was not clear why students were choosing to study at foreign tertiary institutions."The analysis does not identify why school leavers choose to study overseas. While this trend could reflect concerns about the quality of New Zealand universities, it could just indicate the growing normalisation of overseas study, particularly among high socio-economic households," it said."Whether this trend should concern policymakers depends on the reasons behind student decisions and their post-graduation choices. It would be problematic if increased overseas study signals declining confidence in New Zealand's universities or leads to a permanent loss of top-performing students. Conversely, overseas study could benefit New Zealand by providing students with valuable skills, experiences, and networks (at no cost to the New Zealand taxpayer). Even if students remain overseas, a well-connected diaspora offers economic opportunities," the report said.OECD figures to 2022 showed the number of New Zealanders enrolled in tertiary study in OECD countries other than Australia had been increasing until 2020 when it reached about 3500 with more than half in the United States.Photo: Supplied via RNZUniversities New Zealand chief executive Chris Whelan said it had been keeping an eye on similar figures for some time.He said its research indicated about 11 percent of New Zealand school leavers who enrolled in university did so overseas and that figure had been constant for some time.Whelan said the recent increase was likely to be a post-pandemic spike."I don't think we can say whether it's good or bad. It is a reality that some families, some students will choose to go overseas. Perhaps it's partly getting an overseas experience, perhaps there's something that's being offered at an overseas university that they can't get here in New Zealand," he said."We do know that a good percentage come back."Katy MacLeod said her son Jimmy McKirdy finished school in Wellington last year and moved to Melbourne this year to study fine arts at the University of Melbourne.She said he was motivated in part by the attraction of living in another country."And also wanted to go to a bigger city that probably had more arts and culture in the sense of galleries and exhibitions and having access to things on a larger scale," she said.Another Wellingtonian Lucy Stevens told RNZ she had moved to Melbourne to study at RMIT."From my research, RMIT is really good in fine arts and I really enjoyed that Melbourne has a great arts scene and you have a lot more access to a lot more paintings and you have access to a lot more opportunities over here," she said.Aucklander Gabriel Shannon said her son Alexander chose to study law at an Australian university mostly because he believed the degree would be more internationally portable than a New Zealand law degree."His reasoning was that he could practise law anywhere in the world with this particular degree whereas a lot of lawyer friends have gone to London and had real trouble getting in to practice," she saidShannon said her son was probably predisposed to considering overseas institutions because he was born in London, had an Irish father and attended Kings College, which had international connections.Steve Hargreaves, the principal of Macleans College in Auckland, said about 10 percent of his leavers, nearly 50 students a year, headed overseas to foreign universities."Mostly they're motivated by what they perceive to be a high-quality degree offering. A lot of our students are very interested in the global ranking of the university or the ranking of the degree course that they want to do," he said."Some of it is around direct entry, particularly in medicine. If they can get direct entry for medical school in Australia, then they're accepted in first year and then they can follow through and do their medical degree, whereas in New Zealand they have to do that first year and then they're subject to that selection process in the second year.Hargreaves said it was not good for New Zealand."It's a pity that our very top students are going overseas and I think sometimes it's more perception than reality in terms of the the quality of the course you'll get," he said."We have a lot of past students who did a first degree in New Zealand. They did very, very well and then they've gone on to do postgraduate at high-profile universities overseas. I think that would be preferable from a Kiwi mindset."Hargreaves said Macleans students were more likely to enrol in foreign universities if they had studied Cambridge qualifications at school."The other group we have is students who are on sporting scholarships and they're playing golf or rowing in American colleges, and they've been successful that way. We have six or seven or eight of those students every year," he said. - RNZ

China. It’s been in the news a bit lately.One Stuff headline reads China Targets: Global investigation reveals Beijing’s targeting of people in NZ, according to RNZ, Australian Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton names China as the “biggest threat to Australia's security”, and you’d have to be living under a rock to not know at least the basic ins and outs of the trade tariff war between the United States and China at the moment.But when my partner Dan and I booked a flight to China about nine months ago, we chose it because we: a) wanted an overseas holiday (our passports had been gathering dust since Covid); b) Air NZ had “Asia On Sale!” and Shanghai was the cheapest destination; and c) neither of us had been before.When I told people I was visiting China, the response was nearly always, “China? Why China?”, and while I was excited about the thought of an overseas holiday, I had my own moments of, "Why China?".It probably isn’t high on many lists of “must-visit” places, and much as I hate blaming media for stuff - the majority of what you hear or read is about government corruption and missing people, the harsh justice system, the evils of communism, etc., although I suspect the country’s refusal to budge against Trump’s latest moves has maybe earned it a level of respect lately. From me, anyway.I quelled most nerves I had by telling myself Dan's friend Ben lives there - it must be okay.We arrived in Pudong Airport, Shanghai early on a Wednesday morning and after seamlessly clearing customs, were greeted by Maggie (Ben’s wife, who was born and raised in Shanghai) with a coffee in each hand.Everyone should have a Maggie when they visit China. She provided a gentle introduction to the country, bundling us into her Tesla (made in China, of course), and driving us to our hotel in the city.Dan, me and the view from the 52nd floor of Shanghai Tower. When you want a photo in China with no other people in it, AI editing comes in very handy! Photo: Maggie Bowering (and AI)One of the first things we noticed on the motorway was the number of shiny new cars. We learned no cars older than 20 years are allowed in the city, and vehicles have either green or blue license plates - the majority are green.Blue plates mean a vehicle runs on petrol or diesel, Maggie explains, and the plates have to be bought at auction for tens of thousands of dollars, and are (or at least were!) in high demand and almost impossible to get.The green plates are free and signify a car is electric (or hybrid - conditions apply). The system is part of the Government’s push to meet green energy and carbon reduction targets, and appears to be a successful one.It didn’t seem like a terrible idea, although I imagined quite a few perfectly good cars sitting idly outside the city, too expensive to register and therefore drive.Maggie showed us around a bit while we waited to check into our hotel, had bubble teas delivered to us in the lobby, and explained how we needed to pay for everything using an app on our phone called Alipay. Alipay links directly to your bank account and is used by everyone with something to sell, whether they own a street stall, a taxi, or a high-end hotel.Once we had that sorted, life was easy. We might not have always known what food or drink we were ordering, but everyone understood the word “Alipay”, we could point, and we knew 4rmb (Chinese yuan) roughly converted to NZ$1.The only time I saw any cash was when I asked Maggie if she had some Chinese coins, as my son had asked me to bring some home.Other cool things: There are power bank “stations” dotted all over the city. Because you use your phone for navigation, shopping, communication, everything, the battery goes flat fast. You can rent a powerbank for a 99rmb deposit, take it with you for an hour while you charge your phone, return it to another power bank station of the same type anywhere in the city, and get your deposit back. Mind blown. Bikes are the same. I guess not too dissimilar to the Lime Scooters you can hire in certain New Zealand cities, but on a much larger scale. Yellow and blue bikes are lined up everywhere, and the road rules are basically, the smaller you are on the road, the more people have to look out for you.A power bank charging station in our hotel lobby. Photo: Ashley SmythBikes for rent - you can pay 8rmb (NZ$2) a month and have unlimited rental of these bikes to use within the city. The apartment buildings in the background are an example of how most people in Shanghai live. Real estate is extremely expensive, and so most rent an apartment in a "compound". Photo: Ashley SmythMaggie said people would sometimes try to get money by pretending to be hit by a car. It didn’t matter if it was the driver’s fault or the pedestrian's fault - the driver always had to pay.During a few park walks, we watched retired people congregate to sing, dance, do martial arts and socialise without any sign of self-consciousness. It was really lovely to watch.Retirement age in China is lower than in New Zealand (and the rest of the world), but due to the single-child policy in the past, and a continued declining birthrate (according to Maggie, young couples don’t have babies now, they get dogs) there is a dramatically ageing population, and so it is gradually being lifted.From January 1 this year, and over the next 15 years, the retirement age for men is going up from 60 to 63. For women in managerial or technical roles it will go from 55 to 58, and for women in other working roles it will increase from 50 to 55.Over the next few days in Shanghai, we had our own personal tour guide. Maggie made sure we were fed, entertained, and showed us all the things she thought we should see.We explored the maze-like Yu Garden while treated to the scent of the blooming 300-year-old wisteria growing in the grounds, and went up Shanghai Tower - the tallest building in the city. We visited a water town called Zhujiajiao, and strolled around more traditional pedestrian-only streets, while sampling a variety of Chinese “snacks”.While in Zhujiajiao - sort of a Chinese Venice, Maggie was very persuasive in convincing me I needed to have my hair and make-up done, and dress in traditional Chinese Hanfu costume. When I looked for Dan to rescue me, I found him firmly on Maggie’s team.She seemed confused as to why I didn’t want the experience. It is something women and girls treat themselves to occasionally, and includes a session with a professional photographer, before you wander the streets for the rest of the day looking amazing.She dismissed my reservations that those I had seen dressed up all looked good because they were Asian, and had the same coloured hair as the jet-black hairpiece that she wanted attached to my very blonde head.Not to mention it was hot and humid, and I have a tendency to go all pink and “glowy” in these conditions. My list of reasons NOT to do this was very long… but nobody listened to me, Maggie had already paid, and I had to do it anyway.I sat in the makeup chair for a good hour, wearing the costume I had chosen over my regular clothes, sweat dripping down my back.My poor makeup artist, who knew I was hating every minute of it, did her best to make the pale foundation blend into my damp, red face, and the black hairpiece somehow look like it belonged on my head.Once it was photo time, I snapped out of my funk and started enjoying the experience, and looking back on the photos now, I’m glad I’ve got them. It’s definitely a part of the trip I won’t forget. Me, as a reluctant model, dressed up in the water town of Zhujiajiao. Photo: SuppliedI did, however, politely decline wearing the costume for the rest of our time at the village.Another experience which will forever stick with us, is walking to The Bund on Saturday night. We found out later that Saturday is the busiest night to see The Bund - which runs for 1.6km along the western bank of the Huangpu River. It is a mixture of historic and modern buildings - a sort of showcase of Shanghai’s evolution from a fishing village to the modern metropolis it is now - home to 27 million people.It felt like at least a million of those people were in the same place as us that night. Hoards of them were moving towards The Bund up the right-hand side of the street, and more hoards back the other way, across the road.The crowds were strictly controlled by police and their whistles, and apart from a mild panic I might lose the others when someone stood on the back of my jandal and I had to stop, while the wave of people continued on around me, it felt orderly but precarious. I’m glad we didn’t find out until later about the tragedy on New Year’s Eve in 2014, when 36 people died during a stampede which broke out on a stairway taking people from street level up to the viewing platform. Crowd control measures were increased following that event, and 11 officials were "punished", whatever that means.Crowds going to and from The Bund. Photo: Daniel CarsonDan and I had decided if we’d come all the way to China, we really should see more than just Shanghai, and of all things one might visit China for, the Great Wall probably tops the list. Unfortunately, one of the best places to see the Great Wall is just out of Beijing, which is about 1200km from Shanghai.Fortunately, China has really fast trains which travel about 350kph. We left Sunday morning and were there in time for lunch.Beijing is slightly less user-friendly than Shanghai (or maybe it’s because we had lost our personal tour guide!), but in a way, it felt more like real China.We had to have our passports with us at all times, and sometimes we had to show if to officials just so we could move from one part of the city to another. It was also needed for entry to all tourist attractions. In Shanghai, we had been spoiled by Ben and Maggie taking us to all their favourite restaurants each night. In Beijing, the only thing we knew was that we had to try the Beijing Duck. We had been given the name of a couple of duck restaurants to try, and they came with the warning that you couldn’t book, and you would have to wait, sometimes up to three hours, for a table. We went to one and were given a waiting time of two to three hours. Dan, being a man who doesn’t like waiting half a working day for his dinner, decided no duck could be that good, so we didn’t try Beijing Duck in Beijing.On hearing this, Maggie, bless her, arranged for us to try it on our last night in Shanghai before we flew home. It was okay, but whether it was as good as they promised in Beijing, we’ll never know!But The Great Wall. Wow.You hear about how phenomenal it is, but until you see it for yourself, it’s hard to fathom.The Great Wall of China. Photo: Ashley SmythThe wall is more than 21,000km long and was built in a few stints across 2000 years, beginning around 220 BC. Most of it was completed in 15th and 16th Centuries.There are a number of places where you can access the wall. Maggie booked us on a bus to Mutianyu, which is a bit further from Beijing, but because of this, there tend to be fewer people. It didn’t feel like fewer people when we arrived and as we queued, but once we got onto the wall via a quick gondola ride, we had plenty of space to enjoy the experience and take our time.Queueing is another experience in China. We soon discovered that if you wait patiently in line, after 10 minutes, you tend not to be any further ahead than when you started. People join a queue wherever they like. I guess if you always try to find the end, you could be walking for miles.We got more bolshy at keeping our place in line as the week went on, and I even managed to hold my nerve, queueing for the wall, against a small child who kept kicking the backs of my legs, in that tender spot just above the shoe, to try and get past me to get to the gondola.I kept waiting for his mother to tell him off, but I suspect she was quietly encouraging it, hoping I would let them pass.The wall made me grateful for smartphones and digital photography. Each spot we reached felt more photogenic, and we took so many photos. We even FaceTimed our children from the wall - so their minds could be blown too. It takes a lot to impress kids these days, but I think they were impressed.For a country run under a dictatorship, it struck us both how amazingly carefree and uninhibited Chinese people are. A work colleague who has also visited said it feels like "the most benign dictatorship”, and that sums it up perfectly, for me anyway.Admittedly, we only had a surface-level, week-long experience, but I always felt safe. I’ve been to several countries where I would be reluctant to travel alone as a woman - China is not one of them. If it’s not on your list of “must-visit” countries, consider adding it. You won’t be disappointed. A more traditional part of Shanghai that Maggie took us to on our first day. Photo: Ashley Smyth

With wild weather currently moving down the country, Metservice has issued a road snowfall warning for the Lindis Pass overnight Wednesday 30th April, until 8am Thursday morning.Period: 12hrs from 8pm Wed, 30 Apr - 8am Thu, 1 MayArea: Lindis Pass (SH8)Forecast: Snow is expected to affect the road near the summit, where 1 to 3 cm is likely to settle. Lesser amounts likely lower down.Issued: 10:10am Wed 30 Apr.For the latest updated forecasts and real time conditions in your local area, go to Local Weather Links in the Waitaki App News tab.

By RNZ Digital Explainer Editor Katie KennySummer was a "mixed bag" this year, according to NIWA.Wellingtonians, who experienced one of the capital's worst weather starts to the year on record, used more colourful phrases: "A buzz kill", "crap", and "pretty trash"."Digging back into our records, going back to 1980, this is one of the longer runs of below average daily temperatures that we've had in the summer months," meteorologist Clare O'Connor told RNZ at the time.But autumn was expected to be warmer and drier for parts of the country, NIWA said.Even though they were all a bit spring-like to start with, our seasons are changing, scientists say. What does this mean for spring, summer, autumn, and winter as we know and define them?Defining the seasonsWe experience seasons thanks to Earth's tilted axis. Because of the tilt, as Earth orbits the sun, its north and south poles sit at an angle rather than straight up and down.As NIWA explains on its website: "This tilt means that the sun's rays don't hit Earth equally. The half of the Earth tilted toward the sun receives much more light energy than the half tilted away from the sun."The half of the Earth tilted toward the sun is experiencing summer, and the half tilted away, winter.The seasonal effects are different at different latitudes on Earth. The four-season year is typical only in the mid-latitudes.Places near the equator see little seasonal variation. Meanwhile, in polar regions, winter has periods of continuous darkness and summer brings 24-hour daylight.Does winter start on 1 June, or on the winter solstice?We hear a lot about astronomical seasons, which are based on Earth's position relative to the sun. Summer begins on the summer solstice, and winter on the winter solstice.Earth has a solstice every six months, when one of its poles is closest to the sun. When the Earth's axis is tilted neither towards nor away from the sun, that's called an equinox. It marks the start of astronomical spring and autumn.But in New Zealand, we tend to use meteorological or calendar seasons: three-month groupings based on the annual temperature cycle.January is the country's warmest month on average, and July the coldest. Summer is December, January, February. Winter: June, July, August. Fill in the gaps to get the shoulder seasons.Some Scandinavian countries refer to "thermal seasons", based on mean daily temperatures. The beginning of summer, for example, is defined as when the temperature rises above a certain threshold for several consecutive days."There's no right answer," climate scientist Professor James Renwick told RNZ. "It's somewhat arbitrary how these seasonal boundaries are defined."When it comes to climate forecasting, "seasons aren't used so explicitly", he said. Rather, analysis is done month-by-month.'It's always spring in New Zealand'New Zealand's maritime climate is known for being unpredictable. It varies from warm, subtropical in the far north to cool, temperate climates in the far south, with severe alpine conditions in the mountainous areas."Four seasons in one day" is a common observation about the country's weather, particularly among visitors from the more settled Northern Hemisphere."The fact there's a big continent over the south pole, keeps the weather a bit spring-like all year," Renwick said. "In the Northern Hemisphere, the pole warms up a lot in summer, so westerly winds die off and you tend to have calm, dry weather."Of course, there's a lot of natural variation in the seasons: "There are all these definitions but in a given year, you'll get something different."The seasons aren't what they used to beDespite this natural variation, there's a long-term trend towards longer summers and shorter winters, Renwick added.Global average temperatures have increased by about 1 degree Celsius in the past century. The average annual temperature in Aotearoa increased by 1.26C between 1909 and 2022. The warmest year was recorded in 2022, with an average temperature of 13.76C.Warmer temperatures are expected in all parts of the world. The impact will vary by location; some places will experience more wildfires and others more rain.In New Zealand, data suggests a range of extreme weather events are increasing in frequency and severity. In turn, these affect agriculture, horticulture, fisheries, forestry, and tourism.GNS principal scientist Dr Nick Cradock-Henry said in the past 15-20 years, any farmer will tell you, there's been a noticeable change in the seasons."Multi-generational farmers will tell you they remember walking on frozen puddles as a child, and now, it's rare to get any significant freezing event over the winter."The shorter winters, fewer frosts, compressed springs, and hotter, drier conditions are impacting plants as well as animals."We're really only just beginning to understand the implications of changing management systems to deal with [these things]."The effects of shifting seasons"The distinct transition between seasons is becoming increasingly muddled," Cradock-Henry said.Key development stages of plants and animals are tied to seasonal features such as rainfall, temperature, and day length."If you've got lower than usual soil temperatures in February, your ryegrass and clover is behind where it should be. Then you've got hungry animals, which in turn impacts milk production."The shifting seasons, he continued, "is messing with all of those rules of thumb you've relied on".Farmers are having to change to accommodate these new conditions. That can mean planting earlier, split calving, and even shifting location.About 90 percent of Kiwifruit is grown in a single area, in the Bay of Plenty, Cradock-Henry explained. The vines need a period of cool temperatures to produce fruit. Many growers are now moving south, or into the hills, chasing those cooler temperatures.Others are identifying alternative crops. There are now peanuts in Northland, an increasing number of avocado orchards around the country, and macadamia nuts have been identified as having potential in Hawke's Bay.The revitalization of MaramatakaUpdating our "collective understanding" of seasonal markers is important, Cradock-Henry said.In recent years, there has been a revitalization of ngā taka o te marama, the repeating cycles of the moon.Traditionally, Maramataka guided many activities in the lives of iwi such as planting, harvesting, fishing, and hunting. There was variation among tribes depending on where they lived.This approach can help communities navigate the changing climate through a deeper understanding of the environment, said Te Kahuratai Moko-Painting (Ngāti Manu, Te Popoto, Ngāpuhi), Māori curriculum developer and teaching fellow with the Centre for Pūtaiao at Auckland University."That we decide when the seasons change is not implicit in Maramataka," he told RNZ. "Instead, you look for tohu [environmental indicators]."A key tohu is Matariki, the mid-winter rising of the star cluster that signals te Mātahi o te Tau, the Māori New Year. In 2022, Matariki became the country's first indigenous public holiday."If the stars are spread out or bunched together, that's a tohu for the coming climate and harvest," Moko-Painting said. "But that's just one tohu of this increasingly unpredictable climate and weather."Maratriki "is just one day", but like many societies, Māori traditionally had a restful period mid-winter, and families spent time together. "It could be a longer period of time," Moko-Painting said of the public holiday.He stressed the importance of multigenerational knowledge and observation."I think of tohu as words in a sentence. You can't know what's being said if you only hear one word. Or even every fourth word."Ngā taka o te marama has always allowed for seasonal variation: "It was something our tupuna [ancestors] brought to Aotearoa. They adapted this framework to the environment."That's one of the strengths of Maramataka, its ability to adapt." - RNZ

A turf, a toilet and Tavora Reserve are some of the big winners in this round of grants awarded by the Waitaki District Council. Grant recipients for the Waitaki Biodiversity Fund, the Community Group Grant and the Creative Community Funding for the first round of 2025, have just been announced by the council.Grant and awards sub-committee chair, councillor Rebecca Ryan, says they were thrilled to receive so many quality applications across all three funds and it is always a challenge choosing who to allocate funds to.“We’ve done our best to support a wide range of projects that we hope will have real impact across the district,” Rebecca says.“It’s a great example of how much passion and pride people have for their communities in Waitaki – and for the environment – and heartening to see so many different people and groups stepping up to make a difference.”Waitaki Valley Community Society is one of the major recipients of the Community Group Fund grant, being awarded $6,000 for a mural on the Kurow Public Toilet building, while North Otago Recreational Turf Trust will get $7500 to replace lighting at the turf with LED lights.There are two rounds of funding per year, with $75,000 available annually.From the Biodiversity Fund, the Yellow-Eyed Penguin Trust receives $3074 for pest control at Tavora Reserve (Goodwood), and $5000 is going towards fencing the Pleasant River Estuary. There are three rounds of funding allocated each year, with a total pool of $30,000 available.Council biodiversity advisor Max Crowe says the two projects being funded this round build on the planting and restoration work taking place on the Pleasant River and Estuary as part of the ORC-led Toitū Te Hakapupu Project.“Thanks to the applicants for seeking to undertake this important work,” Max says.From the Creative Communities Scheme, Papakaio School is receiving $2771 for pupils to take part in workshops on visual arts during the school’s Art Week, while an astrophotography camp for local astronomers at Iona has been given $1900 and Judith Stanley receives $2100 to run workshops and an exhibition using kelp to make art. There are two funding rounds, with an unspecified amount through this scheme.The next funding round for these grants reopens:• Community Group Grants - Monday 28 July - closes Friday 4 September 2025.• Waitaki Biodiversity Fund – Monday 5 May – closes Monday 25 August 2025.• Creative Communities Scheme – Monday 18 August – closes Monday 6 October 2025.Further information can be found on the following page:https://www.waitaki.govt.nz/About-Waitaki/Living-here/Supporting-our-community/Community-Grants-and-AwardsFunding Awards by Grant - Meeting held on the 8 April 2025Waitaki Biodiversity FundApplicantProjectGrantedYellow-eyed Penguin TrustTo install traps to target pest control at Tavora Reserve.$3074Christopher KensingtonPleasant River Estuary Fencing.$5000Community Group GrantApplicantProjectGrantedThe Brain Injury Association (Otago) IncTo enable service, support, and education to grow in the region. $1000Otematata Bowling ClubNew colour steel roof $1500The Y Central South IslandY-Whanau self-referral parenting programme. $2000North Otago Netball Centre IncFirst Aid Kits for courts and representative teams traveling to tournaments. $1500Omarama Golf Club IncTree planting programme. $600Maheno Public Hall Society IncTrestle tables for Hall and for hire. $1000Maheno Netball Club JuniorsNew netballs & ball pump. $600CCS Action Disability Waitaki IncPurchase a Heater for office. $320Special Olympics North Otago TrustTo send a team and coaches to the National Summer Games. $2000Oamaru Spartans Tug-a-war teamEquipment. $1500Scotts Own Sea ScoutsRepairs to sailing boats. $1233Otago Neighbourhood Support Charitable TrustCommunity cam resources. $792Maheno SchoolSchool Library refurbishment. $1000North Otago Recreational Turf TrustTo replace lighting with LED Lights at the Hockey Turf. $7500Hamraki RagPrinting cost to produce the Hamraki Rag. $1500North Otago Hockey AssociationU13 representative Ball Kits. $600Waitaki Valley Community SocietyKurow Public toilet Mural $6000East Otago Musical TheatreProduction costs for “Mamma Mia” $3000Southern Zone Rugby LeagueSouth Island 16s & 18s Youth Tournament $2000Oamaru Performing Arts Society IncAnnual Festival of Talent and Competitions $1500Hakataramea Sustainability CollectiveCommunity Native Nursery Biodiversity Project $1500Oamaru Tap Dancing AssociationTap Dancing Competitions $1000Creative Community GroupApplicantProjectGrantedCatherine IronsClassical Jazz, world concert $1,600Rachel de VriesAn interactive play area with Lego/Duplo/Technic, at the 2025 Steampunk Event. $900Alicia HallChildren’s workshops using wool as Art. $720Nicols Blacksmith Historic TrustChildren’s Have-a-go blacksmithing sessions. $600Oamaru Tap Dancing AssociationTap dancing competitions. $1100Among the Stars at Camp IonaAn astrophotography camp for local astronomers $1,900North Otago Art Society IncClass Tutors for workshops. $850Steampunk NZ Inc SocietyA series of mini workshops to be held during the Steampunk Festival. $600Oamaru Performing Arts Society IncAnnual weekend of competitions $1600Judith StanleyKelp exhibition and workshops. $2,100Papakaio School“Papakaio School Arts Week” - Students to take part in workshops on visual arts.$2,771

By RNZ Money Correspondent Susan EdmundsShopback says New Zealand is its fastest-growing market - but many shoppers are still asking, "What's the catch?"Shopback is an online platform that offers to pay back a percentage of shoppers' online purchases.It has about 300 brands listed, and people who sign up and go to those sites via Shopback can receive a payout of anything from 1 percent to 100 percent of their purchase.Angus Muffett, general manager for Australia and New Zealand, said it was a relatively new model for New Zealand but was launched in Australia seven years ago.He said retailers would pay a commission to Shopback for transactions that were made by its members, and most of that would then be passed on to the shopper.If it was a travel purchase, the cashback would arrive in the customer's Shopback account once the travel had been completed. Other purchases would have their cashback paid when the retailer's returns policy had expired.Members could get $1000 a year if they were booking travel on the site, he said, or $20 or $30 if they were just doing the odd bit of online shopping.Retailers would run specials increasing the amount of cashback they offered. Retailers with higher margins could offer higher cashback than others, he said.Muffett said it worked for retailers because they would only pay if they made a sale, whereas if they were advertising on a platform like Facebook they would pay for customers clicking on their links."There is no catch. It's a marketing channel and we share the commission."Muffett said data was only collected to enhance the Shopback experience for members and was not shared with third parties.He said Shopback had recently started to offer incentives for people playing mobile games, too.Chris Wilkinson, of First Retail Group, said Shopback was popular in other parts of the world, particularly Singapore."We know it has been successful for the brands - selling direct to consumers - and retailers, as consumers channel purchases toward participants, many of whom are already value-oriented choices - such as Chemist Warehouse. Essentially, it provides another window to those selling products and services - heightening their profile and priority in shoppers' choices."But Bodo Lang, a marketing expert at Massey University, said there was reason to be wary.Professor Bodo Lang Photo: University of Auckland"Shopback essentially gamifies shopping. Therefore, it may encourage consumers to potentially spend more money than they otherwise would, all under the premise of 'saving' money."Consumers who are prone to overspending, gambling or impulse buying should use such platforms with caution because there is a risk of becoming addicted to this type of shopping. This is a major concern, as studies have found that around 5 percent of consumers suffer from compulsive buying behaviour. Younger consumers and females are more likely to exhibit this trait."Second, platforms such as Shopback make the marketplace less transparent for consumers. This is the last thing we want from a consumer protection perspective. In an ideal world, consumers would have perfect information, including the pricing of products. Platforms such as Shopback make the marketplace more opaque and make it more difficult for consumers to access clear and easy-to-understand information when needing to buy a product."He said people might also be tempted to only look for brands that were available on Shopback and miss out on other deals."These brands may not always offer the exact product that consumers need, or they may not always offer the lowest price for the product consumers are seeking to buy.Therefore, consumers may end up buying products that are not quite right, or they may spend more than they would have if they had bought the product through another retailer."He said because Shopback tended to feature larger brands, it could make it harder for smaller retailers to compete.Lang said people could save more money by finding the products they wanted through independent reviews, such as by Consumer NZ, and then using a price comparison site."Never pay full retail or the recommended retail price (RRP). Instead, ask for a discount, particularly if you are a regular customer, are buying more than one product, or are spending a lot of money in one session." - RNZ

With a banking background, Krista Brenssell became a mortgage and financial adviser to provide a local solution to a growing local problem.With fewer local lending options and shrinking bank hours, she saw a need to do things differently.“I wanted to extend the options we previously had available in the Waitaki,” she says.Krista noticed friends travelling to deal with advisers in other centres and realised there was an opportunity to bring those services home.Now, as part of Mortgage Lab, she offers access to 27 lenders from New Zealand’s main banks to second- and third-tier providers, and even international options like Bank of China.“It just gives a bit of scope of service really,” she says.“Obviously most people who live in Oamaru bank with one of those few banks that we have here.“If they're not happy with the service or they're not happy with the rate, they feel they have to take it — because they can't go to Christchurch or they don't want to Zoom.”Working for herself gives Krista the flexibility to meet her clients on their terms.“You don't have to live chat it or leave a message, you know — you can actually talk to someone,” she says.“I'm going to answer my phone, I will answer my email, I'll be the person showing up."They can just message me whenever they need or have a question. You can't do that with the bank.”Banking experience makes a differenceKrista’s previous role with Kiwibank means she understands what banks need and the policies they work within.“Banks can’t give you general financial advice,” she says, "they literally will give you a disclosure saying they can only tell you about what their bank offers.”That narrow scope of service often limits the help banks can provide.“Kiwibank doesn’t do personal loans, so as soon as you’ve got one, they refer you on.”Krista, on the other hand, has oversight of multiple lenders and that makes a real difference.“Westpac can’t tell you about Kiwibank,” she says, “but my job is to find the best solution for my customers and that means understanding what all my lenders are doing.”Understanding what locals actually needAs a mum of two and a homeowner herself, Krista understands both the paperwork and the pressure.“I am a mum, I’ve got two young kids, I have a mortgage. I understand the concept. I’ve gone from full-time work down to part-time work and back to full-time work again.”She works with people accessing their KiwiSaver for a first home, those downsizing or refinancing, and others navigating more complex situations — like consolidating debt, applying for personal loans, or seeking short-term business finance.“Whether you are with CCCFA or outside of it, there may be a suitable lender available,” she says.“I had a client not long ago that did a small business loan.“When you’ve got income coming in but you’re not quite there, it’s a hard situation.”Another area where Krista can help is in recognising pressure points early and finding ways to ease them.“If people might have three loans and I go, OK, you're paying a lot of money per month... that looks like five or six hundred dollars in repayments."“Let’s debt consolidate, stretch it across a term, get a lower interest rate... and all of a sudden, that $600 might only look like $300.“When you're in it, it’s very hard to see it,” she says.“But when we look at it, we can see those pain points quickly — and that’s the whole point of a financial adviser.""It’s not just about your mortgage — we’re looking at how you’re actually sitting financially, and how you can do better.”Not just a loan, a long-term planThe job, she says, isn’t just about one-off approvals but about helping build financial confidence over time.People might have an appetite for debt or simply never had the chance to build financial literacy. Krista says one of her clients is a perfect example.“We just needed to pull it down,” she says.“So, we’ve got a plan, and that’s the thing, not everyone is buying tomorrow."“I would say in about eight months, nine months’ time, I can get them in a house.”While she provides advice to clients nationwide, Krista’s heart is in helping local.She understands that money conversations can make people feel judged, but that’s not her role.“I know what it’s like to pay day care and school fees. I have two kids in school. My income has changed up and down over time,” she laughs.“I’m not some early twenties high flyer guy who doesn’t know what it’s like to experience life and costs — and yeah, I think that’s the difference.”And when things work out?“I always feel like I’m the one buying the house,” she laughs.“I had two people the other day that I got letters of offers from the bank."They got declined at other banks, and it was so nice. They were so excited to go out to the open homes.”Krista’s approach is clearly making a difference.“I see that there’s a need for it because I’m super busy”, she says.And she’s backed by the award-winning team at Mortgage Lab, recently recognised as Winner of Outstanding Brokerage (5+ Advisers) in the 2024 Kiwi Adviser Network Awards.Contact Krista Brenssell, financial advisor: mortgages or drop by The Business Hive — she’s there most days.

The world’s smallest little penguins are making history and surprising experts in what is one of the earliest egg-laying seasons in its history, despite threats to the marine environment. The Ōamaru Blue Penguin Colony have begun laying eggs almost three months earlier than usual, indicating a healthy and successful marine environment.Now experts are urging the public to do their part to protect this environment following the death of a male little penguin after it was discovered tangled in a discarded fishing line.The Ōamaru Blue Penguin Colony Science and Environmental Manager Philippa Agnew says a few days before Easter the team came across an injured penguin that was tangled in a fishing line near popular fishing spot, Holmes Wharf.“The line was wrapped around it so tight that the penguin had lost its leg,” Philippa says.“You could also see the penguin was then trying to use its flipper to get onto the rocks which did damage to the point that the bone was sticking out of its flipper.”“Bone infection was likely. An injured animal like that can’t live a healthy and pain-free life in the wild.“We had to have it euthanised to end its suffering. It was the only humane thing to do because it couldn’t survive in the wild with only one leg”.Philippa warns about the consequences of discarded fishing gear, which is a monumental problem for all kinds of marine animals.“The fishing line obviously wasn’t lost on purpose, but the person also probably didn’t consider the impacts that could have on the wildlife.“This sort of thing happens more than people realise,” Philippa says.The distressing damage inflicted by the fishing line. Photo: Supplied.The arrival of early penguin eggs was a welcome surprise after the upsetting discovery of the injured penguin.During a monitoring round, the colony discovered that the penguins have begun egg-laying for the season."We expected the season to be early, but this is the first time for our colony - and second recorded for the country - that we have had eggs laid in April”, says Philippa.Little penguins typically begin laying eggs between late July and mid-November, spending April and May feeding at sea in preparation for the nesting season.“Egg-laying is very food-driven so to have eggs this early means we have good food close to the colony. It tells us that things are looking good for the season,” she says.As a bonus, the colony has also noticed a large number of penguins coming onto shore during evening viewings which is another indicator of a good food source close by.

By RNZ In Depth data journalist, Farah HancockNew Zealand is considering a major overhaul of its genetic modification laws. While proponents tout the potential for more nutritious foods and reduced emissions of gene-edited products, a growing number of our biggest exporters are sounding the alarm.When Aotearoa's restrictive genetic modification laws are overhauled, the responsibility for assessing risk will largely fall on one person's shoulders.Under a proposal in the Gene Technology Bill, this person, a newly-minted regulator of gene technology, will zero in on two areas of risk when licensing genetically modified organisms.First: Does it pose a risk to human health? And second: Does it pose a risk to the environment?But amid the submissions on the bill, which is currently making its way through parliament, there are calls for the regulator to consider a third area: The risk to trade."We were told in no uncertain terms that this bill was not to consider economic impacts," says Organics Aotearoa's Scott Wilson. The industry group went ahead and commissioned its own report from the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research into the potential impact. The report said it was difficult to estimate the impact and gave a range from zero to $10-20 billion a year.The organics industry is a fierce opponent of GE tech, so its opposition to the bill, which aims to tackle New Zealand's long-standing precautionary approach to gene editing, was largely predictable.What was more surprising was that aspects of the bill also sparked concern from some of our biggest exporters.Fonterra and industry body Dairy Companies Association NZ (DCANZ) support the legislation, but asked for an amendment to be made for trade risks to be considered. Horticulture New Zealand, which represents approximately 4500 fruit and vegetable growers had a similar message.There is disagreement among government officials too. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) suggested there could be a risk to trade, but the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), opted to go against MFAT's concerns when writing the bill.Asking the regulator to consider trade, "would require the regulator to make a speculative economic judgement outside of its scientific expertise," MBIE noted in a Regulatory Impact Statement. It could also "create an avenue for opponents to GMO use to disrupt or prevent GMO applications beyond arguments based on risks to human health and safety and the environment".What's the benefit of GMOs?Dairy NZ chief scientist Bruce Thorrold says it is time to change New Zealand's cautious approach to genetic technologies, which does not allow field trials of things like genetically edited grasses.Thorrold gives an example of a "stunning piece of science" from Crown Research Institute, AgResearch. A ryegrass gene which produces more lipid - or more fat - has been stabilised. This could result in a more nutritious grass for the cows, leading to greater productivity and reduced methane emissions.The grass has been tested in the United States, with promising results, he says, but our current rules mean it can't be tested outdoors in New Zealand."We need to know that these plants express the genes in the climate and the sunshine hours and the temperatures that we have here."William Rolleston is a former Federated Farmers president and Life Science Network chair and is a longtime advocate for loosening the rules around genetic technology in New Zealand. He is also a South Canterbury farmer and can envisage a future where gene technology reduces farmers' overheads."If we were in the ETS (emissions trading scheme) and had to pay for emissions, and using a genetically modified rye grass, which reduced my emissions by 20 percent, was going to save me having to pay those ETS bills, then I'd be pretty interested in using it."Other examples given of potential farming benefits include breeding polled cattle - cattle without horns - meaning farmers would not need to use a hot iron to cauterise horn buds of calves. The painful process requires the use of local anaesthetic and for calves to be kept out of rain for 24 hours.Would we lose access to markets?The sticking point for many exporters is the proposed bill suggests allowing some gene edited organisms to be unregulated. This could mean products from genetically edited animals could get mixed into products.DCANZ executive director Kimberly Crewther explained some countries New Zealand exports dairy products to require any products from gene edited animals go through a permissibility and approval assessment.European Union countries require labelling, Japan approves products on a case-by-case basis. China requires importers of genetically modified goods to obtain a certificate. Indonesia and Malaysia both require the approval from food or biosecurity boards.These markets represented 49 percent of New Zealand's dairy exports, accounting for $11.7 billion, according to DCANZ."In terms of what we are asking for with changes to the bill, is to be able to manage those differences," says Crewther.This requires being able to trace animals through the supply chain so exporters can provide correct information to markets. Milk from gene edited polled cows, for example, would be able to be identified, and even kept apart for milk from non-gene edited cows, much the way organic milk is processed separately currently.It all relies on knowing what animals are gene edited, says Crewther. "Without visibility, you can't actually set up traceability, it's like looking for invisible needles in haystacks."The bill in its current form allows one type of gene-editing SDN-1 to be unregistered, this is where DNA is modified, but no foreign DNA is inserted. Rather than have a blanket rule that SDN-1 altered organisms be registered, DCANZ has asked for market risk to be considered by the regulator. Crewther says this could allow traceability where needed for export markets, and not have it imposed where it's not needed.Her response to MBIE's concern that a regulator might not have the expertise to consider market risks was that experts are available to call on for advice."We suggested a market access panel or market access committee," she says. This panel could call on expertise from the Ministry for Primary Industries, MFAT, or industry experts.Crewther has seen the report which Organics Aotearoa commissioned, which estimated $10-20 billion in exports per year could be affected. Her view is more moderate.If there's no ability to track products from gene edited animals with a traceability scheme, then "there could be costs associated with it", she says."We don't think that it's a case of liberalisation of gene tech and maintaining market access, maintaining trade value, needs to be mutually exclusive. We think it can be managed with changes to the bill."William Rolleston was less diplomatic about the estimates in NZIER's report, saying it applied premiums from some products across the board. "Then it said, if we have the genetic bill, that we're going to wipe all those premiums out. That's just not credible."He is not in favour of the regulator considering trade risks when assessing gene-edited organisms as it would require "a whole new set of skills". Reports like NZIER's demonstrate how subjective economic estimates can be."How's the regulator going to weigh all those things up? Because at the end of the day, they are speculative."Overseas countries do not require trade implications to form part of decisions around allowing the release of organisms."What they do is trust their industries to actually manage the trade situation themselves."Organics Aotearoa's Wilson says the organics industry contributes just under $1 billion a year to the country. He describes the industry as philosophically driven, as well as market driven. Even if there were assurances from scientists that testing had shown no risks from gene-edited organisms, he believes customers seeking natural products would try to avoid them.Currently, New Zealand produce can claim to be GMO free without the need for costly traceability schemes. It's an advantage Wilson says other countries are jealous of. If the rules change to allow the release of gene-edited organisms, then proving that status becomes harder.For DCANZ, the main concern is products from gene-edited animals. Export markets don't insist on assurances the food the animals eat is also GE free. In fact cows in the United States and South America commonly eat GE soybean and maize crops.But for the organics industry, grasses and crops are more of an issue.An organic farmer's neighbour might choose to use a GE free ryegrass. While measures can be taken to reduce the spread of the grass between farms, such as buffer zones on boundary areas, grazing or mowing to make sure seed heads weren't produced, or different flowering dates for ryegrasses on each farm, the organics industry still worries there's a chance of cross pollination.Organic products can earn a premium, but this often reflects an increased cost of production.Wilson acknowledged NZIER struggled to put a figure on what the changes could mean to exports."The main takeout from it was we have a lot to lose, whether that's $1 billion or $10 billion or $20 billion to lose - there is a loss."The Green Party's Steve Abel has sat through many of the oral submissions to the select committee for the gene tech bill. A common thread among primary producers is concern around risks to exports. He finds it "staggering" there hasn't been substantive analysis of the value of New Zealand's current gene editing free status.He described the bill as "radical deregulation" of New Zealand's current approach.The party's stance on genetic technology is support for medical use, and support where organisms are contained. The party is opposed to the release of any organism that has the ability to self-replicate."We have a point of difference, and we as an island nation have this ability to maintain that non GMO status. We know there's a huge and growing global market for GM free food, that seems to be an obvious advantage that we should retain and not forfeit for some speculative benefits from GM products."He's skeptical about any benefits from gene technology being introduced to food production. "There's no clear evidence people want to consume GM food," he said.When it comes to gene edited crops, like ryegrass, the impact to farmers' bottom lines are unknown while testing is still underway."These speculative benefits can't be costed because they haven't been achieved and they haven't been proven."The bill is currently before the select committee. The committee will prepare a report with recommended changes before the bill has a second reading. The report is due 31 July. -RNZ

Reporting by Ashley Smyth and Cara Tipping SmithAn important 8 minute read. First published 15 April. Updated 30 April. UPDATE: The submission period for the Proposed Waitaki District Plan has been extended to midnight Friday, May 16.It’s long and complex - and it could affect you more than you realise. That’s the overarching sentiment of urban and rural property owners working to respond to Waitaki District Council’s Proposed District Plan for which submissions close on 9 May.There’s a sense of urgency as Waitaki App talks with locals.“I do feel that once these are embedded, then there'll be no going back from it, you know, that it'll become as of right, and so suddenly people won't surrender that,” Ōamaru man Mark Hay says.“I think the window of opportunity is quite small.”The Proposed District Plan has immediate and future consequences for property owners.The Proposed District Plan sets out the rules for how land across the Waitaki District can be used, developed and protected.That includes things like zones (e.g. rural, residential, industrial) and overlays - an additional layer of rules that apply on top of zones, based on special values such as significant landscapes, cultural sites, flood risks or ecological features.Changes to zones or overlays could impact what property owners are permitted to do with their land, now or in the future, although the RMA does protect existing land use rights for lawfully established activities.One example is that rural areas were previously divided into the Rural General Zone and the Rural Scenic Zone but the proposed plan merges them into a single Rural General Zone and converts the Rural Scenic Zone into an overlay.As a consequence of the zone change, the minimum permitted subdivision size increases from 4ha to 20ha - impacting the landowner’s potential ability to sell lifestyle blocks down the track.The Rural Scenic Zone overlay is an example where permitted land use could have a future impact for property owners. Image: https://waitaki.isoplan.co.nz/review/But it’s not just rural property affected by the proposed plan’s changes.Overlays in the proposed plan include; Rural Scenic Landscape (RSL), Outstanding Natural Landscape (ONL), Outstanding Natural Feature (ONF), Significant Natural Area (SNA), Significant Natural Feature (SNF) and Sites and Areas Significant to Māori (SASM).To assist landowners in understanding how these overlays may affect their property, the council has provided an interactive map to help them visualise how any proposed changes affect their property.There are questions about mapping and boundaries.Mark, who owns property in Ōamaru, says overlays are put on the land to protect various values, “areas that are pretty unique and they need to be protected, and we totally support that”.“The Waitaki River is a fairly narrow braided area and of course it used to expand over the whole valley, so . . . is it just where it’s currently running through the braided system or do you have to encompass all of the flat areas that are now farmland?”Various overlays in and around Ōamaru according to the ePlan. Image:https://waitaki.isoplan.co.nz/review/Sven Thelning is a farm consultant, owner of Thelning Systems and committee member of Waitaki Property Guardians.He gives an example of an initial map that had been drawn, “included, thousands of hectares of land which had not been natural or outstanding since probably well before the sixties”.“We’re not saying that the river shouldn't be protected. We’re all for that.“The problem is that to have any effect in your submission, you have to pay a landscape architect.“So this is where Waitaki Property Guardians comes into this. We’ve been quoted $18,000 to get a report done to try and have that overlay boundary shifted back.”Council says landowners can choose “to employ landscape architects or other experts to provide advice on overlays that affect their land” but it is not a requirement for making a submission on the Proposed District Plan.Council has also provided three independent ‘Friends of the Submitter’ to assist people making a submission.“They can provide good advice for this and to ensure you are providing valid RMA reasoning for your submission,” Waitaki District Council heritage and planning manager David Campbell says.Loss of property value is not in itself a valid reason for a successful submission.Sven explains the legal argument established by the courts is that the value of a property is derived from what you can do on it.“Therefore, when making your submission you need to argue how the rules affect what you do on the property, not the ensuing increase or decrease in value.”He says that there has been success in getting boundaries modified, but it involves consenting costs.There was a situation where $2990 worth of earthworks cost “another $9369 in council consultant and landscape architect advice”.The greater part of the fees were paid outside of the district to consultants in Christchurch and Dunedin, according to Sven.Concerns about current and future investment necessary to obtain resource consent.Underwriting some of the tension is the threat of current and future investment in getting maps adjusted to reflect what landowners are seeing on the land as well as future resource consents.That is something Waitaki Property Guardians, a local organisation that’s stood up on behalf of landowners, wants to be able to help support.Initiated two years ago, in response to issues identified in the Draft District Plan, the group represents property owners’ interests, “advocating for the protection of individual property rights through practical policies and solutions while considering cultural and natural values”.“Every one of our committee is one of North Otago’s top people in their field,” Sven says.“They’ve got big reputations to protect and they’ve stuck their necks out with this. That’s how important it is.“Part of the problem is that right now you don't need a consent for what you're doing, but you don't know what you might need to do next year.”Changes to maps can be successfully argued when you make a submission.Duntroon dairy farmer Geoff Keeling says, “once you’ve got an overlay on your property, rules can change”.He and his wife, Jan have successfully had two proposed overlays on their property ameliorated. See Farmers successfully challenge District Plan overlays story from Ashley Smyth here.“But when you think about it, we shouldn’t have had to have them changed, logic should have prevailed.”Mark says if you are within a town/urban boundary, resource consent will be needed to move more than 300m2 of earthworks in a 12-month period, for any earthworks on ground sloping more than 18 degrees or for cut and fill exceeding 1.5 metres.That means levelling a site for a house or installing a driveway could potentially trigger a resource consent.“That’s one part of it… I think they’ve gone too far with that,” he says.Overlays cover tens of thousands of hectares of the Waitaki and some properties could be subject to more than one overlay.A bird's eye view of mapping some of the different zones and overlays provided in the ePlan. Image: https://waitaki.isoplan.co.nz/review/Where external-to-council parties are the experts, including Heritage New Zealand, Iwi and others, gaining resource consent could require additional consultation.Where there is a range of experts with subjective opinions, the council could require expert advice to be peer reviewed at the land owners' expense.How much applications will cost, how they will be processed and in what timeframe is unclear.The current Resource Management Act is driving many of the changes.David says the District Plan process is entirely guided by the Resource Management Act.The council provided background to the overlays throughout the Draft District Plan consultation process from 2022, stating “it is a matter of national importance under the Resource Management Act” to recognise and provide for them.Property owners are at pains to state that they are not against valid protections.Equally, they do not want to be forced into a potentially expensive, adversarial stance against any other stakeholder or group.Sven says, “It’s not us versus Iwi. It’s not even really us versus council”.“We’ve got to be clear about that. We’ve got some good people in there.”Mark, Geoff and Sven also recognise the council has to follow the RMA and is legally in the right.“They put out a thing that’s so complex and they have to because that’s the RMA,” Sven says.“That’s the fundamental issue - the RMA.“That’s why the Government’s replacing it.”Waitaki didn’t need to issue the plan now, he says.“They chose to jump in with the outdated, complex, old RMA and put that into effect instead of waiting just a few more weeks to get a steer on the new one.”He notes that while the Government’s replacement act might have less complexity, “it still has the critical ones that we’ve got the biggest problems with”.The council holds a different position."The Government has not yet published its proposed RMA reforms, and they are not intended to be legislation which Council could use to change provisions [until] mid-2026 at the earliest”, says David.The time to look at your property and potential impacts of the Proposed District Plan, is now.Timely action now is vital, according to all parties.David says the council has also been working constructively with the Waitaki Property Guardians.“Providing them with information to share with their members regarding how to access the free and independent Friend of the Submitter.”Speaking to a Friend of the Submitter, they suggested the council was the best place to start an inquiry about your property.“If you’ve had a look at the proposed ePlan, found your property and associated mapping layers but have some questions about how this might affect you, contact the council for clarification from their planning team”, they said.“If your understanding of the proposed plan leads you to make a submission, a Friend of the Submitter can help you with that process.They suggested owners contact the service early rather than leaving it until May.Example information provided by the ePlan with associated downloadable report. Image: https://waitaki.isoplan.co.nz/review/Waitaki Property Guardians also encourage property owners with concerns to get in touch with them.Sven says people can join the group and split the cost of the planner and landscape architect if required.“They're better off to split their cost and have a lower cost now than to have to pay $6-10,000 next time they need a consent, under the new rules.”Additionally, he encourages people to review and submit on the new RMA when it’s available for submissions because, “they’re talking about when these property rights are taken away, that property owners under the new RMA will hopefully be compensated for them”.“If they still do legally have to do this at least people will get something back.”To find out if your property is affected:Find your property on the council’s interactive map at waitaki.isoplan.co.nz/reviewContact council for specific advice on your propertyTo find out more about Waitaki Property Guardians collective response:Contact Waitaki Property GuardiansTo make a submission:See council’s advice on how to make a submissionEmail council’s Friend of the Submitter service at [email protected] on the Proposed District Plan close midnight Friday May 6.

Duntroon farmers Geoff and Jan Keeling managed to have two proposed changes to their land removed after successfully arguing against their validity, Geoff says.“In our instance, we had two major overlays, one being the Outstanding Natural Feature, which was everything between the main road and the river . . . and our argument with that was that it's a longtime modified environment. It has been modified, rightly or wrongly, for probably the last 100 years.“So, anything that is outstanding still, it's going to remain outstanding because it's obviously been preserved by someone, but anything that is gone, is long gone.”In that stretch that they were talking about, especially the visible stretch from Duntroon to Kurow, the river is a sea of willows, he says.“There's nothing outstanding about it. They can't see the river, per se . . . there was nothing site-specific about it - you don't mind if there is something special there - rather just a generic blanket.”He says council staff would assure them they could “still do this and still do that”, but once there is an overlay on your property, rules can change, and it also has the potential to affect land value. As evidenced by a report obtained by local farmer Otto Dogterom.“Just from a dairy farmer's perspective, we have audits by Fonterra, we have audits by our irrigation companies, which get reported back to ECAN, we have effluent consents, we have land-use rules.“And then suddenly . . . there's an overlay at district council level . . . so it just adds another layer of bureaucracy and therefore to the cost.”The second overlay they contested was a Site or Area of Significance to Maori (SASM).The Keelings’s farm contains the Takiroa Rock art site, which is a reserve with public access, and is well looked after.As well as the Maori rock art, the Keelings also have wetlands on their property across the road that are protected by a covenant and under going major restoration work.“Again for us, they basically put a dot on the map and just threw a circle around it, and it included about 30 hectares of irrigated pasture, that had been an irrigated pasture for 50 years.“From our point of view as farmers, we've got six kilometres of Alps to Ocean track going through our property. We've got the Takiroa Rock Art site and the restoration of the Takiroa wetland going on at one end, and we've got Duntroon community wetlands on the other end of our property.“Us and a lot of other farmers are already doing a lot, and then you just sort of get slapped with this generic thing, with consultation but no real ability for adjustments to be made. . . . and you're almost being painted as the bad guy that wants to go and ruin things.“If there's stuff that's special now, you would argue that it's going to remain special or remain protected. Because if it's still there now, you know, everyone's awareness, farmers' awareness is a lot better than what it was 30, 40, 50 years ago.“And so, we all recognise that you've got to protect these things. Don't treat us as the enemy.”Through help from Sven Thelning and the Waitaki Property Guardians, the Keelings have had their SASM reduced back to the area that was already protected, and the ONF has been removed from theirs and a number of farms on the south bank of the Waitaki River.Geoff has been reluctant to speak out, because they did have their point of view listened to, and plans changed accordingly.“But then when you think about it, we shouldn't have had to have them changed, logic should have prevailed.“Council or their planners or whoever was doing these great big generic overlays should have been more pro-active and more specific to start with.“We wouldn't have minded if someone had come to us at the start with the SASM and gone, ‘do you mind if we put this in?’ And we probably would have gone, ‘well yeah, no . . . that's why this restoration is happening’, and it would have saved a lot of pushing and sort of, I suppose, to-ing and fro-ing.”Geoff wants to acknowledge the work Sven especially, and the group of people who were the forerunner before the Waitaki Property Guardians was officially formed have done for them and other farmers.“We've benefited as individuals, but it's been through the collective group . . . and we are just lucky that our sites and our farm, I guess, has got stuff happening and underway.Find more about the Proposed District Plan and how it could affect you - Waitaki property owners: urgent call to action as deadline looms.

Metservice has issued a road snowfall warning for the Lindis Pass overnight on Tuesday (15th April).Snow is forecast to lower to 800 metres tonight, and 1 to 2 cm of snow may settle on the road near the summit during Tuesday morning.This warning is valid for 6 hours from 2:00am Tue 15 April to 8:00am Tue 15 April. Caution should be taken on this road during this time.For the latest updated forecasts and real time conditions in your local area, click on your Waitaki town below.OamaruKakanuiHampdenPalmerstonMacraesNgaparaDuntroonKurowOtematataOmaramaLake Ohau Alpine Village

~ Opinion ~ There is nothing like the garden to bring you back to reality.Plants I thought were doing well from a distance, close up, are infested with greenfly.My gorgeous red and orange roses have rust, and sneaky weeds have sprung up overnight.I did a first pass yesterday – weeding, digging, cutting back and some spraying, but still not finished.Undeterred by the rain this morning, I put on my gumboots and stomped out to finish the job.Hey presto, weeds magically seemed to appear everywhere, and the job I thought I had done yesterday, hmmmm well, needed some major work today.Any gardener knows that gardens don’t happen by accident.They are work; fertiliser, compost, minerals, water, sun, and constant tending - deciding what should stay, what should go, what should be moved and what needs cut back, or cut off.This takes time and reflection, standing back and seeing things in different contexts – the sun and the rain.Then, coming back the next day to see something different that needs sorted, that we hadn’t noticed before.Gardening seldom follows a plan.Just like career development.I have never met one person yet in my practice who has followed a straight-line plan from school to their present self and career choice.What building a career does take, however, is critical reflection - on yourself, your world, the context you find yourself in, and continuous personal and professional development.To build a self-made career, you need three essential skills in your life ‘backpack’; meandering, manoeuvring and the ability make meaning.It’s good to meander – try things out (interest, hobbies and sports), give volunteer work a go, have fun and be creative.You never know how your creativity may impact the wellbeing of those people around you and the community.Research, network and talk to people about what they do.Learning and skills come from diverse places.Manoeuvring is a critical life skill.When things don’t happen the way you expected, or you’re facing a significant change, having the ability to transfer your skills to a new area, think laterally about your next career move or cope with transition and loss is essential.You may have to think about a horizontal career move, downshifting or even a period of not working.And finally meaning.What meaning can you make of your career? How does it fit into the design of your life? Do you want it to give you success, purpose or is it a means to an ends?Actioning the ‘3 M’s’ requires self-awareness and continuous learning and unlearning.Something like my clever apple tree.It’s the least work in my garden and yet it is the most prolific and does its own thing – it prunes itself, dropping smaller blemished apples to the ground, that don’t fit into its design so the best ones can grow.Perhaps we all need the ability to do this.Jenny Bean is a professional member of the Career Development Association of NZ (CDANZ). If you are looking for career development support (personal or organisational), contact her at CareerBeanz.

Yogis (and yoga newbies) rejoice.A new yoga studio, FloweSpace, has opened in Ōamaru.Yoga teacher Ally Johnston moved to town about six months ago with her partner and two young daughters, and was surprised to find there was not really any regular yoga around, she says.With a background in fashion design, Ally used to manage womenswear for a large company in Sydney and was often working up to 60 hours a week. When she and her Kiwi partner Rory Lindsay started a family, they decided to move to Central Otago to be closer to his family, and bring their own children up at a slower pace.As a builder based in Cromwell, but working between Queenstown and Wanaka as well, Rory found himself in the same position, working longer hours.“They were just so busy, he never saw the girls,” Ally says.The family are happy they made the move to Ōamaru. Rory works more family-friendly hours as sales manager at Placemakers, and Ally has had the chance to reconnect with her long-time passion for yoga. “We've been able to find that real balance in life and, yeah, it's been really beautiful. We're very lucky.” Ally says while she has been practising yoga for almost 20 years, teaching is relatively new to her.She was initially drawn to it as a form of exercise, before discovering more about the philosophy behind it. Her own practice has changed a lot since she had her girls."It's slowed down a lot. It's definitely a time to relax and connect, where my practice used to be a lot faster."This shift in her own approach infuses into her teaching style. Her classes are Vinyasa - flow yoga. She aims to build heat in the body, but always concludes with a "well-rounded cool down" and the all-important savasana, or rest, at the end, she says.Finding a suitable space to teach her yoga was a community effort.Ally put out a call on a local Facebook page and was met with overwhelming support. She connected with a woman who had a studio on Arun Street, used for drumming and other holistic practices, and it felt perfect."It's surrounded by trees, it's beautiful and quiet," Ally says of the space. "It's really somewhere that you can go and just connect and relax into your own practice."Class sizes are kept small, with a maximum of eight people, to ensure a personal touch and allow Ally to "see what you're doing and help where needed”.As daughters Talulah, four, and Phoebe, two, settle into childcare, Ally will be able to expand the types of classes she offers.“While I've got little kids, I'm sort of just trying to work in around them and also just letting it organically grow . . . you know, I don't wanna be sitting in the studio with one or two people. It's nice to have a full class.”As well as Vinyasa, Ally is also introducing foundation classes, for those completely new to yoga who might find it daunting - although people of all abilities are welcome to all classes.Ally in her yoga studio on Arun Street. Photo: SuppliedThe foundation classes involve walking people through different asanas (poses) or sequences, such as the sun salutations.She urges people to give yoga a go, without expectations. "The most important thing is to meet your body where it is today on the mat," she says."It's not what it could be like in a couple of weeks, or what it used to be six months ago. . . It really is about where am I at now? And doing something for yourself that's going to benefit yourself."Ally has been unable to completely leave her fashion designer side behind, and has a small knitwear label, Hiild offering one-off, handknitted garments for children and women.“It's about making pieces that are going to last them more than just a season. So I really dive into the sizes and the quality and making sure that they're really gonna actually last in a kid's wardrobe.She uses it as an opportunity to have conversations with her daughters around buying less. “Buying one thing, you know?“Kids don't need five jumpers from Kmart, they need one good jumper that's gonna keep them warm and maybe one backup, one for when you need to wash it.”Hiild has been Ally’s main focus for the last few years, especially during pregnancy and postpartum.“Your ability to do too much is really limited, and I didn't want to. I wanted to be able to slow down and be with my girls and, I'm really lucky that my partner was really supportive and awesome. So lucky I was able to be home with them.”Knitting is another form of meditation for Ally, and it’s good for her girls to have a connection with where their clothes come from, she says.“Someone has to make it. They know that it doesn't just come from a shop and, it's beautiful, and they also see how many hours go into it. So it's like there is actually appreciation.”Prenatal and postpartum yoga is a passion of Ally’s and she is training further in that area, so she can add it to her class schedule.“I really want to be able to connect mothers not only to themselves, but also within the community . . . You know, there's a lot of mums who might not have family, might not know anyone else with children and finding their tribe is really important to me as well.” She also plans to add classes for pre-schoolers, inspired by her own children's love of yoga.Through her classes, Ally hopes people will learn to connect their breath with their movements.It is important to her, and important for her students to experience, she says.“I think that's something that gets lost in the business of life. We don't find a time to just slow down and really be able to tune in and connect to your breath through your movement as well.“Everything else just kind of disappears, you know, you stop thinking about what's on my to-do list for an hour.”Ally holds classes on Monday evenings,Thursday lunchtimes and Saturday mornings. Bookings can be made online.

By RNZ reporter Jogai BhattWellness studios are seeing more young people swap drinks for steam, turning sauna sessions into a new way to relax, connect and sweat it out with mates.Samantha Bluemel only opened Auckland wellness studio Mode a year ago, but she’s already noticed an influx of younger people hitting the studio for a bit of quality time in the sauna."We’ve definitely seen the younger generations spending time together without alcohol, particularly Gen Z, they’ve kind of moved away from that," she says."They’re a lot less interested in drinking as their primary source of socialising and instead a lot of them are turning to healthier ways to do it, and sharing a sauna certainly fits the bill for a lot of them."Samantha Bluemel is the founder of Mode Studio in Auckland. Photo: Supplied/Samantha Bluemel via RNZRelated stories:Can I fit a tiny pool in my backyard?The country's priciest pools: Where swimmers pay top dollar'Reclaim the real estate of your own mind' - meet NZ's first wellbeing professorBluemel’s set-up puts a big focus on recovery, with two private suites featuring saunas and ice baths for the ultimate contrast therapy.She says the use of sauna – a Finnish tradition of high heat and low humidity in a small, wood-panelled room – is proving especially popular for people who just want to unwind and share quality time in a lowkey setting."It's hitting two birds with one stone, because you’re getting that lovely physical and mental benefit from spending time in a sauna, but you're also getting in some social time."Bluemel says the term being used now is ‘social wellbeing’ - which stems from the idea that wellness is made up of more pillars than just the physical."There’s a lot of research that says our strong social connections mean we’re happier, we’re less stressed... it’s not just about going to the gym five times a week and having a protein smoothie afterwards."It's important to take a more holistic view on everything when it comes to wellbeing, so those rooms are developed for mental wellbeing and a happy consequence of that is social wellbeing as well."Mode’s recovery suites comfortably sit two people at a time and even feature a deck of conversational cards full of funny questions, and some serious and intimate ones too.Mode keeps conversational cards in their saunas to facilitate deeper conversations. Photo: Supplied/Samantha Bluemel via RNZ"Our clients get a lot out of them and I think saunas just create an environment that takes away the noise of the outside world, and that definitely lends to deeper conversations with friends. It's an opportunity to step away from the hustle and bustle of the world."While modern saunas are becoming popular globally, the tradition of communal sweat bathing has roots in cultures such as Japanese onsens and Turkish hammams.In Finland, saunas are an integral part of the culture and lifestyle, with an estimated two million saunas in homes and community centres across the country.Finnish sauna builder Petri Knuuttila is on a mission to strengthen the culture of saunas in New Zealand."Saunas have been going on for thousands of years. It’s part of our genes, it’s part of our culture. Besides purifying the mind and body, it’s where Finns socialise and do business."Finnish builder Petri Knuuttila wants to bring the culture and lifestyle of saunas to New Zealand. Photo: Finn SaunaKnuuttila says saunas have even historically been a place where Finns prepared for life's milestones, including births and deaths.“The original sauna is what we call today as smoke sauna. It took eight, 10 hours to heat up. We would use it as a place to wash the bodies of deceased before burying them in a coffin, and for women giving birth, it was a hygienic place to keep warm during winter.“My daughter was in the sauna the day after they came home from hospital, and my Swedish wife was terrified, but that’s just how we do things over in Finland. She loved it and she still loves it.”Sauna use has been linked to many claimed benefits over the years, from improved cardiovascular health, muscle relaxation and respiratory benefits to stress reduction, improved sleep, and even claims of improved skin health.At Wellington's HealthFit Collective, exercise scientist and academic director Carl Hammington's role revolves around researching whether "sensationalised" wellness trends stack up.Carl Hammington is the academic director of HealthFit Collective in Wellington. Photo: Supplied/Carl HammingtonHe says the studies around sauna certainly indicate real physical benefits, pointing to a 2015 study in Finland that found people who used saunas regularly, around four to seven times a week, showed a 50 percent reduction in cardiovascular disease risk."They found there was a definite correlation, not causation, which is important to differentiate ... one of the things worth noting with correlational research like that is, it can't take into account everything."Are people who use saunas more likely to exercise or eat healthy or be from a higher socio-economic status? All of these other wellbeing factors ... it needs to be put in context."Hammington has created some protocols around the use of HealthFit's recovery room, which features a sauna, a cold plunge pool, and a massage facility."The sauna fits three people at a time and bookings can be made for an hour or 90 minutes. It's usually 15-20 minutes in the sauna, then either a rest or cold plunge in between. Generally, I try and encourage people to try and bring their temperature back down to as close as normal level in between rounds."Hammington says this contrast therapy is based on the Finnish practice of sauna."The Finns would generally go in the sauna and they'd either go and roll around in the snow, or jump in an icy pond between rounds."It comes back to this idea around metabolic flexibility, so when you get hot, something happens called vasodilation where your body sends a whole lot of blood to your periphery. When you jump in the cold, it's the opposite, it sends a whole lot of blood to your core to protect your organs. So it has these really beneficial circulation effects."Hammington has been going to saunas for as long as he can remember. Supplied/Carl Hammington via RNZFor Blumel, saunas became a vital part of her own wellness journey during a challenging time in her life. When her mother was terminally ill with breast cancer, she turned to contrast therapy and sauna to manage stress."Fitness was the thing that kept me sane, but I realised after a while that it wasn't quite enough. My stress levels were so high dealing with such a big horrible situation ... contrast therapy and sauna was like a physical access point for a session around mindfulness."For Hammington, saunas have always been an outlet to connect with people and do good by his mental health."One of my colleagues and I used to go every Wednesday to a local sauna, it was a healthy form of socialisation and I got so much out of it. I slept well, got to connect with him on a social level, and we both just felt multiple benefits from that experience every week."I'm a bit older now, I'm 42, and I was sort of raised where I guess drinking was a big part of socialisation and I realised reasonably young that that wasn't a super healthy thing for me to do on a regular basis... and I just found sauna so nice."You can sit there, you can chat, you can have a bit of a laugh, and I guess trauma-bond with the heat and cold. It takes you out of your head and into your body, and I found that really beneficial for my mental wellbeing." - RNZ