|
|
|
|
Nau mai, haere mai.
Does green go with gold? Well, Australians will say yes, but when it comes to the sustainability claims being made for the Paris Olympics, the jury is very much still out on that colour combination.
While these are supposedly the “greenest games in history” and proof that “another model is possible”, it’s all relative. As Chris McMillan writes today, “the Paris games will still produce 1.5 million tonnes of carbon – roughly comparable to Fiji’s entire annual emissions, with around half coming from international travel”.
The point is not to denigrate the laudable efforts of games organisers, but to question whether mega-events such as the Olympics and other global sports tournaments can ever be truly environmentally sustainable.
“If commercial sport continues to encourage mass international travel from spectators and participants, as well as expanding fixtures and events in search of ever larger media audiences, its environmental initiatives will always fall short.”
This is particularly challenging for a small, geographically remote country like New Zealand. Our sporting bodies are already behind in developing environmental strategies, but with teams and athletes having to travel such long distances to compete, it’s unlikely there can be any easy solution.
None of which is to say the Olympics aren’t a whole heap of fun, too. Check out this fascinating anatomy of the epic wave at Teapuho’o in Tahiti where the surf competition is currently happening, and all our other great coverage of the
events, history and politics of the games. Enjoy.
|
|
Finlay Macdonald
New Zealand Editor
|
|
Chris McMillan, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
Can mega-sporting events ever be truly sustainable? For New Zealand sports bodies the question is doubly hard to answer.
|
Deborah L Harris, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington; Kathy Holloway, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
Nurse practitioners can write prescriptions and help people with chronic conditions. As New Zealand struggles with GP shortages, these highly skilled nurses could step into the gap.
|
Alison Blair, University of Otago
Founder and driving force of the brilliant and influential Dunedin band The Chills, Martin Phillipps defined a sense of time and place in New Zealand’s southernmost city.
|
Tom Shand, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
There are some great surfers vying for gold in Tahiti, but arguably the star of the show is the famous Teahupo'o wave itself. Here’s what makes it special, and why surfers respect its power.
|
Lorna Piatti-Farnell, Auckland University of Technology
Bringing Deadpool and Wolverine back as part of the Marvel metaverse speaks to a desire to re-ignite fans’ passion for the MCU. Unfortunately, the film ends up feeling like filler.
|
Jackie Cumming, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
Staff shortages, under-funding and burnout are among the reasons GPs are turning away new clients. The primary healthcare sector needs more money – and maybe a new model for treating patients.
|
Antje Deckert, Auckland University of Technology; Juan Tauri, The University of Melbourne
International research suggests many anti-gang policies actually increase crime, rather than reduce it. These local experts could help us do better – if New Zealand’s politicians would listen.
|
Ian Wright, University of Canterbury
Doctoral students are an important part of New Zealand’s future knowledge economy. But funding challenges and decades of benign neglect have left the research sector struggling.
|
Alex Beattie, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington; John Kerr, University of Otago
A new study reveals just how digitally dependent most New Zealanders are now. Disconnecting requires conscious effort – and it could even cost you money.
|
Niven Winchester, Auckland University of Technology
The rugby sevens bring a festival air to the Olympic Games, but the competition is deadly serious. Here are the likely contenders in Paris.
|
From our foreign editions
|
Mark Ian Jones, UNSW Sydney
David Jones is donating its archive to Sydney’s Powerhouse Museum. It is a timely reminder of the significance of ‘DJs’ to the development of modern Australia.
| |
John L. Hopkins, Swinburne University of Technology
New laws will soon give employees a legal right to ignore work-related communication outside their standard working hours.
|
Damien Fordham, University of Adelaide; Jamie Wood, University of Adelaide; Mark V. Lomolino, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry; Sean Tomlinson, University of Adelaide
Reconstructing the demise of New Zealand’s extinct moa can help conserve the country’s remaining flightless birds, which are retreating to the same final places - cold, isolated mountaintops.
| |
Roger Southall, University of the Witwatersrand
The ANC leads the unity government. If it leads South Africa back to happier times, that is most likely to benefit the ANC, rather than the DA.
|
Alexandra Jones, George Institute for Global Health; Eden M. Barrett, George Institute for Global Health
Ministers are tightening the screws. If food companies don’t embrace health stars, they’ll be compulsory.
| |
Abi Stone, University of Manchester; Dominic Stratford, University of the Witwatersrand
New research provides the foundation for larger, regional-scale analyses of early human adaptive strategies in the Namib Sand Sea, Namibia.
|
Hannah Little, University of Liverpool
People are drawn to human interest stories and negative information.
| |
Gillian McFadyen, Aberystwyth University
The onus now appears to be shifting from the migrants to smugglers who have been profiteering from this inhumane trade.
|
Edith Gwendolyn Nally, University of Missouri-Kansas City
What makes a relationship last when feelings fade or circumstances change? Can you force yourself to love someone you hate or don’t care about?
| |
Kevin J. McMahon, Trinity College
A scholar of the Supreme Court and its relationship to the people of the United States says that President Joe Biden’s proposed term limits for justices can restore the court’s eroded legitimacy.
|
|
|
| |
| |
| |
|
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
