The Wire with Jessica

Ralph Cooney is a former lecturer in Chemistry at the University of Auckland, where his career has developed into communicating Climate Change to his community.

Wire Host Caeden spoke to him about the importance of communicating climate science, especially to community groups and older generations, after he published a piece in Newsroom on this topic.

It has been one month since the government announced the Fast Track Approvals Bill, which has seen widespread criticism from conservationists and the general public, who say the bill is undemocratic and  will push the biodiversity of Aotearoa further into decline. 
As we are in the last week of submissions to the select committee regarding the bill, the Green party have opened up a submissions page on their own website that citizens are welcome to add their signatures to, and published a guide on how to add their own Submissions.
Oto spoke to Greens MP Ricardo Menendez, about submissions for the Fast Track Approvals bill and the current state of the bill since it was announced.
They also had a conversation about the government’s recent changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa, and what they mean for migrant workers here in Aotearoa.

The missile attack launched by Iran on Israel drew responses from a number of Western countries, spreading concern and condemning the actions of Iran’s government. 

The attack followed an airstrike by Israel on the first of April, on Iran’s embassy in Damascus, Syria. 

While international organisations, including New Zealand’s government, were quick to respond to the recent response from Iran, few commented on this earlier attack. Wire host Castor spoke to Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa’s chair John Minto about this and New Zealand’s response to Israel’s actions more broadly.

For Dear Science this week, Professor Allan Blackman chatted with us about ancient Roman wine, dating a solar flare using polar trees, and the brightest cosmic explosion ever. 

Wire host Castor spoke to the University of Auckland’s Professor James Russell, about conservation and pest eradication in Aotearoa.

He also spoke to Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa’s chair, John Minto, about recent hypocrisy from the government regarding Iran’s recent attack on Israel. 

Producer Sofia spoke to the Chief Executive of the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation New Zealand, Letitia Harding, about the government’s laws and policies for vaping. 

She also spoke to Group Manager Conservation Advocacy and Communications at Forest and Bird, Richard Capie, about job cuts at the Department of Conservation.