The Wire with Castor

Much of our infrastructure and architecture has been constructed by able-bodied people, with little regard for those with different mobility needs.

 Accessibility for differently abled people is usually a secondary consideration, with wheelchair ramps and similar accessibility measures sometimes being crudely installed at the back of buildings as a quickfire measure to comply with building accessibility requirements, leaving those with different mobility needs often feeling like second class citizens

Producer Oto spoke to Bill McKay, a senior lecturer of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland, to talk about universal design, the idea that buildings and infrastructure should be constructed in a way that is accessible to people of ALL mobility needs and capabilities.

This week on the Wednesday Wire;

Nicholas speaks to Green Party Co-leader James Shaw about the Government’s transport plan and the reversal of the ban on oil and gas exploration.

Oto speaks to Clive Aspin, a public health researcher and associate professor at Victoria University of Wellington, to discuss the dissolution of the Maori Health Authority from the perspective of a health professional.

Sofia speaks to Associate Professor at Auckland University Gehan Gunasekara about the proposal to ban MPs from using the Chinese-owned messaging app WeChat.

Oto also speaks to Bill McKay, a senior lecturer of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland, to talk about universal design and its role in creating accessibility in modern buildings.

Finally, Nicholas speaks to Vani Kapoor and Cat Finai from the Citizens Advice Bureau about their upcoming awareness week.

Last week, Warner Brothers Discovery announced a major downsizing of its operations in New Zealand, including a proposed closure of all platforms of the newsroom at Newshub at the end of June this year. 

The closure would result in the loss of approximately 300 jobs across the company.

Koi Tū: the Centre for Informed Futures, a think tank at the University of Auckland, is expediting the production of a media policy position paper which will set out factors to address to ensure the survival of journalism in Aotearoa. 

Producer, Sofia Roger Williams, spoke to the leader of the project, honorary research fellow, Dr Gavin Ellis, about the impending proposed closure, concerns about the future of journalism in Aotearoa, and how he thinks we can ensure its survival.

News and Editorial Director, Jessica Hopkins, also spoke to Head of Journalism at Massey University, Associate Professor James Hollings about the closure of Newshub. 

MethaneSAT, a global initiative to track and reduce methane emissions, is launching today. 

Although primarily funded by the US Environmental Defence Fund, the satellite is the first government funded space mission in Aotearoa New Zealand. 

The US side of the project will focus on measuring and identifying methane leaks from oil and gas production, while scientists in New Zealand will use the satellite to study global emissions from agriculture. 

Producer, Sofia Roger Williams, spoke to Spacecraft Mission Operations Director at Te Pūnaha Ātea, the Space Institute at the University of Auckland, Chris Jackson, about the launch, New Zealand’s role, and how the data gathered can help us make global and local recommendations to reduce methane emissions.