Category Archives: New Zealand

Join the bird bonanza on Kapiti Island

Its not easy to spot wild kiwi. Stewart Island is your best bet but, if youre not heading that way, Kapiti Island a nature sanctuary and marine reserve accessible from Wellington is a good option. Visitor numbers are limited, giving Kapiti an exclusive feel. With a local guide, learn about the Maori, whove inhabited this island for centuries; kayak and snorkel the protected waters; and stay overnight in a safari tent, cabin or classic bach bungalow for the chance to see endemic birdlife including bellbirds, takahe, parakeets, weka and, perhaps, little spotted kiwi.

A 21-night Wildlife Encounters self-drive with Discover the World (01737 214250; discover-the-world.com), visiting Kapiti, costs from 4,077pp excluding flights.

New Zealand is a really long way to go. So make the most of all that travel by contrasting the country with the equally far-flung South Pacific. After hopping around the Bay of Islands, raising a glass or three of Hawkes Bays finest and going full-throttle in adventure capital Queenstown (try mountain biking, rafting and kayaking), jet to Laucala, a private Fijian island retreat where villas sit amid lush mountains, white sand and coconut palms, and the diving and snorkelling is out of this world.

A 14-night Ultimate New Zealand and Fiji tailor-made trip with Abercrombie & Kent (01242 547760; abercrombiekent.co.uk) costs from 27,995pp including flights.

Virgin Atlantic (0344 874 7747; virginatlantic.com) flies to Auckland from London via San Francisco on a codeshare from 981 return.

Air New Zealand (0800 028 4149; airnewzealand.co.uk) flies to Auckland from London via Singapore on a codeshare from 1,113 return.

Fully vaccinated adults and children under 17 will be able to visit from 23:59 on May 1 without needing to isolate on arrival. However, they will be required to take three Covid tests: one before departure (PCR, LAMP or rapid antigen), another rapid antigen test on arrival, and a third on day five or six.

More information here.

This article is kept updated with the latest information.

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20 reasons to visit New Zealand, now that we finally can - The Telegraph

Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway play Adam and Rebekah Neumann in the Apple TV+ series WeCrashed. Photo / Supplied

Originally published by The Spinoff

An Auckland branch of global co-working giant WeWork was announced with great fanfare. Its Auckland demise has unfolded quietly.

It was definitely happening. The biggest player in the global co-working office space market was coming. Major renovation plans for a prominent central Auckland building were announced on February 13, 2020. WeWork, a $47 billion Silicon Valley unicorn that has since become the subject of a best-selling book, a documentary, a podcast and an Apple TV+ show called WeCrashed, was 100 per cent planning on expanding into New Zealand.

New Zealand's first WeWork operation was set to take over eight floors of 131 Queen Street, a heritage building and the former site of department store Milne & Choyce, smack bang in the middle of Auckland. In conjunction with the building's owner Andrew Krukziener, and his company Krukziener Properties, WeWork's renovation plans would take about a year, eventually allowing 1,300 people pay up to $1,000 a month for a small spot to work in 8,400 square metres of office space.

For their money, WeWork customers would be given access to a desk, chair, wifi and reportedly all-you-can-drink kombucha. They were here for the long haul. A lease was signed for 10 years. WeWork Auckland was expected to open for business in mid-2021. Major publications including Stuff, NZ Herald and NBR covered the news. "Struggling US co-working firm WeWork launches in NZ," read RNZ's headline.

At the time, WeWork's Australia New Zealand general manager Balder Tol sounded buoyant. "We look at the vacancy rates and demand for real estate in general, and that shows a very healthy market in Auckland," he told RNZ. With WeWork offices in 37 countries, including 19 locations in Australia, the company was continuing with its grand expansion plans, despite eccentric founder Adam Neumann being forced out of his own company in 2019 with a $1.2b payout.

SoftBank, which came to WeWork's rescue in the wake of Neumann's departure, had approved the company's expansion into Auckland, Tol told RNZ. "Our performance on this side of the world is so strong so that we want to reinvest in the depth of those markets." He downplayed the negative headlines surrounding WeWork's failed IPO and its plummeting valuation. "What you have seen is sentiment around valuation and corporate governance, but not about the actual product and service that we deliver," he said.

Two years on from WeWork's lofty announcement, as the pandemic continues to send a wrecking ball through Auckland central and the co-working office market shrinks as more people work from home, WeWork's Auckland renovations haven't happened. Exactly when the company decided to pull the plug on Auckland isn't clear. But one thing's for certain: WeWork's not coming. No press release was issued about it.

Covid wasn't to blame, a WeWork spokesperson told The Spinoff. But they agreed the pandemic had fast-tracked the company's decision-making. "WeWork has continued to rationalise its global real estate portfolio as a part of the company's plan to achieve profitability," they said. "As part of this, WeWork has made the decision not to advance with a location in Auckland at this time." The Spinoff asked when the decision was made, but that question wasn't answered.

The news comes as WeWork's story is turned into a big-budget TV show starring A-list actors Anne Hathaway and Jared Leto for Apple TV+. It tells the rise of WeWork in all its glory, from its scrappy startup beginnings in New York to its rapid global expansion backed by big money investors, to be valued at $47b by 2019.

Neumann, played by Leto, is portrayed as an intense, personable and kooky salesman, abled by his wife Rebekah (Hathaway), who spouts nonsense yoga-babble that's turned into corporate rhetoric. It also follows its fall from grace, including staff abuse, financial misadventure and expanding corporate expenses, such as staff parties and private jets. Much of the detail, like Run DMC performing as Neumann fired staff, is accurate. (Lorde also performed for 8,000 WeWork staff at a retreat in 2018.)

More recently, WeWork has focused on making its current locations profitable and expanding options for existing members, including weekly, daily and hourly desk rates. It also launched Workplace, a platform that allows companies to manage their own office space and staff. That, says Marcelo Claure, executive chairman of WeWork and chief operating officer of SoftBank, has helped WeWork survive through Covid, with demand "higher than it was prior to the pandemic", he said, according to a report by NBC News.

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The Spinoff: WeWork's New Zealand dreams have WeCrashed - New Zealand Herald

Sport

31 Mar, 2022 04:00 PM3 minutes to read

Team New Zealand will not be racing in local waters in 2024. Photo / Getty Images

News that the 2024 edition of the America's Cup would not be held in New Zealand hit fans hard across the country.

In a sport that has given us other high-profile betrayals such as the departure of Sir Russel Coutts, this left a sour taste in the mouths of many.

Newstalk ZB sport director Matt Brown tells the Front Page podcast it's hard to rank among the greatest betrayals in New Zealand sports history, but it definitely hurts.

Sign up to follow the Front page podcast here.

"New Zealand has an incredible affinity with the America's Cup," Brown says. "When I was a kid, we grew up thinking if we win the cup, we get to defend it at home.

"We have all these benefits that flow from that. Just look at [Auckland's] viaduct and all the infrastructure that's been built. It wouldn't be there if it wasn't for the America's Cup So I think there is a sense of a betrayal, especially since we won't get those benefits now. And it certainly hurts."

The decision to take the cup to Europe has ultimately come down to money. While the New Zealand Government offered $99 million to have the event here, the offers that came from abroad exceeded that.

"The winning bid from Spain was 70 million euros. So that's about $112 million. It doesn't sound like that much more, but the key difference here is none of that's for the infrastructure. That's all already built in Barcelona.

"That money goes straight to team New Zealand to effectively do what they want to fund the team, to help build the boat, to get this campaign going. The Auckland bid was effectively $31 million going to the team to run its operations. The rest was on infrastructure and everything around organising the event. So that's a big gap of around $70 or $80 million."

The Kiwi Home Defence campaign offered to put another $40m toward the bid, but that bridge was still too far for Team New Zealand.

Brown says it's important to remember that Team New Zealand is a private enterprise, so it isn't entirely surprising that they're looking for the biggest financial gain.

In that case shouldn't the "New Zealand" reference simply be dropped from the name and replaced with the more fitting Team Emirates?

"I've seen a lot of [that idea] that floating around on social media," says Brown.

"Look, Emirates Team New Zealand is a company. It's not like the All Blacks, which we kind of own.

"But [Team New Zealand] has grown as such a brand that New Zealand identifies with without a doubt. It's a really interesting situation."

Brown also notes that there are still benefits for New Zealand to be associated with the prestigious sailing outfit.

"The reality is that Team New Zealand is still a very marketable brand and there are benefits for the New Zealand sailing, yachting and boating industries by having the New Zealand name at the America's cup."

The bigger question now is whether fans will see things that way come 2024.

The Front Page is a new daily news podcast from the New Zealand Herald, available to listen to every weekday from 5am.

You can follow the podcast at nzherald.co.nz, iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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The Front Page: Should 'New Zealand' be removed from Emirates Team NZ's name? - New Zealand Herald

A prominent doctor says the flu season could be particularly bad this year because the country has far lower natural immunity.

Dr Bryan Betty of Porirua Union and Community Health. Photo: RNZ / Karen Brown

College of General Practitioners medical director and Porirua GP Dr Bryan Betty told Morning Report the influenza virus had barely been in New Zealand for two years, because of the closed border.

"The thing we need to understand about the flu - it's brought in from overseas by aeroplanes."

He said the flu was not a mild illness - about 500 people die of it in New Zealand in a normal year.

"New Zealand I think is particularly vulnerable because our borders were so closed we actually had no flu essentially in the country the last two seasons. As a result of that we think our natural immunity is down, which means we're far more susceptible to a bad flu season this year than perhaps we normally would be."

Dr Betty said it was especially important for older, younger and immunocompromised people to get their vaccinations, which were available from today.

"If you're European over the age of 65, Mori and Pacific from the ages of 55 are eligible for a free vaccination, then anyone who is essentially living with a chronic disease be it diabetes, maybe rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, some sort of condition that is chronic and ongoing."

"The other group to really really highlight this year is children, children can be very badly affected by the flu, especially children over the age of three living with conditions such as asthma or respiratory conditions or underlying health conditions such as Type 1 diabetes."

He said the flu vaccine was safe, effective and one we have had for years.

There was no doubt you could get some minor side effects from the flu vaccination, such as slight cold-like symptoms, as the immune system clocked up but getting the flu was a far worse outcome, he said.

"The flu vaccination reduces severity, again it reduces [risk of] death."

Masking was something to think about to reduce the spread of the flu too, he said.

More:

Doctor warns tough flu season ahead and New Zealand is 'particularly vulnerable' - RNZ

New Zealand 264 for 9 (Latham 140*, van Beek 4-56, Klaassen 3-36) beat Netherlands 146 all out (de Leede 37, M Bracewell 3-13, Sodhi 2-17) by 118 runs

Tom Latham cracked a career-best 140*, producing a batting masterclass in a near single-handed effort to take his side to 264 - and eventually a comfortable win - after they were 32 for 5 at one stage. New Zealand collapsed from 22 without loss to lose 5 for 10 inside six overs, as Netherlands sniffed a miracle only for the opposition captain to spoil their party.

On a day when his team-mates should have rather given him a gift, it was instead birthday boy Latham himself who was forced to do some favour to them. But his bowlers, led by allrounder Michael Bracewell, ensured that the total was safely defended, with all six of them taking at least a wicket each.

Netherlands' reply started with both openers gone inside the first two overs itself, after which Vikramjit Singh and Bas de Leede steadied the ship. The 77-run stand that followed looked like the only while during which the visitors were in the chase, as the pair kept finding the fence with repeated boundaries.

Vikramjit hit seven in his knock of 31, displaying an array of shots in the process: from the punch to the pull, from the slice to the slash. But once he deposited a Colin de Grandhomme full toss - a slower delivery bowled at 98kph - to long-on, the wheels soon started to come off for Netherlands.

What was 81 for 2 at one stage became 146 all out, with Michael Bracewell grabbing three of the wickets to fall, two of those with an offspinner's dream deliveries. He looped one up wide outside off to lure Pieter Seelaar to drive, as the Netherlands captain got forward only to see the ball turn back in sharply to hit off stump.

Michael Bracewell continued dealing with flight, dip and turn when he had Michael Rippon stumped off an identical delivery, with Latham behind having all the time in the world to whip the bails off.

But it was earlier in the day that Latham gradually dragged the game away from the bowling side. Watching from the dressing room, he saw Logan van Beek and Fred Klaassen rule with the ball after Netherlands had elected to bowl first on a brown-looking pitch.

Despite his side being in trouble, Latham kept ticking the scoreboard by rotating the strike as well as striking the occasional boundary in the company of de Grandhomme, who played a more sedate role. By the 23rd over, when the latter departed after a brief recovery for a 40-ball 16, Latham had already reached 37 off 42 balls, never allowing the Netherlands' bowlers to capitalise on the momentum by being content to just see them off and holding one end up.

He next got an able partner in Michael's cousin Doug Bracewell, who took after a quiet start of 9 from 23 deliveries. When he fell for a more-than-handy 41 off 51 balls in the 40th over, New Zealand still had only 179 on the board with just three wickets remaining.

But Latham was in no mood to give up. After having added 90 with Doug Bracewell, he put on 42 with Ish Sodhi, racing to his sixth ODI hundred on the way, which came from his 101st delivery. The last six overs yielded 61 for the hosts, with their captain pressing the accelerator by clobbering five sixes and a four.

All those maximums went over the leg-side boundaries, with three of those - where he fell on his back while smashing - a tribute to the modern expert Rishabh Pant's methods: the one off van Beek in the 48th over saw Latham step across to a wide delivery outside off, and swipe him over deep square leg; and when Brandon Glover was called upon to bowl the last over, Latham refused singles off the first three deliveries before ramping successive sixes past the short boundary over fine leg and jamming his bat down for four between short third man and point.

Who knew what kind of day his 30th birthday would turn out to be?

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Recent Match Report - New Zealand vs Netherlands, Netherlands tour of New Zealand, 2nd ODI - ESPN

It may only be a small difference on the clocks but Daylight Saving has been linked to US$434 million of lost productivity and a downturn in crime for the day. Video / NZ Herald

Originally published by The Spinoff

America is trying to end daylight saving once and for all. Here's how New Zealand can do it too.

This weekend is shaping up nicely. On Saturday, you'll probably have a blast. In Auckland, the autumn weather has been fantastic. Temperatures remain in the mid-20s. You might go out for brunch, or enjoy a sunny walk up Mt Eden. You could cool off with a delicious swim at Pt Chev Beach. It's a delightful time of year, so get out there and enjoy it. You might as well, because it's all about to be ruined.

Sunday? That's another story. Sunday's going to be a shocker. The day after your blissful Saturday, you're going to wake up messy. Get ready for it. Stock up on Powerade. Get some hash browns out of the freezer, because you're going to feel woozy. Discombobulated. Kind of jet-lagged. A tad hungover. You'll feel like eating lunch at the wrong time. Same with dinner. Basically, you're going to feel terrible, and there's nothing you can do about it.

Why? When the clock strikes 3am on Sunday, we all jump in our DeLoreans like dumb-asses and travel back in time, to 2am. We're all going to be forced to repeat that hour, then deal with the consequences in the morning. It's the completion of a sick six-month cycle that began on September 26 to maximise sunshine hours, minimise darkness, and let farmers milk their cows at a reasonable time of day.

Bollocks. Screw the farmers. I don't even eat dairy, so I don't care. If you can't already tell, I am not a fan. Passionate hate is what I have for this time of year. Across my 43 years, I have experienced daylight saving 85 times and I have never gotten used to it, understood it, worked out why it exists, or who it is for. All I know is that my body hates it. Forget about thriving. When Dr Strange mucks around with the multiverse timeline, I can barely function.

Twelve years ago, when I became a parent, my hatred for this twice-yearly ritual only got worse. Kids are light sleepers at the best of times. You try telling a toddler to go back to bed because gremlins secretly changed the clocks and it's only 6am. It doesn't work. My kids aren't going to let me enjoy that extra hour's snooze. So don't tell me this is the good one. When you have kids, there is no good daylight saving.

Don't listen to my sleep-deprived anecdotal evidence. Listen to the experts. Research shows it really is bad for you. Car accidents go up. So do heart attacks and strokes. American hospitals report admission rates rise 24 per cent when the clocks change. "That's how fragile and susceptible your body is to even just one hour of lost sleep," sleep expert Matthew Walker told Business Insider recently.

You know who else hates daylight saving? America. Right now, the country that is doing so many things wrong is doing one thing dead right. The US senate has passed the Sunshine Protection Act, and if it passes the house of representatives too, all Joe Biden has to do is rubber stamp the thing and it becomes law. From 2023, daylight saving time could become permanent. Canada and Britain are wisely exploring similar options.

We could do the same thing in New Zealand, but we don't need laws, bills and Biden. There's a solution so simple I don't know why we haven't put it in place already. Jacinda, I hope you're reading. Are you ready? It's going to blow your mind. Here goes.

1 Apr, 2022 07:58 PMQuick Read

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Next time we decided to do this cooked clock clusterf*** of a thing, we change the time for just half an hour. Next April, we could all just put our clocks forward 30 minutes and be done with it. Not a second more, or less. It's a meeting in the middle, Switzerland in the daylights savings war. Morning risers will get their sun, evening lovers will too, and the farmers will be fine.

What's half an hour? It's an episode of The Simpsons, with ads. It's a family feast, according to this popular Jamie Oliver cookbook. It's a decent walk, a solid bike ride, a great swim. It's a nice nap. Just half an hour. Then we never do daylight saving again. It's done. Over. Finished. We never have to tinker with our clocks again.

Sure, Shihad's opening lyrics of 'Home Again' "Put your clocks back for the winter" would be rendered obsolete. But I'll still sing along and remember all the times we did dumb things with our clocks twice a year, until we didn't.

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We can solve NZ's daylight saving debacle in half an hour - New Zealand Herald

Jacinda Arderns Government has introduced legislation to enable industry-wide collective bargaining

Jacinda Arderns Labour Government in New Zealand has introduced legislation to enable industry-wide collective bargaining where unions can demonstrate worker support, or it passes a public interest test.

New ZealandsWorkplace Relations Minister Michael Wood introduced theFair Pay Agreements Billinto Parliament, delivering on a Labour campaign pledge at the 2020 election.

New Zealands industrial relations system currently only permits collective bargaining at an enterprise level, between individual employers and unions.

The UK Labour Party has identified the New Zealand proposals as a possible model for their promised legislation to introduce legally underpinned collective bargaining contained in the New Deal For Workers which was pushed through by National Trade Union & Labour Party Liaison Organisation unions in the run up to last years party conference.

Keir Starmer has promised to introduce legislation to enact the policies in the New Deal For Workers in the first 100 days of the next Labour Government including banning zero hours contracts and fire and rehire, introducing employments rights from day one for all workers, and a Fair Pay Bill.

The New Zealand legislation enables a union to initiate bargaining for a Fair Pay Agreement if it meets either a representation test of at least 1,000 employees or 10% of the employees in proposed coverage, or a public interest test based on specified criteria such as low pay, limited bargaining power, or lack of pay progression.

The chief executive of the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment will assess applications based on either test and can request further evidence and information from the initiating union if required.

The Bill creates a framework for bargaining for Fair Pay Agreements (FPA) bysetting outa general duty of good faith, and good faith obligations that apply to bargaining parties (within the same bargaining side and between bargaining sides);prescribing processesfor initiating bargaining (including when a default bargaining party may be required), carrying out bargaining, and finalising a fair pay agreement;introducing dispute resolutionprocesses to settle issues that may arise during bargaining for a Fair Pay Agreement andgiving effect toregulation-making powers in Fair Pay Agreements.

Once a Fair Pay Agreement is struck, it will apply to all employees in an industry or occupation with a prohibition on employers seeking to sidestep the FPA by engaging workers as an independent contractor.

Minister Michael Wood in astatementsaid workers in critical roles like cleaners and bus drivers, had long lacked bargaining power to seek better wages and conditions. He said, We want to turn that around and ensure workers get a fair go again.We acknowledge that a balanced approach is needed and have designed FPAs to enable unions and employer associations to bargain together to set minimum standards for all employees and employers in an industry or occupation.

These changes will help employers by stopping the race to the bottom weve seen in various industries and encourage competition that isnt based on low wages but on better products, services, and innovation.

New Zealand Council of Trade Unions president Richard Wagstaffarguedthat employer groups opposed the legislation because it would lift wages.

FPAs set a minimum standard for pay and conditions in an industry, he said.They still allow people to have their own employment conditions and pay, but they help lift the floor in an industry.

But the Opposition National Partysaidit stridently opposed the Bill, arguing it would reduce flexibility and harm New Zealands economy. Theirworkplace relations spokesperson, Paul Goldsmith, said the Bill is an ideological overreach, deliberately going to war with employers at a time when were facing huge economic challenges that would move towards rigid national awards.

Its another example of this governments belief that central government knows bestbetter than employees and employers trying to arrange things for themselves in a way that works for them.

Employers body BusinessNZ saysthat it will not accept the legislations payments of $250,000 a year for supporting compulsory bargaining in major sectors of the economy and their Chief executive Kirk Hope says the FPA scheme was unacceptable and the legislation should be canned.

Despite squealing from employers and the opposition, the Ardern government expects the legislation to pass all stages this year after going through a full select committee process.

Labour and unions in the UK will be watching developments in New Zealand as will UK employerswho are expected to oppose Labours plans in the same way they did the introduction of the national minimum wage and other pro-worker legislation introduced by previous Labour governments.

The Fair Pay Agreements Bill can be found here.

Tony Burke is the President of the CSEU and chair of the Campaign For Trade Union Freedom.

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What the UK could learn from New Zealand's planned labour laws - Left Foot Forward

Supplied

A seaweed trial could prove a game-changer in water restoration, says AgriSea managing director Tane Bradley, right. Hes pictured with, from left, University of Waikato scientists Chris Glasson, Marie Magnusson, and Clare Bradley.

Seaweed could be the key to cleaning up some of New Zealands dirtiest waterways.

Nearly $1m has been poured into a trial soon to start in the Waikatos Waihou River, testing how well the seaweed can filter its water.

This will be New Zealands first land-based seaweed trial, and three tanks of the plants will grow for 12 months, drawing water from the estuary, with data collation and analysis to follow.

If successful, AgriSea managing director Tane Bradley said it could become a game-changer in water restoration on top of growing seaweed that can be used for other products.

The Paeroa seaweed innovation company began experimenting with seaweed 26 years ago, manufacturing high-value macro-algal products to boost plant immunity, for animal and human health on farms.

READ MORE:* Kiwi company hopes to get locals hooked on seaweed drinks* The food future of New Zealand seaweed* Streams of dead birds and fish likely with potential 'triple threat' outbreak on the horizon

WAIKATO REGIONAL COUNCIL

Waikato Regional Council prosecuted a company responsible for an effluent discharge into a tributary of the Waikato River that turned a waterfall green.

Now, with the backing of Ministry for Primary Industries Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures fund, the company alongside University of Waikato scientists will expand into environmental restoration with trials to begin in June.

Theres so much you can do with seaweed, Bradley told Stuff.

We are really pushing the boundaries with this, bringing technology that is already existing and readapting it to New Zealand and seeing were it can benefit us.

Supplied

Seaweed will be used to clean excess nutrients from the Waihou Estuary in the project, a process known as bioremediation.

Seaweed, unlike many plants, doesnt have root systems and grows by pulling nutrients from the surrounding water.

The seaweed in tanks will act in the same way, filter feeding on excess minerals like nitrogen, phosphorous and other heavy metals currently unable to be soaked up by freshwater plants.

The water will then be returned to the sea, filtered and clean.

Similar models have been used in Australia alongside prawn farms to clean defecation, but this will be a first for New Zealand, Bradley said.

It is estimated that up to 50 tonnes of dry ulva seaweed per hectare could be produced from a scaled-up facility, providing the biomass for added value products.

I can see hectares of these machines being built all down the country.

The Government has invested more than $697,000 into the project through the Ministry for Primary Industries Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures fund.

AgriSea is contributing $108,000 and the Agricultural and Marketing Research and Development Trust (AGMARDT) is investing $150,000.

Thames-Coromandel District Council is gifting the land lease for the project term, worth $40,000, with support from Ngti Maru and Ngti Hako. Hauraki District Council and Te Waka are also assisting with the consent process.

Supplied

Similar models have been used in Australia alongside prawn farms to clean defecation, but this will be a first for New Zealand, AgriSea managing director Tane Bradley said.

Agriculture Minister Damien OConnor said this research supports many of the goals set out in Fit for a Better World, the Governments 10-year food and fibre sector roadmap aimed at lifting productivity, sustainability and creating jobs to drive New Zealands economic recovery from Covid-19.

If successful, this will be an environmentally-friendly way to improve water quality, create jobs in the science sector, revitalise our waterways and improve our on-land farming systems Damien said.

Bradley estimates the potential value of the project as up to $219,000 per hectare of production each year.

This is based on nitrogen credits coming into effect in New Zealand and the value of ulva-based products which are on AgriSeas Innovation pipeline," he said.

While New Zealand doesnt yet have a nitrogen trading scheme, if one was introduced the biomass produced in one year from one hectare of ponds would be worth $82,000 in nitrogen credits, based on international values for nitrogen trading.

Supplied

Three ponds totalling 60 square metres will grow the locally present green seaweed species ulva.

Original post:

Nutrient-sucking seaweed on clean-up duty in one of New Zealand's dirtiest waterways - Stuff

Torbjrn Pedersen agrees that his idea sounds crazy. Travel to every country in the world, live on just US$20 a day, and do it all without ever using a plane. Crazy, yes, but as Pedersen puts it, a good kind of crazy.

For the past nine years, Pedersen, who is also known as Thor, has been criss-crossing the globe, enduring hardships from pounding storms while on cargo vessels, wrangling visas from sometimes hostile border guards, all while juggling the logistics of how to navigate an airport-free adventure. Throw in a pandemic and the incredible feat that he has been achieved so far seems even more crazy.

But there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Pedersen has crossed off 195 countries from his list, with just eight left to go. Currently, he is on a cargo ship due to arrive any day now in Townsville, Australia. His next stop will be New Zealand, then stops in Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, Tuvalu, before travelling to Sri Lanka and then on to the final destination in his epic journey, the Maldives.

SUPPLIED

Pedersen in Tarawa, Kiribati.

READ MORE:* International tourism is coming back, but a return to 4 million visitors is years away, and some say that's a good thing * I have travelled to every region in New Zealand, here's why Tairwhiti Gisborne is my favourite* Running Australia's most isolated pub is not all cold beer and desert sunsets * Post-pandemic travel: Will Kiwi tourists prioritise pleasure or the planet?

And then he will finally return to his native Denmark, the first time home since the start of the adventure.

Pedersens upbringing and career have helped him navigate, quite literally, the tricky task of planning this journey.

SUPPLIED

Pedersen, aka Thor, has been travelling since October 2013.

His family travelled extensively as his father worked in the textile industry, while his mother worked as travel guide and spoke many languages. A stint in the Danish Army was followed by a 12-year career in shipping and logistics, but Pedersen said the inspiration for the trip came from his father.

It began with an innocent email from my father. I opened it and clicked on the link which brought me to an article about world travel, said Pedersen.

It turned out that only about 200 people have achieved reaching every country and nobody had successfully managed it completely without flying.

So the seeds of an adventure were sown. While his friends were supportive, it took a while for his parents to get on board.

SUPPLIED

He is a goodwill ambassador for the Danish Red Cross.

My father warned me against doing it, stating that it would be bad for my career. But I left home with his support, and he has since become one of my greatest supporters. When I visited my mother and told her about the project she simply stated that she also likes to travel, and then went on to talk about other things as if I had told her I was off to the dentist. Shes also a huge supporter today.

After several months of planning, he set off on October 13, 2013.

Documenting his travels on his blog, Once Upon a Saga, as well as on social media, Pedersen started with Europe, then made stops in North America, South America, the Caribbean, Africa, the Mediterranean, Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Asia. The Pacific Islands would be the final stops.

His logistics background, plus his connections as a goodwill ambassador for the Danish Red Cross, have helped his journey. Having a Danish passport has also been an advantage, especially when navigating the quagmire that are some visa processes.

There are countries which require no visa, some visas can be applied for easily online, some are easy to obtain at embassies and most visas are simply a standard process of filling out forms, bringing passport photos, and paying the amount.

Some visas have, however, been mind-boggling hard to obtain, and I have different stories for different visas. On one occasion I had to become a resident within one country to apply for a visa in another. Mad.

He is not the first to try this journey. A fellow adventurer, Graham Hughes, holds the world record of the fastest to visit all countries by public surface transport, according to Guinness World Records. However, he was allowed to fly back to Britain twice during his journey.

Pedersen said he will be the only person to visit every country in the world on a single journey without catching a flight.

Despite all the years of careful planning, he could never have predicted a pandemic. The original plan was to finish the adventure in 2020, but that was ruined by Covid-19. In fact, he has been stuck in Hong Kong for the past two years.

It started with four days of transit which turned into 11 days. Then countries started closing their borders to Greater China which includes Hong Kong. Then the virus outbreak went to become a global pandemic and most of us thought it would be over within a few months."

But despite the setback, he said he made the best of it.

I built a life for myself, made friends, improved on myself, collaborated left and right, developed contacts, etc. When I left I had a driving licence, a Hong Kong ID-card, an employment visa, a dentist card, and I had donated blood four times.

He also got visits from his wife. Yes, despite all the travelling, Pedersen is married. The original plan was to get hitched when he got to New Zealand, but the pandemic forced a rethink. Le Gjerum has joined the journey on many occasions, including a three-month stint in Hong Kong. Pedersen admits another ambition to finish soon is so the couple can start a family.

Another obvious question is how is he funding all of this?

I get financial support from Ross DK and GEOOP since I left home. They are Danish companies which focus on geothermal energy. Im also supported financially through donations from my followers. And on and off, I make some money from writing an article or from speaking engagements.

The project budget is US$20 a day which covers transportation, accommodation, visas, and meals.

He said some days prove more expensive than others when having to apply for things like visa extensions, but there are other days when he lives very frugally, so it balances out. Thankfully, he is rarely charged for the cargo ship journeys.

Another frequent question is whether he has ever thought about giving up and flying back home. He said that's a resounding yes!

I often wonder if its still worthwhile to continue. As time passes on, my wife and I see our chance of starting a family diminish. Also, my friends and family have children Ive never met.

But now is not the time to quit, especially with the finish line coming up. He hasnt got a set date of when he will reach New Zealand.

Im fortunately supported by several shipping companies. One of them is Swire Shipping which has a service from Australia to New Zealand, and also onward to Samoa and Tonga.

I might stay a little longer in New Zealand if I see my chance to join a ship to Antarctica and back. It would be a nice touch to include every continent as well.

Through all the hardships and delays, there is one thing which keeps the drive alive.

As a goodwill ambassador of the Danish Red Cross, Ive symbolically united the humanitarian movement across 190 countries by visiting and raising funds. My determination and endurance within this project is also inspiring and motivating people on a daily basis.

Personally I have received an education second to none. And many people have through my work changed their world view, learned about cultures, learned about people, and learned about countries, which they otherwise never would.

For more information go to Once Upon a Saga, or follow Thor on Instagram and YouTube.

Originally posted here:

I've visited nearly every country in the world without ever taking a plane, New Zealand is next - Stuff

Glenn Taylor/Stuff

Julien Debord, his wife Sophie and their children Lisa, 10, and Thibaut, 12, would like to stay in New Zealand. (File photo)

A French family is waiting to hear if they can remain in New Zealand after being told their business didnt perform as expected during the pandemic.

Last month Julien Debord, his wife Sophie and their two young children were told by Immigration New Zealand (INZ) that they wouldnt get visas because their business, Cafe Tennyson, hadnt met revenue and staff targets set before the pandemic.

In late 2020 Julien Debord applied for entrepreneur resident visas for the family.

Hes spent the past 16 months providing information, accounts and forms to satisfy numerous requests from Immigration. These included a supportive letter from Napier MP Stuart Nash, who proffered his strong support for the family and business.

READ MORE:* French family running popular Napier cafe told they won't get visa * Immigration medical certificate no longer required before submitting resident visa application* SailGP proposed saving NZ round with privately-run MIQ or self-isolation

INZ said it couldnt be satisfied the family met the requirements and told the Debords they had until March 21 to provide further comments or information.

Debord responded. On Friday INZ general manager border and visa operations Nicola Hogg said no decision had been made, but they were looking to make [one] as quickly as possible.

SUPPLIED

Green MP Dr. Elizabeth Kerekere, Napier resident Kathryn McGarvey, and Napier Mayor Kirsten Wise with the petition started by McGarvey in support of the Debord family.

Following news of the familys plight in early March, local woman Kathryn McGarvey began a petition. It was signed by 7308 people by Saturday and was passed to Green MP Elizabeth Kerekere, who will present it to the House of Representatives next week.

Debord said the family had been surprised by the support they had received since their story became public.

We have been crazy busy in the past two weeks with people wanting to support us. When I heard of the petition I thought if we were lucky maybe 500 people would sign... 7300 was a surprise.

The petition calls on Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi and Associate Immigration Minister Phil Twyford to grant or extend the family's visa and to update the criteria for the granting of the entrepreneur resident visa, taking into account the unprecedented difficulties of operating a business under Covid conditions.

RICKY WILSON/STUFF

Associate Immigration Minister Phil Twyford, pictured, has been asked by Napier MP Stuart Nash to use his Special Ministerial Direction in the Debord case. (File photo)

Joining Nash in providing letters supporting the family are Napier mayor Kirsten Wise, National MP for Taup Louise Upston, and Napier City Business Incorporated general manager Pip Thompson.

Thompson said the Debords had made the caf an institution bustling daily with local business people, families, and visitors.

STUFF

Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi announces thousands of migrants on temporary work visas would be fast-tracked for residency after a major immigration policy shift. (First published on September 30.)

Once the rules relax and domestic travel becomes more comfortable, international borders open, and we welcome cruise ships passengers to our iconic Art Deco city, we absolutely need cafs like the Debords to be open and trading, Thompson said

McGarvey said Julien and Sophie are kind, friendly, and hard-working people, and we only ask that they are given a fair go.

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Thousands throw support behind French family fighting to stay in the country - Stuff