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From our Chair: Floods, climate change and planning ahead Just a few weeks ago, Canterbury/Waitaha was in the thick of an extended dry spell with many farmers desperate for rain. Now, many are facing a long, difficult clean up from the recent downpour and flooding. It’s been a tough time for our rural communities. My…
Twizel River restoration recommended The restoration of a section of Twizel River close to the town has been identified as a key priority for the Upper Waitaki Water Zone Committee, which is now investigating next steps to get a plan in place. Committee chair Simon Cameron said the group has been discussing the improvement…
Creating carbon-negative ‘green’ hydrogen to fuel our world University of Canterbury engineering researchers are developing a carbon-neutral – even carbon-negative – way to create clean ‘green’ hydrogen to power our world more sustainably. University of Canterbury Chemical and Process Engineers Professor Shusheng Pang (left) and Associate Professor Alex Yip. Professor Pang, who has a background…
“MSD strongly supports this initiative, because we recognise that while we can’t deliver the full self-employment pathway for people on our own, we are able to be there as a supportive mechanism for organisations that are assisting start-up businesses at each step along the way,” says Diane McDermott, Regional Commissioner MSD Canterbury. “Seeing the strategic…
Engineering revolutionary, rapid, resilient, recyclable buildings New Zealand engineering researchers are working on an innovative modular system to revolutionise the way we construct buildings; not just more rapidly, but also more environment-friendly, quake-resilient and recyclable. University of Canterbury Engineering Professor Rajesh Dhakal (centre) and Professor Geoff Rodgers (right), along with Dr Brian Guo (left), are…
Volunteers join the fight to stop wilding conifers in the Mackenzie Basin In the lead up to winter, Mackenzie Basin locals banded together to stop the spread of wilding conifers across the iconic landscape. Over 40 people attended the two volunteer days held by Environment Canterbury and Wilding Free Mackenzie. Volunteers worked with biosecurity professionals…
A new risk assessment of the current stopbanks along the Ōtākaro Avon River has confirmed they are capable of containing a tide associated with a one-in-100 year storm event. How the risk assessment was done Using the latest tide statistics, various flood models were developed, from a frequent (one in 10 year) event up to…
Planning on heading to New Brighton on Saturday for Christchurch’s first ever Matariki Fireworks Spectacular? Here’s a few things you need to know: The festivities start at 5pm with food, music and other activities in New Brighton Mall. Between 6.30 and 7pm there will be kapa haka performances and live entertainment from fire and aerial…
Celebrating the humans of Ōtautahi A project that created 1,500 images, taken by University of Canterbury student photographers over five years, has resulted in a new exhibition that captures and celebrates the extraordinary in the ordinary. Raymond and Colleen Holland in Bishopdale; photo by Janneth Gil who was then a University of Canterbury Fine Arts…
Tenants of a new community housing development in south Christchurch are set to benefit from an innovative onsite e-bike and electric car share scheme. The Ōtautahi Community Housing Trust (ŌCHT) is going to offer tenants at its new 90-home Brougham Street development in Sydenham access to two Nissan Leaf cars and five electric bikes in a…
Tickets have gone on sale for WORD Christchurch, which will feature international writers beamed in from afar as well as an array of talented authors and speakers from across New Zealand. Earlier this year WORD announced that it was moving from a biennial festival to an annual event, in order to keep up with the…
Little River has a beautiful new mural created by local artist Frankie Bakker and pupils from Little River School. It’s been a long but rewarding process for the artist, who started last year by gaining permission from the school and Year 4/5 teacher Tara Sutherland. Miss Bakker met with the class in February, showing them…
Food printing and Antarctic chill part of kids on campus event More than 800 students from schools around Canterbury had a taste of university life last week, including experiencing the cold of the Antarctic chill and printing out food. Children who attended a Campus Events Experience run by Te Mātāpuna Mātātahi | Children’s University had…
Linwood’s new pool complex Te Pou Toetoe will open ahead of schedule, with construction set to finish ahead of time and within budget. Friday 1 October has been earmarked for opening the much-anticipated $22 million facility to the public. “We’re very pleased that work has progressed faster than expected,” says Christchurch City Council Head of…
Enabling drones to use tools in complex environments Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) aka drones are revolutionising surveying and inspection tasks that once required manned aircraft. Two University of Canterbury academics are working to take this capability to the next level, to enable drones to use tools with high precision in mid-air in difficult changeable settings….
Standish and Preece: Christchurch Photographers 1885–2020 showcases a selection of the 75,000 images in Canterbury Museum’s collection that were captured by the studio. During the Level 4 lockdown last year, the Museum put 32,000 of the Standish and Preece images onto its Collections Online website, calling on the public to help identify the many people…
“The musicians on show are our country’s finest and will amaze the audience with their technical skill and musicianship,” Lee said. The first two days of the festival are earmarked for solo and small ensemble events, while Friday and Saturday are all about whole band events. “All these events are free so people can pop…
Will pay transparency close the gender pay gap? The EU thinks so Politicians of the European Union try to fight gender pay gap of 14.1% by making pay more transparent. Professor of Law Annick Masselot, from the University of Canterbury, discusses the advantages and disadvantages of pay transparency with other professors in an article on…
New Zealand’s second-largest city faces weeks of delays in the COVID-19 vaccine rollout In a new article on The Conversation, UC’s Associate Professor Bernard Walker says the government may have to intervene if the Canterbury vaccination programme continues to fall behind. But at the same time, the vaccination of most people living in the Canterbury…
Tackling knock-on effects of concussion – can we make rugby safer? University of Canterbury (UC) researchers are tackling the knock-on effects of playing rugby by engineering a better way to protect young players’ brains from concussion. UC Sports Science and Engineering researchers, in conjunction with industry, are testing whether safer protective headgear could make a…
Receiving a Christchurch Civic Award last year was a big deal for the young founders of The Conscious Club. The awards recognise the service of volunteers and others who go “above and beyond” the civic call of duty – such as social enterprise group The Conscious Club, a team of Ōtautahi-based women who run events…
Christchurch City Council is seeking public feedback on plans to improve the way it manages the city’s stormwater. Consultation has opened on the Council’s Huritini/Haslwell River and Ōpāwaho/Heathcote River draft stormwater management plans. The draft plans are the first of seven being prepared between 2020 and 2023 for the district’s different stormwater catchments. They set…
Some Christchurch residents are going to be surveyed to understand their kerbside service requirements and whether they’d be interested in a user-pays charging system based on the size of their bins. The kerbside survey is part of the wider Life in Christchurch survey, going out today to 16,000 residents. “The information collected through the survey…
A report that provides the Council with an overview of the initiatives and issues recently considered by the Community Boards. A report from the Halswell-Hornby-Riccarton Community Board which recommends the Council change the speed limit on several roads in the Wigram area. A report from the Halswell-Hornby-Riccarton Community Board which recommends the Council declares two-thirds…
Chase the winter blues away with some weekend activities. Wahine Exhibition at Tūranga Central Library This touring multi-media exhibition features sound stories and portrait photography from Maori women around Aotearoa. The stories touch on their inspirations and tribulations, and the resilience that has moulded them. Opening ceremony at Tūranga Central Library 11am Saturday. Voices Found Join Christchurch…
About 80 hectares of Port Hills land that was red-zoned after the earthquakes have been transferred from the Crown to Christchurch City Council. The 440 Port Hills properties are spread from Whitewash Head on Scarborough Hill to Charteris Bay, including pockets in Diamond Harbour, Lyttelton, Sumner, Redcliffs, Cashmere, the Avoca, Horotane and Heathcote valleys and…
How to build quake-proof bridges on uncertain ground After the Canterbury and Kaikōura earthquakes, there has been increased interest in creating more earthquake-resilient bridge infrastructure in Aotearoa New Zealand. In response, researchers at the University of Canterbury (UC) have developed a low-damage solution for bridges that would yield little to no damage if hit by…
Research to take guesswork out of impact of whitebaiting New research into whitebait fishing will address whether whitebait are in decline and assess the impact of commercial and recreational whitebaiting on the long-term sustainability of the species. “There is a general belief that adult populations of most of New Zealand’s whitebait species are declining nationwide,…
From our Chair: Participation through nature-based education One of the things that I am most excited about is our Council’s recent commitment to nature-based youth education and engagement. Jenny Hughey, Chair, Environment Canterbury This is part of our commitment to the community under our recently adopted Long-Term Plan 2021-2031 to continue with programmes that improve…
Matariki celebrations continue to brighten the city over the next 10 days but the winter fun doesn’t stop there. With KidsFest, Go Live!, Winter Fun, Chill in the City, the Christchurch Brick Show and the WORD Christchurch Festival all happening over the next two months, Ōtautahi Christchurch is humming! Tīrama Mai, the city’s new lighting…