Our Changing World

Today kākāpō breed on three remote islands, each bird wears a transmitter and they are carefully monitored and minded. But the ultimate goal of the kākāpō recovery programme is to restore the mauri of the kākāpō – to have them back in our forests as wild, nameless birds. What are the steps to get there, and how can science help keep kākāpō safe through this transition?
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Kākāpō need new habitat, could fenced ecosanctuaries be an option? That’s why kākāpō were released into Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari in July 2023, to start a trial of how they would do in this new, mainland, North Island habitat. A year later, there had already been a lot of lessons learned.
One of the possible future habitats mentioned by Deirdre Vercoe is South Westland, where a massive effort is underway to clear stoats, possums and rats from a huge area.
For all the details about this record-breaking breeding season, listen to the Kākāpō Files podcast.
Guests:
Deirdre Vercoe, Kākāpō and Takahē recovery programme operations manager, Department of Conservation
Dr Andrew Digby, Kākāpō and Takahē recovery programme science and technical advisor, Department of Conservation
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So far, 2026 has been the biggest kākāpō breeding season of all time, with more chicks hatched than ever before. The current challenge is to keep them all healthy as they grow into juveniles, and get added to the adult population. But what comes after that? Claire Concannon reports on the future of kākāpō from one of the breeding islands.

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The food you see on the supermarket shelves doesn't end up there by accident. It's often been rigorously tested for likeability. This week on Our Changing World, Liz Garton finds out about the science behind those decisions, given that individual taste can be very varied.
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Export markets are a key consumer group. Look at who’s eating our food with this story from RNZ’s Farah Hancock.
Our Changing World looked at how science can help pair foods with the School of Chemical Science at the University of Auckland
Finding a Psa-V-tolerant golden kiwifruit was one of the success stories from the Consumer and Health sciences team. Claire Concannon looked at the ongoing efforts to prevent the disease from getting to the South Island. 
Guests:
Christina Roigard, Science Team Leader – Sensory & Consumer Health, New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science Limited
David Jin, Scientist, Health and Consumer Science Team - New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science Limited
Dr Roger Harker, Principal scientist - Health and Consumer Science Team - New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science Limited
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In 2010 the Psa-V bacterial disease was found in a Bay of Plenty kiwifruit orchard. This was the beginning of a terrible ordeal for many kiwifruit growers. It devastated crops, resulting in the loss of hundreds of jobs, and hundreds of millions of dollars. But though it spread to some other areas in the North Island, it never made it across the Cook Strait. Claire Concannon learns about the science behind keeping this microbe out of Te Waipounamu.
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The Plant and Food Research (today the Bioeconomy Science Institute) team who worked on science to help with the kiwifruit Psa crisis won the Prime Minister’s Science Prize in 2017.
In 2012 Alison Ballance reported on the hunt for resistance genes so kiwifruit plants could be more resilient in the face of this bacteria.
As In-Depth reporter Farah Hancock detailed earlier this year, 95% of the kiwifruit grown here are actually exported - an earner of $4.5 billion in 2025.
Guests:
Falk Kalamorz
Rebecca Manners, Bioeconomy Science Institute
Dr Ed Morgan, Bioeconomy Science Institute
Leanne Stewart, Kiwifruit Vine Health
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Ketamine was first developed as an anaesthetic, and today is taken by some as a party drug. But since 2000, research has emerged showing it is also helpful as a medication for some people with treatment-resistant depression. While initial studies used ketamine injections, recent research has shown the advantages of taking it in oral form. Now clinical trials are underway to determine if a New Zealand-developed ketamine pill is safe and effective enough to get the regulatory tick.

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Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details