Aotearoa / New Zealand

Digital sovereignty push for Māori. Nice.

In the last week it has come to light that national has added amendments to the current education bill after the second reading - bypassing both consultation and select committee.

If you value a democracy please contact your local MP and or the coalition partners member that looks at education

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/education/last-minute-move-to-tighten-homeschooling-rules-after-tom-phillips-case-backlash/5NPY7MPBR5DEDPGXSZIQBS5S2A/

https://www.1news.co.nz/2026/05/23/home-schoolers-fear-anything-can-be-imposed-in-proposed-changes/

https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/2019035015/explainer-how-does-homeschooling-work

Dame Jools Topp has died after living with breast cancer. As one half of the Topp Twins with her sister Lynda, Jools brought joy to generations of New Zealanders.

A gifted country singer and a skilled comedian, she was also a vocal protestor against racism, sexism, homophobia and more.

The Topp Twins knew how to hold an audience in the palm of their hands - and they made countless live appearances from country halls to the stages of London and New York.

Last thread here

Welcome to this week’s casual kōrero thread!

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Even $12.50 for fifteen minutes is pretty brutal, which is what he ended up paying.

A sweeping national climate assessment argues that exclusion from decision-making has amplified Indigenous vulnerability to floods, storms, and erosion.

The 2026 National Climate Change Risk Assessment is composed of four reports, including a companion document focused on Māori communities. That report argues that climate change is likely to deepen existing inequities shaped by colonization, exclusion from decision-making, and chronic underinvestment.

I'd love to know what others think about this. My view is it's already very easy to cast a vote, as easy as we can realistically make it, and we should be asking ourselves why fifteen percent of the population don't bother to vote, rather than forcing them to do so.

Kia ora te whānau

I have a young daughter, my partner is looking to go back to work. In an ideal world, she'd be a stay at home mum till our youngest goes to school but financial pressures mean we cannot do that.

I know daycares are regulated but I'm still really not at ease about the idea of leaving my baby with strangers all day.

Has anyone else faced this? What did you do to vet the places you looked at? Is there a rating scale I can look at for daycares? Do they get audited?

I just want my girl to be safe

Sounds like 37,000 people had a rockin good time!

Last thread here

Welcome to this week’s casual kōrero thread!

This post will be pinned in this community so you can always find it, and will stay for about a week until replaced by the next one.

It’s for talking about anything that might not justify a full post. For example:

• Something interesting that happened to you
• Something humourous that happened to you
• Something frustrating that happened to you
• A quick question
• A request for recommendations
• Pictures of your pet
• A picture of a cloud that kind of looks like an elephant
• Anything else, there are no rules (except the rule)

So how’s it going?

While it comes as no surprise to me that people take the piss out of polls and surveys, it's interesting to see just how many people will do it.

Young photographer Tom Rae tramped over snow and ice, camping overnight in the Southern Alps, to get one of the winning shots of the Milky Way Photographer of the Year competition.

The competition, run by Capture the Atlas, selected 25 photos from over 6,500 submitted from around the world.

His “Night at the Remarkables” shot shows the Milky Way arched over The Remarkables in the Southern Alps, while the lights of Queenstown glow far below.

“I thought, ‘Hey, why not climb to the top of The Remarkables ski field in Queenstown and spend the night up there, have a wild adventure, and be able to have a look down and see an element of civilisation in amongst all of this vastness in the night sky,” Rae says.

His shot was among five other winning images from New Zealand photographers taken in different iconic locations.

Last thread here

Welcome to this week’s casual kōrero thread!

This post will be pinned in this community so you can always find it, and will stay for about a week until replaced by the next one.

It’s for talking about anything that might not justify a full post. For example:

• Something interesting that happened to you
• Something humourous that happened to you
• Something frustrating that happened to you
• A quick question
• A request for recommendations
• Pictures of your pet
• A picture of a cloud that kind of looks like an elephant
• Anything else, there are no rules (except the rule)

So how’s it going?

Climate Change Commission report urges 'decisive' action as major risks loom.