Green World

Last week, Minister for Conservation Tama Potaka announced an update on the Predator Free 2050 strategy, which aims to rid New Zealand of rats, possums and stoats. Five and a half million dollars of funding was set aside by the government with the aim of making Wellington the first predator free city in the world within the next ten years. 

This week on Green World, Wire producer Liam spoke to James Russell, professor of conservation biology at the University of Auckland, about the progress and impact of Predator Free projects in Wellington and nationwide. 

WWF-New Zealand, Greenpeace Aotearoa and Forest & Bird released a joint policy roadmap last week calling for an “environmental reset” in New Zealand warning about the urgency of significant change needed in our climate and environmental policy direction.

Wire Host Sara spoke to WWF CEO Dr Kayla Kingdon-Bebb about the roadmap and the extent of change they are seeking.

Earlier this year, an Oxfam report revealed that once again, billionaire wealth increased in 2025 — three times faster than the previous five-year average.

In January, Oxfam also proclaimed ‘Pollutocrat Day’ on the 10th of January, on which the richest 1% have already exhausted their annual carbon budget.

Professor of Business & Society at the University of Technology in Sydney Carl Rhodes has delved into the ‘myth of the heroic billionaire’ and the problems generated for political processes and global inequality.

Wire Host Sara spoke to Rhodes about the influence of billionaires, in particular with regard to climate action, starting by asking what the myth of the heroic billionaire is, and how it is perpetuated.

As New Zealanders across the motu witness the fallout of extreme weather including landslips and flooding, climate experts reiterate the importance of connecting these events to a wider trend of increased frequency and intensity climate events. 

In particular, experts including Dr Kevin Trenberth and Sustainability lecturer Sasha Maher say that New Zealand’s existing infrastructure needs to be upgraded to account for how future natural disasters and climate events will impact Aotearoa.

For Green World this week, Wire host Sara spoke to both of these experts about the challenges New Zealand will face on this issue.

First, Sara spoke to University of Auckland affiliated climate scientist Dr Kevin Trenberth about the drivers of extreme weather conditions, starting by asking how they reflect a larger pattern of temperature change. 

Next, Sara spoke to University of Auckland lecturer Sasha Maher about the political response to these observable climate impacts.