The Wire with Oto

132 nations are currently asking the International Court of Justice, the world's highest court, to recognise the harm caused by climate change and outline countries' climate obligations.

Wire Host Caeden spoke to Dr Justin Sobion from the University of Auckland about the case, who is at the court in the Hague representing Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Saint Lucia.

For their regular catch-up, Oto spoke to the Green Party’s Ricardo Menéndez March the recent COVID-19 Response Inquiry report, which was just released to the public, the government’s new initiative to get people on the jobseeker benefit into work and the New Zealand Transport Agency’s plan to increase public transport fares.

And he spoke to Associate Professor Helen Petousis-Harris, also about the COVID-19 Response Inquiry, with a specific focus on the role that misinformation played in shaping the government’s response and the public’s perception of lockdown measures.

Sasha spoke to Sarah Helm, Executive Director of The NZ Drug Foundation about a concerning increase in drug use and availability
And he spoke to Letitia Harding - CEO of the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation about youth vaping rates

Last week, the first phase of the royal commission of inquiry into New Zealand’s covid response was released to the public.

The report looked at the lockdowns, the border response and vaccine mandates and made 39 recommendations on how New Zealand could plan for future infectious disease outbreaks more effectively.

The report also made numerous references to the impacts of fake news and misinformation, regarding vaccines and the origins of COVID-19 which had impacts on the ability of medical staff to carry out their responsibilities and lead to unrest during New Zealand's second lockdown in 2021. 

However, while addressing it earlier in the report, the recommendations made to the government in the inquiry had no references to the role of misinformation in the pandemic or how to address it in future infectious disease outbreaks.

Oto spoke to Helen Petousis-Harris, an associate professor at the University of Auckland, to discuss the prevalence of misinformation during the pandemic and how the inquiry report failed to address it in its 39 recommendations to the government.

American singer, Katy Perry, recently had a court win in a long-running trademark dispute with Australian fashion designer, Katie Perry. The singer successfully appealed a 2023 Federal Court decision, resulting in the fashion designer having her trademark cancelled, and being ordered to pay costs.

Producer Athena spoke to Associate Professor at the University of Auckland’s Faculty of Law, Rob Batty, about what gave rise to the case, how trademark law was applied, and what the recent decision might mean for smaller names.