The Wire with Oto

Earlier this week, world-leading general medical journal ‘The Lancet’ published a series of papers warning about the ‘overmedicalisation’ of menopause and have emphasised the importance of a fresh and conscious approach in how we support wāhine as they age. The research emphasises the importance of  “going beyond medical treatments, to empower women using high-quality information on symptoms and treatments, empathic clinical care and workplace adjustments as required.”

Producer Jasmine speaks with the general manager of Women’s Health Action, Isis McKay, to further discuss what changing the conversation around menopause in Aotearoa looks like.

On the 4th of March 2024, the National Government presented their updated Land Transport plan.

To pay for new roading infrastructure, the Government announced a $50 price increase on registration costs, as well as a 12-cent increase in excise fuel tax beginning in 2027.

Nicholas asked Green Party Co-Leader James Shaw about his party’s position on the plan and their response to the Government’s reasoning behind building new roads.

Nicholas also spoke about the implications of a reversal of a ban on oil and gas exploration. A reversal that the Green Party has been firmly in opposition to. 

Much of our infrastructure and architecture has been constructed by able-bodied people, with little regard for those with different mobility needs.

 Accessibility for differently abled people is usually a secondary consideration, with wheelchair ramps and similar accessibility measures sometimes being crudely installed at the back of buildings as a quickfire measure to comply with building accessibility requirements, leaving those with different mobility needs often feeling like second class citizens

Producer Oto spoke to Bill McKay, a senior lecturer of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland, to talk about universal design, the idea that buildings and infrastructure should be constructed in a way that is accessible to people of ALL mobility needs and capabilities.

This week on the Wednesday Wire;

Nicholas speaks to Green Party Co-leader James Shaw about the Government’s transport plan and the reversal of the ban on oil and gas exploration.

Oto speaks to Clive Aspin, a public health researcher and associate professor at Victoria University of Wellington, to discuss the dissolution of the Maori Health Authority from the perspective of a health professional.

Sofia speaks to Associate Professor at Auckland University Gehan Gunasekara about the proposal to ban MPs from using the Chinese-owned messaging app WeChat.

Oto also speaks to Bill McKay, a senior lecturer of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland, to talk about universal design and its role in creating accessibility in modern buildings.

Finally, Nicholas speaks to Vani Kapoor and Cat Finai from the Citizens Advice Bureau about their upcoming awareness week.