Under the Lens

Your feedback, your questions and what’s coming next. Season one sparked more conversation than we expected. In this episode your three co-hosts Amanda, Peter, and Nick work through the feedback, comments, and questions that came in after season one, covering weeds, kauri dieback, and genetic modification. The GM debate generated the most heat, and what came out of it was bigger than the technolog...

Weeds are everywhere in Aotearoa New Zealand. They creep along roadsides, smother forest edges, clog waterways and hydrodams, and quietly take over harbour hillsides. Most of us just see green. In this conversation, Professor Margaret Stanley, recently recognised as Science Communicator of the Year, helps us see what is really going on in that green backdrop. She explains what makes a plant a weed...

Genetic modification has shaped public debate in Aotearoa New Zealand for more than 25 years, influencing how we think about risk, responsibility and the future of our environment. This episode unpacks what genes and DNA actually are, how gene editing and genetic modification work, and why these tools have become so central to conversations about pests, diseases and climate change. Our hosts revis...

Kauri dieback, caused by the pathogen Phytophthora agathidicida, has reshaped how Aotearoa New Zealand understands risk, responsibility, and care for the natural world. This episode unpacks the biology of the pathogen, the cultural significance of kauri, and the long journey from confusion to coordinated response. Our hosts revisit the early days when dead and dying kauri began raising alarms, the...

The PSA outbreak changed the trajectory of Aotearoa New Zealand’s kiwifruit industry and revealed just how tightly our “three bios” are linked. In this episode, we revisit one of the country’s most significant biological events to unpack how biosecurity, biodiversity, and bioprotection collide in real time. Using PSA as our lens, we trace the story from the first signs of incursion through to indu...

In our very first episode of 'Under the Lens', co-hosts Professor Amanda Black, Professor Peter Dearden and Dr Nick Waipara discuss the complexities of bioprotection in Aotearoa New Zealand. They delve into the necessity of managing all ecosystems in Aotearoa New Zealand, the challenges of returning to a 'natural state', and the interconnectedness of bioprotection with agriculture, conservation, a...