By Alina Suchanski Reading time: 13 minutes Chinese migrants working New Zealand’s goldfields at the end of the 19th century contributed considerably to the development of their adopted country; but as well as precious metals they found resentment. One of them was Wong Mee Chang. Otago and...
By Katie Stone Reading time: 12 minutes When Sujal Shah first spoke to someone in New Zealand, it was in a Yahoo chat room. The year was 2005: he was in Ahmedabad, India; she was in Wellington. Over three years and thousands of miles, the pair chatted daily,...
By Katie Stone Reading time: 13 minutes In Filipino culture, family is everything. So, when Vanessa Villareña learned about the plight of Afghanistan’s refugees earlier this year, she wanted to do something to help - however small. “It’s important for me to support the refugees as they have been...
By Alina Suchanski Reading time: 12 minutes “We shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us.” – Winston Churchill Daryl Cockburn, architect and town planner, has worked on over 500 projects in Wellington, New Zealand. Concerned about the environment and building sustainability, he has fought many a battle with the...
By Katie Stone Reading time: 13 minutes It’s been eight years since Augusto first set foot on New Zealand soil, and he still hasn’t decided what he loves most. “I very much love the landscape - the mountains, rivers, forests, volcanos, beaches, the little towns, the hiking tracks,”...
By Alina Suchanski Reading time: 12 minutes Steeped in New Zealand history, the vibrant settlement of Port Chalmers is teeming with Māori legends, historic buildings, galleries, eateries, and stores. Alina Suchanski visits Port Chalmers and shares her impressions. Just a short drive from Dunedin, on the northwest shore...
By Jennifer Little Reading time: 12 minutes Leaving home - it’s a milestone we all face at some point. But leaving your homeland to start a new life in another country presents a raft of complexities and challenges on another scale altogether - never mind trying to...
By Katie Stone Reading time: 12 minutes Most of us do it every day, several times a day, without a second thought. We open a car door, get in, turn the key. We drive. It’s almost second nature. For the graduates of Puketapapa Community Driving School, however, that...
By Alina Suchanski Reading time: 10 minutes 12,000 years ago, the emergence of agriculture triggered a radical change in the way societies operated. It was dubbed the ‘Neolithic Revolution’; a time when humans transitioned from a nomadic to a settled way of life. For millennia, people have...
By Philippa Hadlow Reading time: 14 minutes Born in the port city of Mumbai, Arun Chaudhari grew up looking out at the harbour. He could see grand, steel forms sitting on the water; massive floating constructions, laden down with cargo piled sky-high. There were comings, goings, shouts,...