Building and Technology

Building & Technology Articles

Living Better, Together

27 Mar 25

In an increasingly disconnected world, many people are seeking ways to live more closely with both the environment and one another. For Simone Woodland, a dream to create a different way of life led to the Tākaka Cohousing project in Golden Bay.

Mushrooming with next-gen homesteaders

22 Jan 25

Lenny Prinz and Jodi Collins lead a busy and inspiring life that includes growing mushrooms and cultivating spawn, developing compostable mushroom packaging, creating art, raising children, gardening and community projects. Read their story here.

Shelf life – or human life?

27 Jun 24

There is a new system of industrial food manufacturing that produces edible substances that are not food, but rather food products containing novel, synthetic molecules never found in nature. These ever-increasing laboratory-engineered chemistry experiments are designed to simulate food.

Critical Thinking on Gene Technology Regulation

08 May 24

Layers of manipulation and obfuscation are being used to package deregulation of gene technologies as a net positive. Bonnie Flaws outlines how, and why one of New Zealand’s leading biological science professors considers regulation the best tool we have to prevent risk.

Tourism doesn’t have to cost the earth

21 Dec 22

The tourism dollar is coming back, but at what cost? Claire Brunette investigates how New Zealand can, and does, balance the effect on the environment while still reaping the rewards in our economy.

Recycling companies close the loop

17 Aug 22

Diana Noonan investigates the work of three recycling companies saving us from ourselves.

Fashion: the good, the bad, and the greenwashed

21 Jun 22

If you’re feeling overwhelmed and bewildered about what constitutes planet-friendly fashion, you’re not alone. Claire Brunette unpicks the multilayered environmental and ethical issues within the fashion industry.

Visit the luxury hut heated by mulch

21 Jun 22

Louise Perzigian visits a luxury hut in Nelson with a low-impact price tag and a heating system powered by a giant pile of mulch.

Investigating Aotearoa’s e-waste footprint

18 Feb 22

Electronic waste is the world’s fastest growing waste stream, and in Aotearoa most of it ends up in landfill where it can leach toxins into soil and waterways. The good news is that we are taking steps to reduce our e-waste footprint. Bonnie Flaws investigates.

Everything you need to know about natural bedding

18 Feb 22

On the hunt for a peaceful night’s kip, Theresa Sjöquist visits four natural bed manufacturers and discovers the secrets behind a healthful slumber.

Craft and transform with Rekindle workshop

15 Dec 21

A Christchurch community workshop is empowering people to learn traditional crafts using local materials, which is good for people and the planet, as Anne Gastinger discovers.