Inquiry Into the Future of Inter-Regional Passenger Rail in New Zealand
Given the urgency of the issue, for some time now the organisation has been particularly focused on how to respond to the climate crisis by reducing emissions and concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Read MoreDecember 2022
– Kicking our economic growth addiction
– Humans versus nature: our long and destructive journey
– Arctic permafrost
– UK tidal-stream energy development
– Boosting wind farm energy output
November 2022
– The Treeline, Ben Lawrence, 2022
– Diet for a hotter climate: five plants that could help feed the world
– Floating wind turbines
– Information extracted from IPCC AR6 WG III Final Government Distribution Technical Summary, November 2019 Draft
EV Batteries – Where Did They Come From and Where Are They Going?
Several years ago, Li-ion batteries, as used in mobile phones, computers, portable tools and a myriad of other devices were considered a fairly benign object, except for the possibility that they may rarely, spontaneously burst into flames. There was little conversation about how they were made and what you might do with the old, worn out ones. All that changed when Nissan and Tesla brought out electric vehicles that were capable of replacing fossil fuelled vehicles and governments started to adopt strategies to encourage EV uptake in our private transport fleets.
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Opportunities for Real Transition Leadership
Grant provides a perspective on the challenges facing engineering as it engages in the broader transition and climate adaptation process. He has identified a number of issues and gaps that engineers need to address. The Real Transition Leaders programme and community seeks to close these gaps, and Grant offers an overview of the programme.
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Earth Building Developments in New Zealand
July 2022
– Dutch group targets hydrogen-fuelled commercial flight in 2028
– How Orkney is leading a tidal power revolution
– How to turn your garden into a carbon sink
– EV Battery Technology: The road to a breakthrough
– Kiwi electric bus conversion
– Australian company secures $700,000 deal for carbon capture and storage machine
– Methane may be much more sensitive to global heating than previously thought
Good Intentions? Reviewing the Government’s New Emissions Reduction Plan
New Zealand’s first emissions reduction plan was released by the Ministry for the Environment on 16 May 2022. An expert panel offered its reaction and comments on the government’s emission reduction targets and on the policies and strategies to reduce emissions for sectors such as transport, energy, waste, building construction and agriculture. Challenges lie ahead if we are to make an appropriate contribution to global efforts to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C.
Read MoreMay 2022
– New Zealand’s 2020 Greenhouse Gas Emissions Report & Domestic LongTerm GHG Reduction Targets
– Solid State Battery Development
– Six things you should know about the new IPCC report (AR6)
– UN says up to 40% of world’s land now degraded
– Sharp cut in methane now could help avoid worst of climate crisis