Everything you need to know about the world today, curated by 95bFM and VICE NZ.Aldous Harding Wins Taite Music Prize
Kiwi singer-songwriter Aldous Harding has taken out the 2018 Taite Music Prize for her album Party, at a ceremony in Auckland last night. Harding, originally from Lyttelton, wasn't present to accept the award, but sent a message in from London. She says she'll spend the prize money of $10,000 on recording her next album, which she's about to start work on now. In her speech, Harding thanked “everyone involved in the making of Party, not just the music itself but the air around it, things around it and the people supporting the future of Party.” Also awarded at the ceremony was Best Independent Debut, which went to Auckland folk-rock group The Miltones for their self-titled debut.More Rivers Improving than Deteriorating
More New Zealand rivers have improving water quality rather than deteriorating quality, according to a new report. The findings, from Land, Air Water Aotearoa focus on the parameters of around 1,500 sites over a 10 year period. Dr Roger Young from the Cawthron Institute says while these findings are encouraging, water quality is only one indicator of river health. Young says to continue to improve water quality investment must be made in freshwater ecosystem management and further research and innovation.Phil Goff Suffers Heart Attack
Auckland Mayor Phil Goff has revealed exclusively to the New Zealand Herald that he could have died after suffering a heart attack at the weekend and being rushed to Auckland Hospital where he underwent two operations. The 64-year-old politician said one of his arteries was completely blocked, and that if it had been the main one he probably would have died. Goff says his family have a history of heart disease, with his older brother dying from a heart attack at 58 back in 2007. The Mayor says he was lucky considering what happened to his brother, and to his predecessor in the top job Len Brown, who collapsed on stage from a major heart attack at the Pacific Music Awards in 2008 when he was Mayor of Manukau City, being forced to take several months off. Goff said the procedures, two angioplasty operations, were a success and later on Saturday he was feeling great.Bid to Decrease Child Mortality in Pacific
A new $7 million agreement between UNICEF and the New Zealand Government will centre on the wellbeing of children in the Pacific. The agreement focuses on preventing and reducing newborn mortality in Kiribati, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. UNICEF Pacific Representative Sheldon Yett says this partnership is a good start in providing access to healthcare and nutrition for young people. “I think it is a very important building block for the wellbeing of young people in these regions and I think it really is important to focus on the earliest years of life.”New Climate Change Committee Appointed
A climate change committee has been appointed to start preparing for a net zero emissions economy by 2050. Climate Change Minister James Shaw says appointing the committee is a step towards New Zealand achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement. The committee will initially focus on how agriculture could join the emissions trading scheme, and New Zealand having 100 percent renewable energy by 2035. The Commission will be officially set up in 2019.More Affected by Bowel Cancer Screening Glitch
Over 12,000 people have missed out on a bowel cancer pilot screening programme due to a technical glitch. Initial analysis suggests 30 people from this group actually got bowel cancer. The Health Ministry said in February the number of people who missed out on the screening was just over 2,000. Jane O'Hallahan from the Health Ministry's National Screening Unit says the technical glitch does not apply to the national rollout of screening now underway.Consumers Losing Faith over Online Privacy
Internet users are increasingly concerned about their online privacy, according to a new United Nations survey. Conducted by CIGI and Ipos, the survey found fewer than 60 percent of consumers in Japan and Tunisia felt they could trust online internet firms. Shamika Sirimanne from the UN says these figures show the importance of adopting and adapting policies to cope with the evolving digital economy. The protection policies of large Internet firms have faced public scrutiny recently after a political data firm gained access to millions of Facebook users personal data.Starbucks to Close Stores for Racial Bias Training
Starbucks workers in the US will undergo racial bias training next month after two black men were arrested in-store for waiting for a friend. Over 8,000 cafes will close next month for an afternoon to provide the training to around 175,000 people. Starbucks chief executive Kevin Johnson called the footage of the arrest, "hard to watch".Plastic-Eating Enzyme on the Way
Scientists have altered a naturally occurring enzyme which has been proven to digest certain plastics. The rigid PET used for bottles takes hundreds of years to break down. The altered enzyme, known as PETase can start breaking down this plastic in just a few days. It will be a number of years before the enzyme can be used on a large scale as it needs to break the plastic down faster in order to be economically viable.Russia to Grant Access to Chemical Attack Site
Access to the site of an alleged chemical attack in Syria will likely be granted to The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Investigators in Damascus have been barred from entering the site for several days by Russia, raising suspicions of Russian tampering with the area. If the OPCW are able to visit the site they will collect soil and other objects to determine the chemicals that may have been used. The Syrian Government has denied using chemical weapons altogether.Additional reporting by Stewart Sowman-Lund and Ben Webber.
LOCAL NEWS
Kiwi singer-songwriter Aldous Harding has taken out the 2018 Taite Music Prize for her album Party, at a ceremony in Auckland last night. Harding, originally from Lyttelton, wasn't present to accept the award, but sent a message in from London. She says she'll spend the prize money of $10,000 on recording her next album, which she's about to start work on now. In her speech, Harding thanked “everyone involved in the making of Party, not just the music itself but the air around it, things around it and the people supporting the future of Party.” Also awarded at the ceremony was Best Independent Debut, which went to Auckland folk-rock group The Miltones for their self-titled debut.More Rivers Improving than Deteriorating
More New Zealand rivers have improving water quality rather than deteriorating quality, according to a new report. The findings, from Land, Air Water Aotearoa focus on the parameters of around 1,500 sites over a 10 year period. Dr Roger Young from the Cawthron Institute says while these findings are encouraging, water quality is only one indicator of river health. Young says to continue to improve water quality investment must be made in freshwater ecosystem management and further research and innovation.
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Auckland Mayor Phil Goff has revealed exclusively to the New Zealand Herald that he could have died after suffering a heart attack at the weekend and being rushed to Auckland Hospital where he underwent two operations. The 64-year-old politician said one of his arteries was completely blocked, and that if it had been the main one he probably would have died. Goff says his family have a history of heart disease, with his older brother dying from a heart attack at 58 back in 2007. The Mayor says he was lucky considering what happened to his brother, and to his predecessor in the top job Len Brown, who collapsed on stage from a major heart attack at the Pacific Music Awards in 2008 when he was Mayor of Manukau City, being forced to take several months off. Goff said the procedures, two angioplasty operations, were a success and later on Saturday he was feeling great.Bid to Decrease Child Mortality in Pacific
A new $7 million agreement between UNICEF and the New Zealand Government will centre on the wellbeing of children in the Pacific. The agreement focuses on preventing and reducing newborn mortality in Kiribati, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. UNICEF Pacific Representative Sheldon Yett says this partnership is a good start in providing access to healthcare and nutrition for young people. “I think it is a very important building block for the wellbeing of young people in these regions and I think it really is important to focus on the earliest years of life.”
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A climate change committee has been appointed to start preparing for a net zero emissions economy by 2050. Climate Change Minister James Shaw says appointing the committee is a step towards New Zealand achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement. The committee will initially focus on how agriculture could join the emissions trading scheme, and New Zealand having 100 percent renewable energy by 2035. The Commission will be officially set up in 2019.More Affected by Bowel Cancer Screening Glitch
Over 12,000 people have missed out on a bowel cancer pilot screening programme due to a technical glitch. Initial analysis suggests 30 people from this group actually got bowel cancer. The Health Ministry said in February the number of people who missed out on the screening was just over 2,000. Jane O'Hallahan from the Health Ministry's National Screening Unit says the technical glitch does not apply to the national rollout of screening now underway.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Internet users are increasingly concerned about their online privacy, according to a new United Nations survey. Conducted by CIGI and Ipos, the survey found fewer than 60 percent of consumers in Japan and Tunisia felt they could trust online internet firms. Shamika Sirimanne from the UN says these figures show the importance of adopting and adapting policies to cope with the evolving digital economy. The protection policies of large Internet firms have faced public scrutiny recently after a political data firm gained access to millions of Facebook users personal data.Starbucks to Close Stores for Racial Bias Training
Starbucks workers in the US will undergo racial bias training next month after two black men were arrested in-store for waiting for a friend. Over 8,000 cafes will close next month for an afternoon to provide the training to around 175,000 people. Starbucks chief executive Kevin Johnson called the footage of the arrest, "hard to watch".Plastic-Eating Enzyme on the Way
Scientists have altered a naturally occurring enzyme which has been proven to digest certain plastics. The rigid PET used for bottles takes hundreds of years to break down. The altered enzyme, known as PETase can start breaking down this plastic in just a few days. It will be a number of years before the enzyme can be used on a large scale as it needs to break the plastic down faster in order to be economically viable.Russia to Grant Access to Chemical Attack Site
Access to the site of an alleged chemical attack in Syria will likely be granted to The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Investigators in Damascus have been barred from entering the site for several days by Russia, raising suspicions of Russian tampering with the area. If the OPCW are able to visit the site they will collect soil and other objects to determine the chemicals that may have been used. The Syrian Government has denied using chemical weapons altogether.Additional reporting by Stewart Sowman-Lund and Ben Webber.