Dr. Dr. Finn Ross - The Pole of Inaccessibility, mountain rescues and seaweed
I speak to Dr. Finn Ross about the mountain rescue of Riley Meason, reaching the Pole of Inaccessibility, New Zealand's most remote spot, The Weekend Mish, regenerative agriculture and changing mindsets, his PhD and how seaweed is a climate solution.
Find him here
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42:49
Elephant seals - climate impact, dark intraspecific extinction and more.
I speak to Associate Professor Nic Rawlence, Director of the Otago Palaeogenetics Laboratory in the Department of Zoology at the University of Otago about elephant seals.
He tells me about a recent paper published titled Postglacial Recolonization of the Southern Ocean by Elephant Seals Occurred From Multiple Glacial Refugia.
We discuss climate impact on elephant seals in the past and in the future.
The effect of commercial hunting and traditional harvest.
Dark intraspecific extinction.
We touch on how animal numbers looked in New Zealand when humans arrived, how to save elephant seals, if ChatGPT is any good for DNA work and more.
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48:28
NZ birds now face similar conditions faced at the end of the ice age
I speak to Pascale Lubbe, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Molecular Ecology, at the University of Otago about how current loss of forests, loss when people arrived in New Zealand and loss of forest during the ice age have an effect on native birds and on bird colonisation.
An interesting read is the article Pascale collaborated on that was published in The Conversation.
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1:04:10
Everything Antarctica with Jonny Harrison
I speak to Jonny Harrison who has done three trips to Antarctica as an electrician and group leader. He also hosts the Everything Antarctica podcast with Matty Jordan.
Jonny tells me about how water is sourced, how you get a job in Antarctica, staying alive and more.
Podcast link
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@EverythingAntarctica
Link to, a book Jonny says is a must read 'The Worst Journey in the world'
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1:01:58
Fonterra's net zero farm
Fonterra and Nestle are running a project trying to achieve a net zero farm.
The pilot, run with Dairy Trust Taranaki, aims to create New Zealand’s first commercially viable net zero dairy farm within ten years.
Since 2022, the Fonterra-owned 290ha farm has achieved an approximate 27% reduction in absolute emissions and a 5.5% reduction in emissions intensity.
I spoke to Talia Grala, environment programme manger at Fonterra, about the project.
Have a look at a press release about the project here.
Interviews with characters I meet as a travel, outdoor, science and agricultural journalist and photographer. Conservation, agriculture, fly fishing, hunting, and science about health and the outdoors.
New Zealand