Stories by Rachel Helyer Donaldson

Greenpeace had offered to survey the site for free, using deep sea cameras during an already planned expedition to survey seamounts and other underwater mountains, but the New Zealand government…

While the Minister of Education Erica Stanford said difficult decisions would need to be made, she said the government was not looking to defund expert teachers who support literacy or te reo Māori.

A metal statue of the iconic jedi master was stolen from a Madras Street property in the Wellington suburb of Khandallah on Tuesday night.

Hundreds of engineers are losing their jobs and leaving our shores due to infrastructure project delays, creating "significant" risk to our nation's development, says the head of New Zealand's…

A hīkoi has been held in Whakatāne to protest the closure of the area's obstetrics unit, 'chronic understaffing, poor management and a dysfunctional health system'. Audio

A research firm says plummeting sales in New Zealand have nothing to do with its chief executive's polarising views - but some local graffiti shows a different view. Audio

A Christchurch man who lost 55 relatives in three Israeli airstrikes on Gaza says his remaining family will never leave, despite a US proposal to remove them. Audio

The Regional Council is warning that the current La Nina weather pattern along with climate change could lead to further restrictions on how much water can be taken from rivers in the area.

Otago University professor of international relations Robert Patman says New Zealand should provide a robust response to Donald Trump's Gaza plan, and also "should stop tip-toeing" around Trump.

A three-year, $1.4m project aims to address inequities experienced by Māori and Pacific people with type 1 diabetes.

The father of one of the two children who went missing from the Mt Eden BestStart said in a message viewed by RNZ that it was a "catastrophic failure of duty" and he was not reassured by BestStart's…

The pool could see out another 60 years with the right upgrade, councillor says - but its future is uncertain.

New Zealand did have the largest decline in GDP in the developed world last year, but one economist says "it's important to keep things in perspective".

LGBTIQ+ people face "a lot of difficulty" finding housing due to prejudice, and many are resorting to "survival techniques" to avoid homelessness.

The bad weather has been a "bummer", and there's more in store - but don't worry, all is not lost.

After America's top doctor said that alcoholic drinks should carry a warning about cancer risks on their label, New Zealand researchers are saying there is a need to tackle alcohol health problems.

A New Zealand Defence Forces captain says the sacrifices army families make at this time are humbling.

Health NZ has proposed getting rid of the national maternity and early years programme Starting Well, and 25 fulltime roles will be cut from Health NZ's funding team.

It is the first festive period since the police stepped back from responding to low risk calls.

Seafood industry players are welcoming a government proposal to ease catch limits - but an academic says the rock lobster population may not support it.

Fire-weary Canterbury should get a much-needed respite from high temperatures and gales as a change in the weather arrives, while much of the motu has had a warm start to the weekend, MetService says.

Fewer tertiary students accessed funds through the Student Loan Scheme last year, but the amount they borrowed was up.

The midwives' union says it is "completely unacceptable and appalling" that dozens of midwife graduates were prevented from sitting their final exams before Christmas.

The closure of New Zealand's largest parent support centre and education provider is being described as a real loss, after seven decades of advocating for women, new parents and young families.

A new national diabetes register will show for the first time how many people are living with each type of diabetes in Aotearoa.