Afternoons for Monday 11 April 2022

 

1:15 Hamilton looking to reshape it's CBD in a post COVID environment

Now Covid restrictions have started to ease, businesses in our city centres are cautiously optimistic about returning workers and shoppers.

Hamilton's quiet CBD was already in a revitalisation phase before the pandemic hit, but now there's a fresh drive to lure the punters back.

Behind this recent push is Vanessa Williams, the General Manager for the Hamilton Central Business Association. She speaks to Jesse.

1.25 Unlocking NZ's potential as juniper berry grower

New Zealand's growing love of gin has seen boutique distilleries popping up all over the country.

But a key ingredient - the juniper berry - is yet to be grown on our soil.

And with unreliable supply chains and the rising cost of importing berries... let's just say that opportunity is ripe.

A research team at Massey are currently investigating the potential.

Massey University Business Development Manager and Project Coordinator Eve Kawana-Brown talks to Jesse about what they're aiming for.

1.30 Cake detective, finding children who were going to celebrate without cake!

A baker in the Waikato is set to deliver birthday cakes to 400 local kids this year who might otherwise miss out.

Laura Casey has been helping kids in hardship celebrate their special days for about 5 years now through her charity The Cake Detective.

She talks to Jesse about how she finds the children who are likely to be missing out this birthday tradition and what would ideal for them to blow candles out on! You can also support Laura through her givealittle page here.

1.40 Queenstown becoming a performing arts hotspot

Concert presenter Clarissa Dunn talks to Jesse about the upcoming Whakatipu Music Festival over Easter weekend and other significant events to be held there for the rest of the year and beyond.

She says the area is fast becoming our performing arts hotspot. She talks to Jesse about the other events planned for this year and in 2023.

1:45 Great NZ Album: Simon and Garfunkel Concert in Central Park

It's forty years since the release of the Simon and Garfield Concert in Central Park album. It went Platinum in New Zealand and is today's number one album in NZ chart history.

2:10 Television Critic: Perlina Lau

Today Perlina talks to Jesse about a Japanese television programme where toddlers are sent on errands. Called "Old Enough" the show follows their escapades through Japanese streets to the shops where they have to remember what they should buy.

2:20  Australian Correspondent Brad Foster 

Today Brad talks politics, with the election date across the ditch announced by Prime Minister Scott Morrison. The Australians will go to the polls on May 21st which means six weeks of campaigning lies ahead.

2:30 How to save money on your power bill 

In our Monday expert segment today we're looking at how to save money on your power bill. It's been a rough six months for rising prices across the board and as winter approaches the cost of lighting and heating a home can go through the roof. Someone who knows their water heaters from their insulation seals is Senior Advisor in Evidence, Insight and Innovation for the New Zealand Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority  Dr Gareth Gretton.

3:10 Fears "woke" media is undermining democracy

Political divides aren't as deep as we think. Neither are gender or racial divides says Newsweek magazine deputy opinion editor Batya Ungar-Sargon  She says we have a class divide based on levels of education  In a blistering take down, she says journalism is now ruled by highly educated elites who crusade about racial issues in order to generate outrage while protecting their own economic interests. Her new book is called  Bad News: How Woke Media Is Undermining Democracy.

3:35 Voices

In today's Voices episode, Kadambari speaks to a Canterbury scientist who's journey began in the military in Iraq.

3:45 The Panel with Moata Taimara and Peter Dunne