Kiwi Christmas Books is a fabulous charity making sure thousands of children have a book to open on Christmas morning. We spoke with founder Sonya Wilson about the initiative: www.thesapling.co.nz/kiwi-christm...

I think if 2025 has shown us ANYTHING it's that we need people with impeccable morals in charge.

❗💰Did you see today's #KiwiSaver news? Half a billion dollars of our retirement savings are being lent to governments with the very worst human rights records. 👉🏽Here's a good article on the research from @interestnz.nzcow.com : www.interest.co.nz/bonds/136006... (cont'd)

Māori academic warns draft curriculum erases children's rights to local histories www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

If I ever consider moving again, please don’t let me

“In Sāmoa, our people are the doctors, the lawyers, the prime ministers. I’ve grown up always surrounded by our people being educated, being in leadership.” — Dr Emma Dunlop-Bennett, assistant vice-chancellor (Pasifika), Te Herenga Waka–Victoria University of Wellington.

Today I will be packing everything except: three days of work clothes, a towel per family member, a plate, bowl, cutlery per family member, a motel level of cooking things, and self/ and house-cleaning supplies. On Thursday, we move

It's 1870 in Aotearoa, the economy is in trouble... The land wars faded out without much resolution except death and pain. The NZ gov was still called the colonial government. Māori had their own. The gold rush hype in Otago, the West Coast, and Coromandel was drying up fast.

There's a job going for a Marketing and Partnerships Coordinator at the Auckland Writers Festival thebigidea.nz/jobs/marketi...

Delighted to announce that acclaimed poet Tusiata Avia MNZM has been appointed Creative NZ / Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington Writer in Residence for 2026, and will be joining us at the IIML next year to work on her next book! www.wgtn.ac.nz/modernletter...

"Listen, in some ways, I get it. When I came on the scene in 2001, I probably seemed pretty unsavory compared to the competitors. But that was when academic research happened in libraries and George W. Bush was considered the stupidest president."

The Te Tiriti content (which isn't introduced until Year 4) implies the English text was signed in Feb 1840, that the Māori text is a "translation", and that Te Tiriti was primarily a response to the Musket Wars. This is all nonsense.

'… what is becoming an adult if it isn’t working out to use your little piece of power, for the good of others, or yourself' @forster81.bsky.social reviews the new YA novel from @elizabethknoxnz.bsky.social: www.thesapling.co.nz/review-kings...

First phoenix game of the season

“If a ‘knowledge-rich’ curriculum isn’t grounded in te ao Māori and the very people and things that make Aotearoa unique, who is determining the knowledge and where does it come from?” — Jessie Moss on the ideology behind education reform.

Fascinating. www.theguardian.com/books/2025/o...

I am weeping. I am supporting nzpoetryshelf.com/2025/10/23/p...

"The Government has just released yet another new curriculum for primary school – our third in three years. Little wonder that 650 principals ... signed an open letter..." that stated various curriculum changes – for example, maths and literacy – were “rushed” at an unmanageable pace."

10 hours. Underfunding that leads to long wait times at emergency departments cause extreme risk to health. Support striking health workers.

Proud papa moment: my son J published a letter in the @nytimes.com today (in print tomorrow) on the need to think our definitions of autism.

heartbroken to learn the pope sympathizes with the poor. how can i continue to believe in god

I just put an item from my pantry that was virtually a family heirloom in the bin. A brown squeeze bottle with ‘chicory’ on the lid, that I last recall dad using to sweeten coffee on a ski trip. When I was 14. It was a survivor of three-ish house moves, maybe more.

Book club meeting in front of the ICE building, in #Portland. They’re discussing Animal Farm by George Orwell. 🤣🐷🐖🐽

I'm going to open to queries from November 3 through November 7th or until I receive 1,000 queries submissions! I'll be open to all MG and YA genres, plus Mystery and SFF, including horror, in Adult. Looking forward to reading! My website will be updated shortly with more details.

The select committee report on the Regulatory Standards Bill is in. 📝166,000 submissions. ❌98.7% opposed. Yet National are going to continue supporting it. 🗣New Zealand could not have been louder, but Luxon still isn’t listening.

Anyone else find this terrifying? We're going backwards at a rate of knots. newsroom.co.nz/2025/10/13/t...

Everything that makes Aotearoa New Zealand unique is related to Māori culture. Welcome to the country, that's a pōwhiri. We are gonna thrash you at sport, that's a haka. Traditional meals, that's a hāngī. Matariki that's our New Year If you don't like Māori stuff maybe you're in the wrong country?

We got our central library back. There's proper pipes down Taranaki street now. No sewage dripping down Cuba street and Lambton Quay. There's a much safer cycle routes between city and airport, and the basin. The buses aren't cancelled every day What a difference from Wellington three years ago.

I did some work for Paddy Gower Has Issues on the Online Casino Gambling Bill. Fair to say addicts think licensing 15 casinos here, who can advertise, is not a great idea.

Meanwhile, in another, better, world...

LAST FEW DAYS to vote in the local elections! v. important to do so, because hoo baby there are some major losers standing. VOTE pls!!!

Urgh… lumping it with other subjects does diminish it… I studied History, Classics and Art History in Year 13. All 3 subjects were full of info. And all 3 barely touched the depth you can go into each subject. Keeping Art History as a separate subject matters!

"We're forgetting that we are part of the natural world." Jane Goodall www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/5...

I love working at a university. The day started with great news about a rock donation, and ended with some gorgeous classical music in The Hub

This isn’t about left versus right. It’s about science versus pseudoscience. - Dr. Jessica Knurick

Let's be clear: no one should be taking medical advice from the man who told Americans to inject bleach. To moms worried about the Tylenol they took while pregnant: you deserve better than being RFK Jr's scapegoat. And to the autism community: you are loved exactly as you are.

If you, like me, are the parent of a neuro-atypical child dreading this autism press conference, please remember: These are the people hurting our kids. Not us. They are the ones stigmatizing and pathologizing them. They are the ones peddling untested science. And we should be very, very angry.

Shameful. Unacceptable. Vote for people who will actually take action.

'Gee's O Trilogy was so important to me when I was 10. I met the guy in my late 30s and didn't tell him this of course. We are supposed to look back and regret such cowardly moments but I don't. There's an honour in not bothering people.' —Nick Ascroft. www.thepress.co.nz/culture/3608...

once again the media just likes to ignore the left leaning parties cos a well rounded story is beyond them

Anyone fancy living in Crofton Downs? Its handy to bus, train, supermarket and we reckon its quite nice. www.trademe.co.nz/a/property/r...

I'm excited about an event that I have been helping organising - a panel discussion of Maurice Gee's contribution to children's literature. It'll be a mixture of readings and people speaking about his work www.facebook.com/share/19o79R...

Calling New Zealand English teachers. As part of my PhD research, I'm conducting a survey on teacher perspectives on the topics of Shakespeare and of the inclusion of mātauranga Māori. Please complete this survey if you are an English teacher massey.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

Te reo is not just for one part of our community, or one part of our education system. It's a taonga for all. Even if you thought it should only be for tangata whenua kids and not also tangata tiriti, this move makes no sense because most Māori kids attend schools that aren't kura kaupapa.

The takahē staff are deeply saddened at the sudden passing of our Essays Editor, Kelly Ana Morey, and send heartfelt condolences to her whānau, friends, and all those in the writing community who will feel this great loss.