Hear how being innovation-led inspired ākonga. Alicia Ngaropo-Tuia and Hoana Te Aika present this collection of experiences from ākonga, kaiako and judges.

Questions from schools answered by Sorcha and Aurelie from School Strike 4 Climate, Wellington

1. Tell us about School Strike 4 Climate. How did the strikes go? What was the feeling amongst the people gathered there? Was it effective?

2. What motivated you to become part of School Strike 4 Climate?

3. What decisions have you made about how you live in response to climate change? Have you thought about how you get around or the food you choose to eat or the consumer items you buy? What advice do you have for others?

4. What do you find the biggest challenges are when taking action for the wellbeing of the environment? How do you overcome these challenges?

5. You are both dedicated to be part of the solution to climate change. How do your friends and schoolmates react to this?

6. What recommendations/tips would you give young people who want to do something about climate change but are unsure about where to start?

7. How are you going to take your passion for the environment further? What are your aspirations beyond school?

8. Do you think older people are getting the Climate Change message as much as young people?

Questions from schools answered by Duane Wilkins from LINZ.

1. What can satellites show us about the effect of corona virus on the World?

2. What different views of the World can satellites show or measure - infra-red, temperature and what else?

3. Can you measure the hole in the ozone layer and has it changed over New Zealand?

4. What affects on the enviroment will the corona virus have?

5. How does the coronavirus affect the enviroment?

6. What can we do to help the ozone layer to completely cover earth?

7. How do we know what greenhouse gas and temperatures levels were in the distant past?

8. What would happen if we never burned fossil fuels?

Questions from schools answered by Dr James Renwick and Dr Dave Frame, both Victoria University Climate Scientists on the International Panel for Climate Change (IPCC).

1. What year do you think most people "got" Climate Change?

2. Who were the first groups? Who will be the last? When did scientists "get it"?

3. Is there really an irreversible date for CC?

4. Is coronavirus at all linked to climate change?

5. Are viruses like COVID-19 more likely to appear because of a warming planet?

6. What chance do you think there is of change when people always seem to want new cars, new houses, overseas travel, new clothes, new tech stuff?

7. What would happen if sea creatures went extinct?

8. Can the meting ice caps affect our coast lines?

9. What can we do to help this problem?

10. Are there any animals affected by climate change?

11. Are polar bears going to go extinct?

12. How much does the sea rise every year?

13. In NZ what is the largest contributor to CC?

14. How much is planting trees part of the solution to getting global CO2 levels down?

15. How bad is it to harvest trees for furniture and decking from rainforests such as the Amazon and closer to NZ such as Indonesia?

16. If the ice caps melted completly how much of Queenstown would be under water?

With Jase Te Patu

Mindfulness for educators in Aotearoa

We've all heard the expression ‘adjust your oxygen mask first’. But how do we actually do it? Explore the importance, benefits and how to make mindfulness a habit with Jase Te Patu, CEO of M3 Mindfulness.

How do you find the leader within? Amira Aman, CORE facilitator explores the process of understanding what’s already there, how to shape your own inner voice and thoughts to empower the leader within.

The following questions from schools are answered by NZ historians and archaeologists:

1. How do you think all the history that has been explored about Ahuahu will be shared with others in the future?

2. How long will it be until other native and protected animals come to live safely on Ahuahu?

3. Can you tell us how you think archaeology will change or improve to help us learn more about NZ history?

4. How else will you ensure that no more pests come onto the island? What if someone doesn't check their boat for stowaways?

5. Can you describe how you think Ahuahu will look in 50 years, including the landscape, plants and animals?

6. How will climate change affect Great Mercury Island?

7. Are there any other goals or plans for Ahuahu, other than becoming pest free?

8. Has pollution affected Ahuahu? Or do you think it will in the future?

9. How do you personally view offshore islands and landscapes like Ahuahu, playing a role in our lives now and in the future?

10. Is there any discussion about conserving the marine environment around Ahuahu as well?

11. How did the island get its names?

12. How do you know that you have only scrached they surface in archaeolgy?

13. Whats the biggest sized pest you have found on the island?

14. Have you found any strategies that Māori have used for gardening?

15. What breeds of dogs do you use to sniff the boats looking for rats?

More at https://www.learnz.org.nz/ahuahu193/connect-with-experts

The following questions from schools are answered by NZ historians and archaeologists:

1. Out of all the plant life and animal life, how native is Great Mercury Island?

2. With the 23 pā sites discovered, there must have been a lot of people living on the island, are there estimated numbers of the amount of early settlers?

3. How have argentine ants affected Ahuahu?

4. With archaeologists from the museum and Auckland University examining Tūhuru Ahuahu have they been able to answer questions for the local tangata whenua about their past? And vice versa? Tangata whenua being able to give insight to the researchers about what they know about their past.

5. How can you trust that all visitors keep their boats clean and pest free?

6. With the findings from the garden areas, were there any findings to suggest the early Māori settlers trialled having gardens at different places around the island or were the gardens all generally in the same areas i.e up high etc?

7. What is the most interesting thing you have found out about early human habitation on Ahuahu?

8. Was kūmara indigenous to New Zealand or did it come over from Polynesia?

9. How are excavation sites on Ahuahu protected from being damaged?

10. How do archaeologists know where to start looking for artefacts?

11. Have you found any signs of musical instruments in your archaeological digs and, if so, what are they?

12. How many stone tools have you found on Ahuahu?

13. How do they train the dogs to detect different pest animals and plants?

14. Citizen Science is important to projects like iNaturalist, where people can record wildlife. How can citizens help archaeology if it is not appropriate or damaging to go looking for artefacts?

More at https://www.learnz.org.nz/ahuahu193/connect-with-experts

The following questions from schools are answered by NZ historians and archaeologists:

1. Why did people decide to do archaeology on Ahuahu in the first place?

2. How will Ahuahu being pest-free affect people and the environment on the mainland?

3. Are there any other threats of invasive insects affecting Great Mercury Island? If so, what are they?

4. When an interesting artefact is found on Ahuahu, or anywhere, what process do archaeologists follow?

5. Who ‘owns’ an artefact that is found?

6. What inspired you to want to be archaeologists?

7. Are there specific rules or regulations to follow on the island to help keep it pest-free?

8. Has anyone ever accidentally brought a pest on to the island? And what did you do about it?

9. For how long is it predicted that there will continue to be new discoveries on Ahuahu?

10. Are there any plant pests on Ahuahu and if so, what is being done about these?

11. How big is the Island (compared to other offshore islands in NZ)?

12. What food do you think Captain Cook and his crew ate when they first were around Mercury Islands?

13. How does the public have an effect on the island?

14. Are there any new techniques for finding artefacts and identifying them?

15. How did archaeologists first discover archaeological objects on the Island, how many artefacts have been found and what was the rarest or most important?

16. How can the owners of Ahuahu trust people to be on the island e.g. if they want to bring their dogs, and why do they?

More at https://www.learnz.org.nz/ahuahu193/connect-with-experts

The following questions from schools are answered by Ben from Sustainable Coastlines:

1. How is it decided where a marine reserve goes?

2. Who is responsible for ensuring marine reserves are kept safe?

3. Can people fish and do recreational activities in the marine reserve?

4. Are there any special rules people need to follow at the marine reserve?

5. How do fish know where the marine reserve is?

6. What defence mechanisms do fish in the reserve have?

7. How deep is the reserve?

8. How many endangered species of fish are there in the reserve?

9. What is the most dangerous species in the reserve?

10. What is the water temperature like around the island and does this influence what type of fish are found there?

More at https://www.learnz.org.nz/marinereserves191/connect-with-experts