Aotearoa Science Agency

19/11/2025

Awwwww - it’s been our pleasure!!

We would like to say a huge thank you to Damian Christie (Aotearoa Science Agency) and his incredible team, Dan Wharton and Ethan Alderson-Hughes, for all their mahi this year across Smokefreerockquest, Smokefree Tangata Beats, Rockshop Bandquest, Showquest, Toi and OnScreen.

From joining us for two months on the road capturing regional events, to producing beautiful coverage that truly reflected the essence of each show, their work has helped our rangatahi shine. The way they created space for young people to speak for themselves, in their own voices, has been especially powerful.

Alongside the event coverage, the team also produced some amazing educational content to support and upskill our rangatahi throughout their creative journeys. And a special shoutout to Damian for the invaluable media mentoring he delivered to our Smokefreerockquest and Smokefree Tangata Beats national finalists - it made such a difference.

We’re so grateful for everything they’ve brought to our programmes this year. Thank you Damian, Dan and Ethan!

06/11/2025

When your job involves travelling all over the Aotearoa filming interesting science and environmental work, things are pretty sweet, but even we felt a bit envious of the life of the biosecurity dog handlers when we filmed this video with them for Auckland Council.

Sure there are some early starts and not every day is as sunny as the one we spent together on Motukorea Browns Island, but what a perfect (and important) role for someone who loves nature AND pooches.

08/05/2025

In February this year we were asked to be the first film crew to capture a kākāpō booming (its mating call) on mainland New Zealand.

These incredibly rare, flightless - and quite chonky - parrots have been saved from extinction by being kept on two predator-free islands in the deep south (Codfish and Anchor Islands), until 2023 when a number were brought to the mainland, to Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari.

This year, one of the translocated birds, an 11 year old named Taeatanga, started booming - a sign that he is comfortable in his new home. Unfortunately for Taeatanga, there aren't any female kākāpō in the area, not yet at least.

To keep Taeatanga safe from curious members of the public, many of whom would understandably love to witness this special event, we had to keep this footage under wraps until the booming season came to an end, and now we are able to share it.

Thanks to Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, Department of Conservation and Kākāpō Recovery for entrusting us with this amazing mahi.

06/05/2025

We are so privileged to have been part of this story... amazing work everyone to get to this point!

Imagine the sound of a heartbeat echoing through the night-time world of te ngahere (the forest)... 💚💚
That's what it felt like as the magical low-frequency sound of kākāpō booming was heard at Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari this summer, the first time kākāpō booming had been heard on the North Island of New Zealand in more than a century!

11-year old Taeatanga (pictured), one of three male kākāpō in the fenced habitat trial on Maungatautari was the first to champion the display of this unique courtship behaviour on the maunga.

🎉 Let’s celebrate this green feathered milestone together symbolising the strength of the relationship between iwi as kaitiaki of these taonga and the partnership between Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, mana whenua, the Department of Conservation’s Kākāpō Recovery team, and Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu.💚

📸 Taeatanga ready to boom: Aotearoa Science Agency

Read the full media release below 👇

13/03/2025

Last night's Science New Zealand Awards were a pleasure to attend, and it was great not only to be in the room with so many amazing scientific minds, but being honest, to hear those same people saying lovely things about the videos we made for the night.

We'll share some of the winners' videos over the coming days, starting with the 2025 Supreme Award winner, Grasslanz Technology. It's easy to overlook the importance of pasture in New Zealand, and the developments Grasslanz has made over the years has contributed billions of dollars to our economy.

Congratulations to Dr John Caradus and the Grasslanz/ AgResearch team

06/03/2025

While the Oscars might have got all the attention, the awards that we're focused on right now are the Science New Zealand awards, showcasing some of the best research and researchers across the country.

It's our first year producing the finalist videos for these awards, and has been a great opportunity to catch up on all the amazing interesting science happening in Aotearoa right now.

Here's a look at this year's finalists for Early Career Researcher, from across the CRIs, including our friends from Plant & Food Research, AgResearch, Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research and GNS Science. The winners are announced next Wednesday and we'll be showcasing them through this and next week.