This Climate Business

 What does October's energy policy announcement mean for the future of NZ's electricity market and the climate? Law professor Barry Barton steps Ross Inglis through a package big on fossil fuels and very quiet about renewables. 

Earlier this year New Zealand's first and largest big storage battery began selling into the grid; there are signs that it is already softening prices. So, are we on the cusp of a low-emissions electricity transformation? Climate and energy modeller Dr Jen Purdie tells Ross Inglis that we are...to a point.

Every year the fashion industry produces over 24 billion shoes made largely of synthetics, with little regard for the materials sourced, the wellbeing of the people involved or impact after disposal. Orba shoes are different. Designed in NZ, made from entirely natural materials every part of every shoe Orba makes for the next 100 years will be gone before any synthetic sneakers discarded yesterday.Orba is also included in this year’s Next List - the definitive list of the most sustainable products and businesses as judged by the Sustainable Business Network.Vincent was joined by Gillian Boucher, sustainability manager, and Scott Anderson operations manager. https://orbashoes.eco/

Auckland builder Paul Webster-Young is turning a new home for his sister into a case study for construction that sends less waste to landfill and costs less over time. The key, he tells Ross Inglis, is careful selection of materials and a new kind of collaboration with architects.

New Zealand's houses have come a long way since the '70s but there's plenty we can do to make them more sustainable. Auckland architect Mike Hartley is designing for less building waste and that, he tells Ross Inglis, starts by talking with the builder.