Why Amy Crawford thinks invasive species deserve to stay

From possums to garlic mustard, science writer Amy Crawford argues we should be more hospitable to invasive species. She questions the militaristic language and xenophobia informing our attitude to them. Watch the video version of this episode on the RNZ website on YouTube or TVNZ+. Season 2 Episode 8 Amy's book Undesirable is published by Oxford University Press. In this episode: (03:00) How invasive-species thinking became a global concern (06:43) Invasion language, national identity and xenophobia (12:07) Killer-bee headlines and the politics of ecological fear (13:20) Predation versus competition: what actually drives extinctions (15:11) Predator Free 2050, climate change and trade-offs (24:15) Pet possums, settler identity and who belongs (29:28) Can New Zealand restore a pristine ecological past? (32:03) Looking at invasive species in different ways, from the Nile perch to Tamarisks (40:30) Zealandia's sanctuary and its wildlife halo (49:05) Why people love to hate a particular invasive species (51:40) Trusting nature to change, and what conservation should do Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details