13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Letters to the Editor: Kaikorai, the university and tourism
Today's Letters to the Editor from readers cover topics including the water quality in the Kaikorai stream, the uni's bureaucratic incompetence, and is tourism going to shrink? Decision humiliates University of Otago
The University of Otago's dreadful decision to put the Frances Hodgkins and Mozart Fellowships "on hold" shows bureaucratic incompetence: they were yanked after applications had already opened, closing in under a month.
Much worse, it highlights strategic ineptitude at the highest levels. These fellowships' support for artists has established an enduring legacy for not just the university but our city and all Otago. They somehow seem, however, to have failed to fulfil one of their key purposes: to foster interest in music and the arts within the university itself.
Does the university's "deep disappointment" suffice? No, and especially not when they then suggest benefactors might bail them out. Rather, the choice not to find $200,000 and avoid this reputational catastrophe humiliates the university, and shames those responsible. Fellowship's importance
I was saddened to read that the Frances Hodgkins Fellowship has been temporarily suspended because of insufficient returns from the trust funds that finance what is without doubt the most important visual arts residency in the country.
As a former two-times selector, while director of the Auckland City Art Gallery, and knowing several former Fellows personally, I am well aware of the Fellowship's great significance for the visual arts in New Zealand. I would hope that the University of Otago's development team is working hard to find a benefactor willing to add funds to the trust.
And on a related matter, while visiting Dunedin for a few days I was hugely impressed by the ODT 's arts coverage, and especially the weekly arts section. Besides reviews of the Auckland Philharmonia's concerts the arts get no regular coverage in Auckland's daily paper. Stream story
I enjoyed reading the article ( ODT 3.5.25) about the Kaikorai Stream.
I grew up in the valley and the stream wound its way past our house. I spent many hours playing in the stream, with access gained from the park opposite KVC. Eighteen months ago we took six of our mokopuna on a "Kaikorai investigation". We also found lots of rubbish in the water, including several used vapes.
It is disappointing to hear about the deteriorating water quality. I applaud the efforts of Aroha and Paul as well as Hendrick and others who are attempting to improve the stream by planting native trees.
We live beside Stevensons Creek, which feeds into Kaikorai Stream. We've noticed the changes in water colour at times but we also have a resident eel.
Thanks so much Mary Williams for an informative article and telling us about the positive attempts being made to improve the stream. Emotion and fact
Upon reading the letter (2.5.25) from Statistics NZ support manager Kathy Connolly I almost had to check it wasn't April 1 again. According to Stats NZ, ethnicity is now based on "self-identification" and "feeling", rather than the apparently outdated measures of race, ancestry and nationality. So, if you watch an enjoyable movie set in the Australian outback and awaken feeling a bit Aboriginal, that can be the new you. Officially.
How far this could go is mind-boggling, and it probably goes quite a way to explain the rise in various ethnic group numbers, somewhat at odds with normal birth rates. It also makes you wonder at the veracity or even the point of any statistical measurement, if emotion and feeling can be officially substituted for objectivity and fact. Wrapped around the axle of a juggernaut
Can we be adults about climate, private equity and overpopulation in regards to tourism in New Zealand?
As you might have worked out, as predicted, the world has been destabilised by blind stupidity of late so the question we have to ask is our current leadership smart enough to be ahead of the game or are they wrapped around the axle of this runaway juggernaut?
There appears to be no stomach for preparing for what is coming as our leaders' priorities are not matching up with reality.
Tourism is going to shrink as things get worse and that will be balanced by economic refugees trying to escape unfixable political problems so we should all be prepared to deal with this kind of event but also look at what Anglo-Polynesian New Zealanders need from their public spaces for their health and wellbeing, the nitty gritty that only creative people can create.
Be mindful that money is ethereal but people are real and use people with respect to present a country to be proud of, or as they say just be kind.
Oh and allow cycling and access in selected locations in our national parks for our older citizens to enjoy the retirement they deserve. The prince and the pauper
In the ancient Roman festival of Saturnalia, for one day or more masters became slaves and slaves became masters. Couldn't we revive and modernise that wholesome custom by having the master of all, President Donald Trump, change places with the servant of all, Pope Leo XIV, for one day at least, preferably for more?
Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: editor@
