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How does aviation contribute to the regenerative tourism framework?
(Elsevier, 2026-07-10) Wu L; Cui CM; tsui KWH
Refugia and rupture : critical realism and activist organizing in Aotearoa New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Politics and International Relations at Massey University, Manawatū campus, Palmerston North, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2026) Thornton, Felix
This thesis examines the contemporary condition of New Zealand’s extra-parliamentary left (EPL) within the metahistorical context of the Anthropocene, the Capitalocene and the Chthulucene (explored here as the Anthro-Capitalo-Chthulucene). Responding to the question: ‘What is the current social reality such that a left-wing political organisation seeking progressive transformation becomes caught in the impasses of burnout, bureaucracy, and domination?’, the study situates local activist practice within a wider era of intersecting ecological, social, and political crises. Using Critical Realism as a meta-theoretical framework, the research connects empirical organizational breakdown to deeper structural and historical mechanisms shaping contemporary activism. The thesis presents a qualitative textual analysis of reflection documents produced by members of a New Zealand EPL organisation – under the pseudonym MLM NZ – shortly before a mass exodus in 2024. Drawing on Participatory Action Research, Political Activist Ethnography, and Qualitative Data Analysis, the study foregrounds activist voices while maintaining analytical reflexivity. In this research, three central themes emerged: burnout and overcommitment, bureaucratic centralisation, and gendered power dynamics. By placing these findings within both national EPL scholarship and the broader meta-crisis of the Anthro-Capitalo-Chthulucene, the thesis argues that activist organisations are not only responding to crisis but are themselves shaped by it. The concept of refugia is proposed as a framework for resilience, survival, and sustainable political organising in an era where crisis increasingly defines the social terrain. In doing so, this thesis contributes to political scholarship on New Zealand’s extra-parliamentary left movements by demonstrating how organisational fragility can be understood not merely as a failure of strategy, leadership, or ideology, but also as a political outcome shaped by historically produced conditions of crisis, acceleration, and constraint. It advances the argument that the pressures experienced within Aotearoa's EPL organisations mirror broader dynamics of extraction, domination, and exhaustion characteristic of the Anthro-Capitalo Chthulucene. By situating activist breakdown alongside activist possibility, this research reframes contemporary extra-parliamentary politics as a contested terrain in which, reflective engagement with the cycle of formation, deformation and reformation - compositing, in Donna Haraway’s terms - becomes a politically meaningful practice for groups in the extra-parliamentary left.
Prescribing grief : emotion, restraint, and rhetoric in Byzantium, 803–1204 : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in History at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2026) Ghent, Lyndon
Historians have explored the experience of grief amongst Byzantine communities, but largely within the general period of late antiquity, and with limited reference to its prescriptive norms. Focusing on the period of 803-1204, this thesis contributes to the study of emotionology in Byzantium by revealing how prescriptive literature about grief was reflected in different contexts of grieving as they were represented in primary sources. Prescriptive texts provided a pathway through grief, and a set of emotional norms when grieving, centred on the desire to reach a state of apatheia. However, chronicle and literary representation of grief also show it was used for other purposes in negotiating power and politics, often through the use and performance of Classical traditions.
The state of circular economy implementation in the building and construction sector in Aotearoa New Zealand
(Elsevier, 2026-06-01) Cossar LC; Hytten KF; Hannon J; de Miguel Mercader F
The building and construction sector places immense pressure on the environment, contributing significantly to resource extraction, global greenhouse gas emissions, and the loss of ecosystems and biodiversity. In this context, the B&C sector can both contribute to, and benefit from, a global shift towards a circular economy (CE), moving away from unsustainable linear consumption patterns that degrade vital ecosystem services. However, little is known about the extent to which B&C businesses implement circular strategies in many countries. This study aimed to assess the current level of implementation of circular strategies among businesses within Aotearoa New Zealand's B&C sector. An exploratory sequential mixed-methods research design was utilised. Experts from seven business types (manufacturing, architecture and engineering, construction, design-build, fit-out, demolition, and waste management companies) were interviewed to explore the relevance and uptake of circular strategies from the literature. This informed a survey distributed to professionals across the seven business types. Most circular strategies were considered relevant by interviewees and were subsequently included in the survey. Interviewees suggested that CE implementation is currently insufficient, inconsistent, uncoordinated, and limited to a narrow focus on recycling. According to survey responses from 213 professionals, most businesses are at a ‘beginner’ stage of maturity regarding CE implementation, and most circular strategies receive minimal to moderate levels of implementation. In particular, service-based models, sharing platforms, material passports, remanufacturing, take-back schemes, organic recycling, and regenerating nature require greater attention. These findings suggest that CE implementation in Aotearoa New Zealand's B&C sector is still nascent, with significant potential to increase engagement in circular strategies. Findings also underscore the necessity for greater education, a stronger emphasis on the design phase, and a systemic, collaborative approach to accelerate the transition towards a CE.
Multisite sampling improves consensus cytologic interpretation in bone marrow evaluation of dogs
(Wiley, 2026-06-27) Smiley KM; Rosser MF; Schnelle AN; Connolly SL; Raskin R; Lopez-Villalobos N; Gal A
BACKGROUND: Bone marrow (BM) evaluation is essential for diagnosing hematologic abnormalities in dogs. Standard practice often involves single-site sampling, despite some evidence suggesting that focal BM lesions may occur. We assessed the probability of obtaining an unrepresentative cytologic interpretation when BM cytology interpretation depends on a single site vs multiple sites. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: Single-site BM sampling increases the probability of unrepresentative cytologic interpretation in dogs. ANIMALS: Sixteen client-owned dogs with hematologic disease requiring BM sampling were prospectively enrolled. METHODS: Randomized, masked clinical trial. We collected 4 BM aspirates per dog: right and left proximal humeri and iliac crests. Interpretative concordance was assessed by comparing individual site interpretations with a composite multisite interpretation. The primary outcome was the probability of a truth-consistent interpretation based on the number of sites sampled (k = 1-4) under 3 evaluation rules, accounting for inter-clinical pathologist agreement. RESULTS: Single-site sampling yielded a truth-consistent interpretation in only 50.0%-81.7% of cases, depending on diagnostic stringency. Evaluating 2 sites significantly improved the probability of a truth-consistent interpretation by 17.2%-23.3% (P < .002). Additional sites (2 or 4) offered only marginal further benefit. Inter-clinical pathologist agreement was moderate (kappa = 0.574). No single anatomical site provided superior diagnostic yield for overall interpretation. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: A single BM sampling site carries a higher probability of unrepresentative cytologic interpretation in dogs. Two-site sampling significantly improves recovery of a truth-consistent interpretation, providing a more reliable assessment for hematologic disease in dogs. This approach accounts for potential focal disease distribution, improving diagnostic confidence.