Journal is a quarterly publication of entirely original content created by the Blink team and our talented contributors.
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Have you done Something New, New Zealand?
In July last year I was supposed to be in London visiting family. It would have been my first time back since 2001 and the first time my kids had been to Europe. Like many thousands of others, our travel plans were shattered in 2020 by COVID-19.
Yes, it was sad; yes, it was disappointing, but when our tourism industry asked us to ‘Do Something New, New Zealand’ to help keep them afloat until our international visitors can return, we decided to answer the call, and I fell in love with our country all over again.
Yes, or no? Referendum 2020
The 2020 General Election is slowly creeping up on us, including the two referendums on cannabis legalisation and control, and end-of-life choice. In the shadow of COVID-19 it’s been difficult to find good information on either. Account manager Kerry Mitchell goes on a fact-finding mission.
The darker side of social media in a crisis
Most people will agree that 2020 has been an horrendous year so far. It started with large parts of Australia destroyed by bushfires that wiped out a billion animals and drove many species to the brink of extinction. The air was so polluted that many people had to wear a mask outside.
Little did we know in January that masks would soon become a highly sought after item, used as part of efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19. The pandemic has killed more than 800,000 people globally and wreaked national economies due to lockdowns, travel restrictions and closed international borders.
If that wasn’t enough, there have been devastating floods across the world, escalating tension between the US and Iran, and #BlackLivesMatter protests sparked by the death of George Floyd at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis.
It’s felt, at times, that we’ve never been more physically divided. It’s interesting then to examine the role that social media plays in our lives during a crisis or periods of intense unrest.
Agility in a world of change
2020 has so far proved to be a tough year for many small businesses in New Zealand.
With the fallout of COVID-19, many business owners have needed to act quickly in response to the pandemic and are now required to be more agile than ever before.
Digital is the ‘new normal’ post-COVID
Digital engagement with your customers or stakeholders has become more important than ever before. Many small businesses which have never been online or previously only had a small digital presence have been forced to enter the world of e-commerce quickly in order to survive in the post-COVID world.
The health myths that are hurting us
As a ‘woman of a certain age’ I’ve just started experiencing the dreaded hot flushes. Not pleasant, but not as bad as the lack of sleep that goes with it. Desperate for a remedy, I headed off to my GP who suggested hormone replacement therapy.
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Pump it up
Like many town centres in New Zealand, downtown Tauranga faces challenges as shopping behaviours evolve with new technologies. We’ve also seen for some time the impact of large malls drawing foot traffic away from our main streets. Downtown retailers have felt the impact of change and are having to work hard to attract customers to their stores.
In Tauranga there’s a number of developments under way that, once in place, will breathe new energy into the CBD, not least the significant Farmers Tauranga Development which will feature a blend of retail, residential and dining sure to draw plenty of locals and visitors to the Elizabeth Street end of town. There’s no doubt some big property investment players are backing the Tauranga CBD and, along with the new Waikato University campus, the future is looking brighter for those plying their trade downtown.
Read MoreAuthentic storytelling has the power to influence
There’s been a lot of discussion lately about what some are calling the rural-urban divide.
Farmers and other hard-working rural folk feel they are being unfairly labelled as ‘environmental vandals’ for farming practices that contribute to climate change and the degradation of New Zealand’s waterways. Coupled with this are claims that dairy farmers mistreat their animals through winter grazing or by removing calves from their mothers within hours of being born in the paddock. Criticism is rife every spring despite the fact that cows and calves must be separated in order for cows to be milked to meet customer demand for dairy products, such as cheese, ice cream and milk for the city-dweller’s daily flat white.
Read MoreInstil fear, or walk alongside?
I consider myself to be a pretty healthy person so I’ve never bothered with a flu vaccination, but I’m seriously considering getting one next year.
Like many others, I fell for the myth that the vaccine can make you sick. But by immunising myself I can protect others around me who may not have such a strong immune system – young children, the elderly and people with compromised immune systems.
Read MoreI’m right. Everything I see tells me I’m right.
We tend to believe our perceptions are a true representation of the world, right?
But it may well be that the world we are perceiving might not be quite the accurate representation we think it is. Our perception may be coloured by our innate biases. It is selective and malleable.
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