Newsletter #87
Top: The River Is by Iain Cheeseman is currently on display at the Ashburton Art Gallery
Tēnā koutou,
The above image doesn’t do justice to the size and sense of presence of the The River Is by artist Iain Cheesman so I’ve included an image of the work being installed at the end of this newsletter. The divining sticks and balls of wool used to create the display cast subtle shadows that reflect the pattern of braided rivers. The work is inspired by a childhood memory in which Iain’s grandmother’s friend uses a wooden divining stick to search for water underground, speaking to the value of water that cannot be measured or owned.
On Sunday 07 April at 2pm, Iain will be visiting the Ashburton Art Gallery and Museum to speak more the inspiration behind his foyer wall artwork The River Is. In a testimony to Iain’s passion for braided rivers, he will be donating all of the proceeds from the sale of the individual divining sticks to BRaid. Iain’s presentation on Sunday is a free event, so come along and be one of the first to own a piece of this memorable work.
It’s thanks to the generosity of patrons like Iain who help keep environmental groups such as BRaid going, something that’s even more crucial in the current economic and political climate.
On Sunday 07 April at 2pm, Iain will be visiting the Ashburton Art Gallery and Museum to speak more the inspiration behind his foyer wall artwork The River Is. In a testimony to Iain’s passion for braided rivers, he will be donating all of the proceeds from the sale of the individual divining sticks to BRaid. Iain’s presentation on Sunday is a free event, so come along and be one of the first to own a piece of this memorable work.
It’s thanks to the generosity of patrons like Iain who help keep environmental groups such as BRaid going, something that’s even more crucial in the current economic and political climate.
BRaid is also funded by ECan’s Waitaha Action to Impact Fund. As it tries to balance rates hikes with services, ECan is seeking submissions on its Long Term Plan 2024-34 . Some of Council’s preferred ‘Environmental Regulation and Protection’ options in the LTP are to ‘increase investment to lift compliance’ and ‘reducing the Canterbury Water Management Strategy action plan funding to $0.5million and the contestable grant funding to $0.3million’. If you agree or disagree with these or any other options outlined in the consultation document, NOW is the time to submit. If you’re have no idea how to submit, Christchurch Envirohub are running a Submissions Writing Group at the Kiosk in the Botanical Gardens, 6-8pm Tuesday 09 April.
News
- Goodbye, environmental laws! We’re in our construction era now – NZ Geographic
- The government’s war on nature goes nuclear – EDS
- Not braided river bird related, but let’s celebrate our native frogs before the ‘…goodbye Freddie‘ policies kick in.
- Why Do Birds Have Such Skinny Legs? – Scientific American
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How tracking animal movement may save the planet – MIT Technology Review
- Bird flu has reached the Antarctic Peninsula – Australian Geographic update
Research & Reports
- 2023: Ashley Rakahuri Rivercare Group (ARRG) Annual Report
- 2024: McInosh et al; Ecosystem-size relationships of river populations and communities –Trends in Ecology & Evolution/ Science Direct
- 2024: Li Li et al; River water quality shaped by land–river connectivity in a changing climate, Nature Climate Change review article (link shared by authors):
How does land-river connectivity shape river water quality in persistent, gradual climate changes & episodic, intense extremes?
- 2024: : Christian Zammit – NIWA video presentation: River flows under climate change for River Managers Professional Development Programme, National Science Challenge:
- 2024: Snyder & Creanzer; Birds convey complex signals in simple songs, Nature
- 2023: Schilicht et al; A dawn and dusk chorus will emerge if males sing in the absence of their mate, Proceedings of the Royal Society B
- 2024: Padian; The 50th anniversary of a key paper on how bird flight evolved, Nature
- 2024: UN; State of the World’s Migratory Species report (PDF)
Iain Cheesman installing The River Is in the foyer of the Ashburton Art Gallery
Donations
BRaid is an Incorporated Society (No: 2453663) with Charitable Status (Registration Number CC50089). Membership is free but donations are much appreciated. Donations can be made to BRaid Inc. Account number: 01 0877 0818466 00. Please include your name in the reference line and ideally email us, so that we can thank you and send you a receipt. Donations are tax deductable citing our NZ Business Number 9429043210572.
