title: Play makes us happy! Listening to the perspectives of Chinese immigrant children and parents about well-being in New Zealand

authors: Gai, QiTong

abstract: As the global population of immigrant children increases, the well-being of this group has gained more attention. However, one underrepresented group in academic literature is Chinese immigrant children in New Zealand. This study sought to address this gap, examining their well-being through their own experiences and perspectives, with a specific focus on subjective happiness and its influencing factors. The project is qualitative research, using data from go-along interviews with eight Chinese immigrant children and semi-structured interviews with their parents. The findings indicated that all eight children expressed contentment and satisfaction with their lives in New Zealand, suggesting successful integration into New Zealand society. Additionally, the findings showed that play, friendship, family support, and learning about Chinese culture were significant contributors to the children's well-being. The play emerged as a central theme influencing the well-being of these immigrant children. The children associated their happiness with various aspects of play, including personal play, play with friends, school activities, sports participation, attending interest classes, and learning about Chinese culture. Parents corroborated this sentiment, identifying play as fundamental to their children's physical and mental health. They underscored the importance of personal growth, health, happiness, and the pursuit of personal interests and hobbies. While acknowledging the relaxed lifestyle New Zealand offers their children, parents expressed concerns about the quality of math education and their children's capacity to handle future pressures. Reflecting on the future, both children and parents expressed optimistic expectations. However, this study has its limitations. It was conducted with a small sample size, relied on self-reported data, and focused narrowly on Chinese immigrants in Hamilton, during children's go-along interviews no children took photos, and the potential influence of parental religious beliefs was not addressed. These limitations pave the way for future research opportunities. Future research can address these limitations and further explore the role of play in shaping the well-being of Chinese immigrant children. Particularly, it can examine the transition from 'Tiger parenting' to recognizing the importance of play, an initial observation pointed out in this study.

text: Play makes us happy! Listening to the perspectives of Chinese immigrant children and parents about well-being in New Zealand As the global population of immigrant children increases, the well-being of this group has gained more attention. However, one underrepresented group in academic literature is Chinese immigrant children in New Zealand. This study sought to address this gap, examining their well-being through their own experiences and perspectives, with a specific focus on subjective happiness and its influencing factors. The project is qualitative research, using data from go-along interviews with eight Chinese immigrant children and semi-structured interviews with their parents. The findings indicated that all eight children expressed contentment and satisfaction with their lives in New Zealand, suggesting successful integration into New Zealand society. Additionally, the findings showed that play, friendship, family support, and learning about Chinese culture were significant contributors to the children's well-being. The play emerged as a central theme influencing the well-being of these immigrant children. The children associated their happiness with various aspects of play, including personal play, play with friends, school activities, sports participation, attending interest classes, and learning about Chinese culture. Parents corroborated this sentiment, identifying play as fundamental to their children's physical and mental health. They underscored the importance of personal growth, health, happiness, and the pursuit of personal interests and hobbies. While acknowledging the relaxed lifestyle New Zealand offers their children, parents expressed concerns about the quality of math education and their children's capacity to handle future pressures. Reflecting on the future, both children and parents expressed optimistic expectations. However, this study has its limitations. It was conducted with a small sample size, relied on self-reported data, and focused narrowly on Chinese immigrants in Hamilton, during children's go-along interviews no children took photos, and the potential influence of parental religious beliefs was not addressed. These limitations pave the way for future research opportunities. Future research can address these limitations and further explore the role of play in shaping the well-being of Chinese immigrant children. Particularly, it can examine the transition from 'Tiger parenting' to recognizing the importance of play, an initial observation pointed out in this study.

year: 2023

title: Why aren't we all living in Smart Homes

authors: Suppers, Joris

abstract: Visions of the Future, like the Jetsons cartoons, show homes which are smart and able to control household appliances, to make living easier and more comfortable. Although much research has been carried out into the effectiveness of different visualisation techniques for conveying useful energy consumption information to householders, and in techniques for controlling the timing and coordination of appliance use, these techniques have failed to achieve widespread penetration, and the vision still seems far from a reality. This paper examines the reasons why smart home technologies have so far failed to have any real impact, which is intricately intertwined with the design of visualisations in this context, and why we are not already living in Smart Homes. It examines these questions under four sections: Technology, Consumers, Electricity retailers and Government agencies, using examples from New Zealand’s electricity sector.

text: Why aren't we all living in Smart Homes Visions of the Future, like the Jetsons cartoons, show homes which are smart and able to control household appliances, to make living easier and more comfortable. Although much research has been carried out into the effectiveness of different visualisation techniques for conveying useful energy consumption information to householders, and in techniques for controlling the timing and coordination of appliance use, these techniques have failed to achieve widespread penetration, and the vision still seems far from a reality. This paper examines the reasons why smart home technologies have so far failed to have any real impact, which is intricately intertwined with the design of visualisations in this context, and why we are not already living in Smart Homes. It examines these questions under four sections: Technology, Consumers, Electricity retailers and Government agencies, using examples from New Zealand’s electricity sector.

year: 2014

title: Spot sampling of nutrient concentrations in the Puarenga catchment, Rotorua

authors: Abell, Jonathan Michael

subjects: New Zealand

abstract: The Centre for Biodiversity and Ecology Research was approached by Tūhourangi Tribal Authority for assistance with measuring water quality in streams in the Puarenga Stream catchment. Water sampling was subsequently undertaken on 18 July 2011 and samples were analysed to determine concentrations of total and dissolved fractions of nitrogen and phosphorus. 
Nitrogen and phosphorus are both essential plant nutrients which, when present in excess, can cause eutrophication and associated water quality decline of freshwaters. High concentrations of dissolved forms of nitrogen can also be toxic to aquatic organisms. Excessive nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations are typically the result of pollution due to human activities, although groundwater in the Central Volcanic Plateau region can have elevated concentrations of phosphorus arising from natural geological sources.
This report summarises the methods used, presents the results and places measured concentrations in context by drawing comparisons with both guideline and regional mean values.

text: Spot sampling of nutrient concentrations in the Puarenga catchment, Rotorua The Centre for Biodiversity and Ecology Research was approached by Tūhourangi Tribal Authority for assistance with measuring water quality in streams in the Puarenga Stream catchment. Water sampling was subsequently undertaken on 18 July 2011 and samples were analysed to determine concentrations of total and dissolved fractions of nitrogen and phosphorus. 
Nitrogen and phosphorus are both essential plant nutrients which, when present in excess, can cause eutrophication and associated water quality decline of freshwaters. High concentrations of dissolved forms of nitrogen can also be toxic to aquatic organisms. Excessive nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations are typically the result of pollution due to human activities, although groundwater in the Central Volcanic Plateau region can have elevated concentrations of phosphorus arising from natural geological sources.
This report summarises the methods used, presents the results and places measured concentrations in context by drawing comparisons with both guideline and regional mean values.

year: 2011-09