One of our most famous boats was designed by a Public Works employee who couldn’t swim, and who was too hard up to build anything larger. Also, it's so hard to sail that it's credited with fostering our yachting prowess.

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From where we'd rather be...

One of New Zealand's most famous boats was designed by a Public Works employee who couldn’t swim, and who was too hard up to build anything larger. It's so hard to sail that it's credited with fostering our yachting prowess.

Pet day

We're all spending a lot more time with pets right now—and for some Kiwi kids, these aren't just cats and dogs, but lambs and calves, too. Every spring, they're shown off at pet days around the country.

The man who tracks viruses

“I remember sitting in my new boss’s office and he told me, ‘You’re going to work on influenza’. I was disappointed, but that’s where it all started.” Not much was known about flu pandemics at the time, but New Zealander Robert Webster was one of the people to discover that flu can cross to humans from birds.

Together at home: Stories, videos and activities to share

Every day of the lockdown, we're posting a story or video that can be shared among your family, plus a new activity (crafts, colouring pages, I Spy challenges) for younger readers. See the collection of stories here, and with them some talking points to fill your days at home together.

Great reads: Is this the world's smartest bird?

Since none of us are getting outdoors for the foreseeable future, browse our selection of favourite New Zealand Geographic features: stories that take you to the far-flung corners of the country and introduce you to the animals and people who call them home.

From our bubble to yours...

New Zealand Geographic is working from home, like everyone else. Subscriptions manager Tosh Akhit is spending the lockdown with her daughter, who's just started distance learning in Year Six. Since the lockdown began, Tosh has moved her desk out of the living room to a quieter corner. "It turns out when your bubble is shared with a nine-year-old and roaming toddler from the upstairs flat it's kind of handy to have a door that closes,” she says.

The desk is from her studio at Auckland University's Elam School of Fine Arts, where she's undertaking PhD research. Her project looks at how to create socially engaged art in Aotearoa through engagement with under-represented communities.