Home21 July 2026
Episode 07: A life in biosecurity
Dr Nick Waipara has spent 25 years in the biosecurity system. From chasing Californian thistles as a high schooler to working at the coalface of kauri dieback, myrtle rust, and regional pest management. In this episode the tables are turned as fellow co-hosts Amanda and Peter put him in the hot seat, asking what a reimagined biosecurity system would actually look like, and whether we are already getting there.
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Episode Highlights
- The tables are turned as Nick Waipara steps into the hot seat, interviewed by fellow co-hosts Amanda and Peter
- Reimagining the biosecurity system, what would it look like if we had all the knowledge, resources, and agility we needed
- The kauri dieback story, how community members and Forest and Bird rangers were the ones who first raised the alarm, not the agencies
- Why agility in biosecurity comes down to relationships built in peacetime, not command and control in a crisis
- The feast and famine problem, how inconsistent funding undermines community and iwi involvement in long term biosecurity work
- The gap in our science system, from vanishingly few experts in critical areas to no baseline monitoring of biocontrol agents after release
- What Nick is proud of after 25 years, advocating for diverse knowledges and the people doing the mahi on the ground
- Spotting weeds in Lord of the Rings and what wandering willy taught us about international research collaboration
Episode Description
Season two of Under the Lens is here, and we are starting somewhere unexpected. Rather than bringing in a new guest, we are turning the lens on one of our own. Fellow co-hosts Amanda and Peter put Dr Nick Waipara in the hot seat, drawing on his 25 years at the coalface of biosecurity to ask the question running through every episode this season: if you could reimagine the biosecurity system, what would that look like?
What emerges is an honest conversation about a system Nick knows intimately. Built around rules and enforcement, it not always made room for communities, industries, or iwi partners. Real agility in biosecurity comes from relationships built long before a crisis arrives.
The kauri dieback story sits at the heart of this episode. It was not agencies that first raised the alarm. It was Forest and Bird members, rangers, and kaitiaki on the ground who noticed something was wrong and knew who to call. That network of trust made the difference.
Nick is candid about the gaps too. Inconsistent funding, a science system losing critical expertise with no succession planning, and a reactive funding culture that waits for crisis before resourcing a response. But he is also hopeful. As he puts it, we are already reimagining. We are already getting there.
Meet our Guest
Nick Waipara is a forest pathologist and botanist with 25 years of experience working at the intersection of biosecurity science and on the ground practice. He has worked across research, regional councils, and community networks, finding practical solutions to some of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most challenging pest and weed problems, including kauri dieback and myrtle rust.
Nick is a researcher with the Plant and Food Research Group of the Bioeconomy Science Institute and a trustee of Te Tira Whakamātaki. His work spans the full biosecurity pipeline, from surveillance and detection through to control and community engagement, and he is known for his ability to bridge the worlds of science, community, and policy.
In this episode Nick steps out from behind the microphone and into the hot seat, as fellow co-hosts Amanda and Peter turn the lens on the person who usually holds it.
Meet the Hosts
Professor Amanda Black — Director, Bioprotection Aotearoa; soil scientist at Lincoln University.
Professor Peter Dearden — Co-Director, Genomics Aotearoa; geneticist at the University of Otago.
Dr Nick Waipara — Forest pathologist with Plant & Food Research Group of the Bioeconomy Science Institute, and a long-time collaborator with Te Tira Whakamātaki.
About the Podcast
Under the Lens is a conversation series exploring how ecosystems resist, recover, and thrive across Aotearoa New Zealand and the Pacific.
Our Voice
Warm. Curious. Grounded.
We welcome tough questions, speak in plain language, and focus on real people and real impacts. Our conversations bridge perspectives and explore how knowledge, experience, and action come together to support resilience across Aotearoa.
Where This Episode Fits
This is the first guest episode of season two. Before bringing in outside voices, we hear first from someone who has spent 25 years inside the biosecurity system. Nick’s reflections set the foundation for every conversation that follows. And the question he opens with is the same one every guest will be asked this season: if you could reimagine the biosecurity system in Aotearoa, what would that look like?
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