Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Imperans Q1 Report, State of Workplace Drug Use from TDDA

AUCKLAND, New Zealand, 21 April 2026 – The Drug Detection Agency (TDDA), New Zealand’s largest workplace drug testing provider has launched its Q1 Imperans Report, a quarterly workplace drug trends report. The report empowers New Zealand employers to engage in proactive workplace risk management. It provides them with an analysis of drug and alcohol usage trends, combining results from across the country.

In Q1 2026, 3.0% of screens conducted by TDDA indicated the presence of drugs. While this is down from 4.0% in Q4 2025, what is concerning is changes in the types of drugs detected.

The data points to three broad shifts. A welcome easing in the overall detection rate is countered by a persistent and widening expansion of Opioid detections: a 34.5% Year on Year (YoY) increase compared to Q1 2025, the most significant shift of any substance nationally.  The third is a partial retreat in cocaine detections following Q4's significant spike, though at 1.9% in Q1 2026, levels remain above the 1.7% recorded in Q1 2025, suggesting a gradual upward trend that goes beyond seasonal effects.

Among all positive TDDA results, the most prevalent substances detected were:

·       Opioids, including oxycodone: up 34.5% YoY, from 14.3% in Q1 2025 to 19.2% in Q1 2026
·       Cocaine: up 11.4% YoY, from 1.7% in Q1 2025 to 1.9% in Q1 2026
·       THC (Cannabis): down 0.8% YoY, from 68.7% in Q1 2025 to 68.1% in Q1 2026
·       Amphetamine-Type Substances (ATS), including methamphetamine: down 25.8% YoY, from 31.2% in Q1 2025 to 23.2% in Q1 2026

“The overall number may suggest things are moving in the right direction, but a Year-on-Year lens and the regional picture tell a different story, “says Glenn Dobson, CEO of TDDA.

“Opioids, Cannabis and ATS are expanding across multiple regions, and that is a risk employers cannot afford to overlook. Unlike a sudden spike in cocaine detections, these are slow-moving and more consistent trends that embed themselves into workplace culture before most employers even notice. That said, cocaine is not a substance to dismiss. While Q1 detections (1.9%) have retreated from the Q4 peak (3.7%) – likely driven by the Christmas and summer holiday period – levels remain above this time last year, which may point to a steady and increasingly entrenched supply network.”

Regional highlights

TDDA tracks regional fluctuations in substance use to help employers better manage workplace safety risks through targeted testing, education, and early intervention.

Full regional stats can be found here: https://tdda.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Graphs-for-Indd-Q1-25-Q1-26_NZ.pdf

Q1 data shows that these trends are playing out unevenly across the country, with Opioids and Cocaine expanding nation-wide on a YoY basis, while Cannabis and ATS are showing an increase in specific regions.

Opioids

Opioids have increased in 11 out of 16 regions compared to Q1 2025. Among the regions recording the most significant increases:

·       Taranaki: up 386.9% YoY, from 6.3% in Q1 2025 to 30.4% in Q1 2026, the largest increase of any substance in any region
·       Northland: up 192.3% YoY, from 7.4% in Q1 2025 to 21.6% in Q1 2026
·       Auckland East: up 117.8% YoY, from 10.2% in Q1 2025 to 22.2% in Q1 2026

Cocaine

Nationwide Cocaine detections (1.9%) remain above Q1 2025 levels (1.7%), suggesting the trend has not fully reversed. Employers in previously flagged regions are especially encouraged to maintain vigilance, with notable increases in:

·       Auckland West: up 414.8% YoY, from 0.8% in Q1 2025 to 4.2% in Q1 2026
·       North Shore: up 197.3% YoY, from 1.1% in Q1 2025 to 3.3% in Q1 2026
·       Wellington: up 53.5% YoY, from 1.6% in Q1 2025 to 2.4% in Q1 2026

Cannabis

Cannabis remains the most prevalent substance nationally, present in 68.1% of positive tests. While broadly stable YoY (down 0.8% YoY, from 68.7% in Q1 2025 to 68.1% in Q1 2026), regional divergence is widening, with notable increases in:

·       Gisborne: up 29.8% YoY, from 64.7% in Q1 2025 to 84.0% in Q1 2026, the sharpest regional increase
·       Tasman: up 22.5% YoY, from 58.3% in Q1 2025 to 71.4% in Q1 2026
·       Manawatū-Whanganui: up 11.0% YoY from 64.4% in Q1 2025 to 71.4% in Q1 2026

ATS

While ATS detections have declined at the national level, regional divergence remains sharp, with notable increases in:

·       Gisborne: up 240.1% YoY, from 11.8% in Q1 2025 to 40.0% in Q1 2026, the largest regional increase
·       Bay of Plenty: up 27.5% YoY, from 37.2% in Q1 2025 to 47.5% in Q1 2026
·       Southland: up 48.0% YoY, from 18.9% in Q1 2025 to 28.0% in Q1 2026

Recommendations

” What this data reinforces is that a one-size-fits-all approach to workplace drug management is no longer sufficient,” says Dobson.

“Opioids are quietly but persistently spreading across the country. Unlike substances that tend to produce obvious signs, they can be harder to spot in the workplace, and by the time the problem becomes visible, it may have already been ongoing for some time. If your workforce operates machinery, drives vehicles, or operates in safety-sensitive environments, an employee who is silently struggling with opioid use is not just a health risk – they are a safety risk to everyone around them.”

TDDA recommends that employers regularly review their drug and alcohol policies to ensure they reflect the latest regional trends. Where detections are rising, whether opioids, cocaine, or other substances, implementing a testing programme, including pre-employment and regular and random testing, is one of the most effective tools for early warning and intervention.

If a testing programme is not yet in place, or has not been reviewed for some time, addressing this should be a priority. Combining this with ongoing training and education to ensure managers are equipped to have early, supportive conversations with employees, rather than waiting for an accident to happen, also creates a more comprehensive approach.

The earlier the intervention, the better the outcome for the safety and health of your employees.

Methodology: Tests from 27 sterile clinic locations and over 60 mobile clinics throughout New Zealand were used. All tests were taken between 1 January and 31 March 2026. Data from pre employment, post incident, regular and random testing has been combined. Testing methods included urine and oral fluid screening. Data is reported into, anonymised, and aggregated using TDDA’s Imperans system, a bespoke IT platform for testing services, data recording, and reporting. It represents a snapshot of drug trends across Australasian workplaces and industries.

Total figures on testing volumes or testing results by industry and region are commercially sensitive.

TDDA drug tests screen for amphetamines; benzodiazepines; cocaine; methamphetamine; opiates and opioids; Cannabis; and synthetic drugs.

About the Imperans Report

The Imperans report addresses an information gap for business. Government organisations like ACC and WorkSafe publish incident reports, but they do not quantify when substances are a factor. Reports build businesses’ understanding of substance use patterns regionally and temporally so that they can anticipate and reduce workplace risks. TDDA provides over 250,000 tests every year.

About The Drug Detection Agency

The Drug Detection Agency (TDDA) is a leader in workplace substance testing with more than 300 staff, 90 mobile health clinics, 65 locations throughout Australasia. TDDA was established in 2005 to provide New Zealand and Australian businesses with end-to-end workplace substance testing, education and policy services. TDDA holds ISO17025 accreditation for workplace substance testing in both AU and NZ. Refer to the IANZ and NATA websites for TDDA’s full accreditation details. As members of the National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association (NDASA) and the California Narcotic Officers Association (CNOA), TDDA closely follows and acts on global drug trends.

Learn more about TDDA by visiting https://tdda.com/

A $30,000 gift from two former students will support innovation and entrepreneurship at the University of Auckland.

Thanks to two former students, a new fund at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland, is set to improve access to innovation and entrepreneurship education.

The innovative alumni, Alliv Samson (Bachelor of Arts) and Hengjie Wang (Bachelor of Engineering), are gifting $30,000 through their family office and investment fund, Hiraya Ventures, to establish the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) Alumni Fund.

The fund will support the University's start-up programme Velocity, and other initiatives delivered by CIE, enabling more students to pursue their startup ambitions at no cost.

Samson and Wang are internationally recognised entrepreneurs. They founded education technology company Kami, an all-in-one platform designed to save teachers time and improve learning outcomes, supporting over 70 million users across 180 countries.

Kami began in 2012 as a student project, developed through the Velocity $100k Challenge. In 2022, TIME named it one of the world’s most influential companies following rapid growth and widespread classroom adoption. In 2025, Wang and Samson won the EY Entrepreneur of the Year.

Drawing on this experience, the duo established the CIE Alumni Fund to give back to the system that supported their early success, providing a formal pathway for like-minded alumni to reinvest in the programmes that nurture Aotearoa’s next generation of innovators.

Samson and Wang’s family office, Hiraya Ventures, invests in early to growth-stage Kiwi companies with global potential, combining capital with operational experience. The name Hiraya, drawn from Filipino, reflects a focus on enabling ambitious ideas to become reality.

Samson, director at Hiraya Ventures, and Chief Strategy Officer and co-founder of Kami, says: “One of the main reasons Hengjie and I founded Hiraya Ventures was to give back to the ecosystem that enabled Kami’s growth.

“As Velocity provided the spark that turned our student project into a global business, supporting the University’s Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship was a no-brainer. It’s our way of ensuring the next generation of ambitious Kiwi entrepreneurs have the support they need to turn their boldest dreams into reality.”

In 2025, CIE supported more than 8,000 individuals across its programmes and activities, with demand continuing to grow across faculties and disciplines. This scale reflects increasing interest in innovation-led careers, as well as the role of co-curricular programmes in helping students test ideas in practical settings.

The CIE Alumni Fund introduces a mechanism to sustain and expand that access with the initial $30,000 contribution distributed over three years. It’s then structured to receive future donations from other alumni and supporters.

CIE Director Darsel Keane says the gift signals a shift in how the University’s innovation ecosystem is supported over time.

“We are deeply grateful for this contribution, which establishes the foundation for a fund that others can contribute to. It creates a way for those who have benefited from innovation and entrepreneurship at the University to support the next generation coming through.

“The fund creates a starting point for a more connected alumni network, where experience, capital and mentorship can circulate back into the University.”

The CIE Alumni Fund will begin supporting programmes this year. As participation in innovation and entrepreneurship continues to increase across the University, it provides a mechanism to match that demand with sustained support.

The General Practice Owners Association (GenPro) welcomes the final approval from Te Whatu Ora to establish thePHO, marking a major step forward for a more streamlined, patient-focused primary care system in Aotearoa New Zealand.

The decision follows provisional approval granted in December and confirms that thePHO will proceed to establishment, with operations expected to begin later this year.

Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora contracts primary health organisations (PHOs) to provide primary health services such as general practice across New Zealand. Primary health organisations play a vital role in connecting funders with front-line providers, shaping how care is delivered in communities: thePHO aims to simplify this structure while strengthening support for general practices.

GenPro Chair Dr Angus Chambers says the final approval provides certainty for practices and patients alike.

“This is an important milestone for primary care. Final approval from Te Whatu Ora confirms confidence in a model designed to reduce unnecessary bureaucracy and ensure more funding reaches front-line patient care,” Dr Chambers says.

“The level of interest from general practices to join thePHO has been extremely strong, reflecting a clear appetite for a PHO that is leaner, more responsive, and better aligned with the needs of both patients and providers.”

Dr Chambers says the focus now turns to implementation and supporting practices through the transition.

“We are working closely with the establishment board to ensure thePHO is set up for success from day one. The priority is a smooth transition that maintains continuity of care for patients while delivering on the promise of a more efficient system.”

GenPro has backed the establishment of thePHO because it aligns with its commitment to sustainable, high-quality, and accessible primary care. However, thePHO will remain operationally independent of GenPro, allowing GenPro to continue its advocacy work on behalf of general practice owners without conflict.

“The is not the GenPro PHO, it is a PHO for GenPro members. Ultimately it is about improving outcomes for patients and creating a system that better supports the clinicians delivering care every day,” Dr Chambers says.

The discovery of a genetic cause for young people's sudden cardiac deaths discovery will bring relief to the families and clinicians who will have information to prevent further deaths.

A New Zealand family and two Australian families, who lost young people to sudden cardiac death, finally have answers thanks to contemporary genetic testing.

Up to 90 unexplained sudden cardiac deaths are reported per year in Aotearoa New Zealand in people under 40 and in around a third of cases, no cause has been found.

“This new finding has been made possible by the technology we have available now,” says lead researcher Dr Polona Le Quesne Stabej from Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland.

“In 2001, an international consortium of scientists sequenced the entire human genome at a cost of more than two billion dollars. Now the University can sequence an entire genome for between one and three-thousand dollars.”

The family, who have asked for privacy, had earlier agreed to standard genetic testing, but that failed to find a cause.

They have been supported from early on by clinicians from the national Cardiac Inherited Diseases Group (CIDG), which was founded in 2000 by Professor Jon Skinner to coordinate care for whānau.

Skinner says it was heartbreaking to be caring for the whānau and terrible to not understand what was going on. This discovery will bring relief to the families and clinicians who will have information to prevent further deaths.

“Parents who have lost a child often carry an irrational sense of guilt, and it has been a powerful motivator for me and the team when a parent says, ‘Thank you doctor, I don’t have to blame myself any more.’”

The value of this sort of research is it immediately translates into improved care for impacted families, Skinner says.

In 2024, the family agreed to participate in the new research project led by Pūtahi Manawa, a centre of excellence for heart research at the University. See European Heart Journal.

The research team made the discovery using long-read DNA sequencing, an advanced technique capable of analysing large, complex regions of the genome.

By applying long-read sequencing to historical DNA samples, the researchers were able to identify genetic changes that had previously gone unnoticed.

The whole genome testing results were analysed by bioinformatician Dr Zoe Ward, who discovered the genetic abnormality, called a ‘repeat expansion’, in the DMPK gene.

These repeat expansions can be difficult to detect using standard genetic testing.

This genetic abnormality is known to cause myotonic dystrophy type 1, an inherited condition that leads to muscle weakness and other symptoms, including sometimes affecting the heart.

“Our findings suggest this genetic change may be an overlooked cause of sudden cardiac death in young people, especially when standard tests find no answer, and we recommend checking for this DMPK repeat in unexplained cases,” says Le Quesne.

The University’s $11 million Precision Medicine Initiative supports this and related research with funding and advice.

Researcher Professor Cris Print, who works with the initiative, says new long-read genome sequencing has allowed scientists to understand the biology of sudden cardiac death much better.

“This increase in biological understanding, allows clinical practice to change and saves lives,” Print says.

The New Zealand research was confirmed by Associate Professor Richard Bagnall, a leading expert in inherited heart diseases, at the Centenary Institute in Australia.

Bagnall identified the same genetic expansions in several Australian young people who died suddenly of cardiac causes.

All this makes a strong case for including DMPK in any genetic screening for sudden cardiac death, the authors say.

Data sovereignty important for Māori

A Māori advisory group, or Kaitiaki Rōpu, has steered the New Zealand project to ensure it is culturally safe for participants, as the family at the centre is Māori.

The rōpu ensures whānau consent to DNA being used and have input to how it is disposed of after the genetic testing, including use of specific karakia.

“DNA is one of the most taonga substances – everything about us, about our whakapapa is in our DNA,” says Saraya Hogan (Ngāti Hako), a rōpu member who is a genetic counsellor and medical laboratory scientist who worked on the project.

Print says working with the Kaitiaki Rōpu improves data governance for all New Zealanders. “We learn from Māori how to do this really well.”

Pūtahi Manawa is a large collaborative research centre focused on closing the gap in heart health for Māori and Pacific People in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Read about the University of Auckland’s Precision Medicine Initiative: http://www.aaha.org.nz/precision-medicine-initiative/

21 April 2026 – Amnesty International calls on states to stop predatory, anti-rights order from taking hold in pivotal moment for humanity

Predatory attacks on multilateralism, international law and civil society marked 2025
The alternative on offer is a racist, patriarchal, unequal and anti-rights world order
Protesters, activists and global bodies are working to resist, disrupt and transform

The world is on the brink of a perilous new era, driven by powerful states’, corporations’ and anti-rights movements’ assaults on multilateralism, international law and human rights, Amnesty International warned today upon launching its annual report, The State of the World’s Human Rights. States, international bodies and civil society must reject the politics of appeasement and collectively resist these attacks to prevent this new order from taking hold, the organization said in its assessment of the human rights situation in 144 countries.

“We are confronting the most challenging moment of our age. Humanity is under attack from transnational anti-rights movements and predatory governments determined to assert their dominance through unlawful wars and brazen economic blackmail,” said Amnesty International’s Secretary General, Agnès Callamard.

“For years, Amnesty International has denounced the gradual disintegration of human rights in every part of the world, warning of the consequences of flagrant rule-breaking by governments and corporate actors. We’ve also demonstrated time and again how double standards and selective compliance with international law have weakened the multilateral system and accountability.

“What marks this moment as fundamentally different is that we’re no longer documenting erosion around the system’s edges. This is a direct assault on the foundations of human rights and the international rules-based order by the most powerful actors for the purpose of control, impunity and profit.

“The spiralling conflict in the Middle East is a product of this descent into lawlessness. Following the initial unlawful US-Israeli attacks in violation of the UN Charter, which triggered Iran’s indiscriminate retaliation, the conflict has quickly morphed into an open warfare against civilians and civilian infrastructure, exacerbating the already catastrophic suffering of people across the region. It is now engulfing countries around the world, impacting populations everywhere, and threatening the livelihood of millions. This is what happens when the norms, institutions and legal framework painstakingly built to safeguard humanity are hollowed out for the purpose of domination.”

“Amnesty’s 2025 annual report moves beyond warning of imminent breakdown to documenting a collapse now underway, and exposing its devastating consequences for human rights, global stability and the lives of millions in 2026 and beyond. It calls on states around the world to urgently reject the politics of appeasement embraced in 2025, overcome fear, and resist in words and actions the construction of a predatory world order.”

Predatory attacks are accelerating the destruction of international law

The State of the World’s Human Rights, and Amnesty International’s documentation so far this year, detail pervasive crimes under international law and mounting attacks on the international justice system, which are gravely harming the foundations that underpin human rights globally.

Israel has maintained its genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, despite the October 2025 ceasefire agreement, and its system of apartheid over Palestinians, while accelerating the expansion of illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and taking steps toward annexation. Israeli authorities have increasingly allowed or encouraged settlers to attack and terrorize Palestinians with impunity, and prominent officials have praised and glorified violence against Palestinians, including arbitrary arrests and the torture of detainees.

The United States of America has committed over 150 extrajudicial executions by bombing boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific, and carried out an act of aggression against Venezuela in January 2026. Russia has intensified its aerial attacks on critical civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, while Myanmar’s military used motorized paragliders to drop explosive munitions on villages last year, killing dozens of civilians, including children.

The United Arab Emirates has fuelled the conflict in Sudan by providing advanced Chinese weaponry to the Rapid Support Forces, who seized control of El Fasher last October after an 18-month siege of the city and committed mass civilian killings and sexual violence. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the M23 armed group, with the active support of Rwanda, captured the cities of Goma and Bukavu and unlawfully killed civilians and tortured detainees.

In early 2026, the USA and Israel’s unlawful use of force against Iran, in violation of the UN Charter, has triggered retaliatory Iranian strikes on Israel and Gulf Cooperation Council countries, while Israel has escalated its attacks on Lebanon. From the killing of over 100 children in an unlawful US strike on a school in Iran, to the devastating attacks by all parties on energy infrastructure, the conflict has endangered the lives and health of millions of civilians and threatens to inflict vast, predictable and long-term civilian and environmental harm, impacting access to energy, healthcare, food and water across an already turbulent region and beyond.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban escalated its predatory policies against the female population, with further bans prohibiting them from education, work and freedom of movement, while in Iran, the authorities massacred protesters in January 2026, in what was likely the most lethal such repression for decades.

The USA, Israel and Russia further undermined international accountability mechanisms, and the International Criminal Court (ICC) in particular, last year. The Trump administration enacted sanctions against ICC staff, collaborators and the UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, while Russian courts issued arrest warrants against ICC officials. Several other states withdrew or announced their intention to withdraw from the Rome Statute and treaties banning cluster munitions and anti-personnel mines.

The vast majority of states have been unwilling or unable to consistently denounce predatory acts by the USA, Russia, Israel or China, or to chisel out diplomatic solutions. The European Union and most European states appeased US assaults on international law and multilateral mechanisms. They have failed to take meaningful action to stop Israel’s genocide or end the irresponsible arms and technology transfers fuelling crimes under international law around the world. They have also been unwilling to enact blocking statutes to protect the targets of US sanctions, including on ICC judges and prosecutors. Italy and Hungary declined to arrest individuals subject to ICC warrants in their territory, while France, Germany and Poland implied they would do the same.

“World leaders have been far too submissive in the face of attacks on international law and the multilateral system. Their silence and inaction are inexcusable. It is morally bankrupt and will bring nothing but retreat, defeat and the erasure of decades of hard-fought human rights gains. To appease aggressors is to pour fuel on a fire that will burn us all and scorch the future for generations to come,” said Agnès Callamard.

“Some may be tempted to dismiss the system built over the last 80 years as nothing but an illusion. This is to ignore the hard-fought achievements towards the recognition of universal rights, the adoption of multiple international conventions and national laws protecting against racial discrimination and violence against women, enshrining the rights of workers and trade unions, and recognizing the rights of Indigenous Peoples. It is to forget the poverty addressed, the reproductive rights strengthened and the justice delivered when states chose to uphold the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  

“The political and economic predators, and their enablers, are declaring the multilateral system dead not because it’s inefficient but because it’s not serving their hegemony and control. The response is not to proclaim it an illusion or beyond repair, but to confront its failures, end its selective application and keep transforming it so that it’s fully capable of defending all people with equal resolve.”

Ramped-up assaults on civil society spread around the world

The proliferation of attacks on civil society and social movements deepened in 2025, with sustained efforts to silence and disempower human rights defenders, organizations and dissenters spreading to almost every part of the world.

Authorities in Nepal and Tanzania were particularly brazen in their unlawful use of lethal force to repress protests expressing political and socio-economic grievances. The governments of Afghanistan, China, Egypt, India, Kenya, the USA and Venezuela, among others, also violently repressed protests, criminalized dissent through counterterrorism and security laws, or used abusive policing tactics, enforced disappearances or extrajudicial executions.

In the United Kingdom, authorities proscribed Palestine Action, a direct-action protest network primarily targeting Israeli arms manufacturers and their subsidiaries, under overly broad counterterrorism laws and arrested more than 2,700 people for peacefully opposing the ban. The UK High Court ruled this unlawful in February 2026. The government is appealing the decision.

Turkish authorities detained hundreds of peacefully protesters after the arrest of Istanbul mayor and presidential candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu, who is among over 400 people facing politically motivated prosecution under alleged corruption charges.

US authorities launched an unlawful clampdown on migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, committing unnecessary and excessive use of force, racial profiling, arbitrary detention, and practices that amounted to torture and enforced disappearance. In Latin America, states such as Ecuador, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela adopted or reformed legal frameworks that impose disproportionate controls on civil society organizations directly impacting their ability to operate, access resources, support communities and defend human rights.

Many governments, facilitated by corporate actors, used spyware and digital censorship to restrict freedom of expression and the right to information. US authorities used AI-powered surveillance tools to target foreign students expressing solidarity with Palestinians with arrest and deportation. Serbia’s government used spyware and digital forensics tools against student protesters, civil society and journalists. Kenyan authorities systematically deployed technology-facilitated repression tactics, including online intimidation, threats, incitement to hatred and unlawful surveillance, to suppress youth-led protests.

The USA, Canada, France, Germany and the UK, among others, announced or enacted sweeping cuts to international aid budgets, despite knowing they would likely result in millions of avoidable deaths, and in several cases while committing to massive parallel hikes in military expenditure. This has had a catastrophic impact on NGOs’ efforts to advance press freedom, climate resilience, and gender justice, to protect refugees, migrants and asylum seekers, and to provide healthcare and sexual and reproductive rights.

Many states continued to resist reining in the aggressive tax avoidance and evasion by billionaires and corporate giants while weakening further restraints on corporate power. In the USA, strategic lawsuits against public participation had a chilling effect on civil society, with one such lawsuit resulting in a court ordering Greenpeace to pay a fossil fuel company $345 million (reduced from an initial $660 million).

In a context dominated by the US president describing climate change as a “scam”, governments did nowhere near enough to address climate displacement, equitably transition away from fossil fuels, or adequately ramp up finance for climate action – even as the UN Environment Programme warned that the world is on track to reach 3°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100.

“What alternative do the bullies and predators offer to the imperfect global experiment they’re so intent on destroying? The world order they propose is one that mocks and discards racial, gender and climate justice, treats civil society as an enemy, and rejects international solidarity. It is built on silencing dissent, weaponizing the law and dehumanizing those deemed ‘others’. Their vision of the world is predicated not on respect for our common humanity, but on military force, trade domination and technological hegemony. It is, ultimately, a vision with no moral compass,” said Agnès Callamard.

Protesters, civil society and international bodies lead efforts to resist, disrupt and transform

Undeterred by adversity, millions around the world are resisting injustice and authoritarian practices.

Gen Z protests swept over a dozen countries in 2025, including Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Morocco, Nepal and Peru, and around 300,000 people defied Hungary’s ban on Budapest Pride to defend LGBTI rights. Throughout early 2026, demonstrators from Los Angeles to Minneapolis have organized street by street and block by block against violent and highly militarized US immigration enforcement raids.

Mass demonstrations against Israel’s genocide spread around the world last year and humanitarians from over 40 countries launched flotillas to show solidarity with Palestinians. Global activism against the flow of arms to Israel expanded, with dockworkers in France, Greece, Italy, Morocco, Spain and Sweden seeking to disrupt arms shipment routes. Activism and legal pressure also led several states to restrict or ban arms exports to Israel.

While many governments appeased attacks on international justice, several states and bodies bucked this trend by demonstrating their commitment to multilateralism and rule of law. A growing number acknowledged that Israel was committing genocide and several states joined the Hague Group, a collective committed to holding Israel accountable for violations of international law, and contributed to South Africa’s case against Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The Philippines handed former president Rodrigo Duterte over to the ICC to face charges of the crime against humanity of murder, and the court issued warrants against two Taliban leaders for gender-based persecution. The Council of Europe and Ukraine agreed to establish the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, and a hybrid court in the Central African Republic convicted six former members of an armed group for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The UN Human Rights Council established an independent investigative mechanism for Afghanistan and a fact-finding mission and Commission of Inquiry on Eastern DRC, and expanded the mandate of its fact-finding mission on Iran. Significant progress was made toward a binding UN tax convention and a Crimes Against Humanity Convention, and the ICJ and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights issued landmark advisory opinions affirming state human rights obligations to respond to climate damage.

More states have started speaking out against authoritarian practices and attacks on the rules-based order in 2026, with the Spanish government notably taking principled stands, but such calls must be backed up with decisive and sustained action.

“From city streets to multilateral forums, 2025 brought powerful displays of resistance and solidarity from protesters, diplomats, political leaders and many others around the world. We must build on their example and courage and forge bold coalitions to reimagine, rebuild and re-centre the global order around human rights, the rule of law and universal values,” said Agnès Callamard.

“Let 2026 be the year we assert our agency and demonstrate that history is not merely something imposed upon us; it is ours to make. And for the sake of humanity, the time to make history is now.”

Consumer NZ analysis of the April 1 electricity price rises shows large differences around the country, and those getting hit the hardest can least afford it.

“The impact of the increases vary across the country,” says Paul Fuge, Manager of Powerswitch.

“In the Far North we found annual cost increases in the range of $140 to $420. While in Wellington, the same household can expect an annual increase of $102 – $305,” says Fuge.

Kerikeri currently has amongst the highest average electricity prices in the country, around 20% above the national average and 32% higher than Wellington. Even before the latest increases, households in the Far North were paying hundreds of dollars more each year.

“Unfortunately, the biggest increases are often landing in areas where prices were already high and incomes are lower, worsening energy hardship,” says Fuge.

Residential power prices increased by around 12% in 2025 and are rising again by an average of 5–10% nationally this year, but what households see on their bills can vary more than that.

“There is no single ‘power price increase’. Our analysis of the Powerswitch pricing data reveals very different impacts for similar household types across the country with many people unknowingly paying much more than they need to.”

Consumer NZ analysed 936 of the most common electricity plan types across 14 retailers and multiple pricing regions. We found that annual increases ranged from around 4% to 12%.

“Headline averages hide what really matters, which is what happens on your own power bill,” says Fuge. “And the differences between plans and regions are far bigger than most people realise.”

For a typical household consuming the average amount of electricity, this means an increase of between $115 and $344 per year.

Despite the rises, Consumer NZ says households can still take action. Prices may be going up, but how much more you end up paying is not out of your control. The key is making sure you’re on the right plan – and the easiest way to do that is by checking Powerswitch. (ref. https://consumernz.cmail19.com/t/i-l-zdlutkd-ijjdkdttjk-y/ )

With around 12,500 pricing plans tracked on Powerswitch, switching can significantly reduce costs.

“Don’t wait for a winter bill shock,” said Fuge. “Check Powerswitch now! Just a few minutes could save you hundreds of dollars a year.”

About Consumer

Consumer NZ is an independent, non-profit organisation dedicated to championing and empowering consumers in Aotearoa. Consumer NZ has a reputation for being fair, impartial and providing comprehensive consumer information and advice.