For several decades, disputes and conflicts between West Papua and Indonesia have been ongoing. The indigenous West Papuans believe their nation’s sovereignty was illegally taken by Indonesia post colonialism. As tensions persist, many questions remain such as what is currently going on inside West Papua and the actions being taken by domestic and international parties.

4ZZZ's Toni Pankaluic spoke with Benny Wenda, Chairman and President of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua to learn more about the current happenings as well as the political history shaping the situation.

Do you dream of relaxing on a tropical island? Tourist bureaus still trade on images of paradise in the Pacific first created in the 18th century by explorers and adventurers. It's now possible to read the actual Explorer journals written at the time… online on the ‘Expeditions to the Pacific’ website.
4ZZZ's Eliot Rifkin chatted about this ‘digital map website’ with its deep dive links to the Explorer’s actual journals with Dr Claire Brennan, a Senior Lecturer of History from James Cook University (JCU).

As Australia deals with a dual housing and rental crisis, Finland could serve as an inspiration in tackling the issue.

Past policies implemented in the Northern European nation have seen a drastic decline in homelessness as well as effective social housing for its citizens.

4ZZZ's Toni Pankaluic spoke with Dr Liam Davies, Lecturer and Research Fellow in Sustainability and Urban Planning at RMIT University to understand the historical and contemporary differences in each countries' housing policies which could help tackle our housing crisis.

n December 2024, carmakers Nissan and Honda engaged in merger talks which could see them become the third largest car manufacturer in the world, following Toyota and Volkswagen. Mitsubishi could also join their fellow Japanese automakers in the pending merger. Should the merger go ahead, it would be the second to take place in recent years following Peugeot and Fiat-Chrysler becoming Stellantis.

Currently the car industry is undergoing a major transition with the rapid influx of electric vehicles in the marketplace. Not only that, but Chinese carmakers are emerging and challenging longstanding automobile brands in terms of winning over sales.

4ZZZ's Toni Pankaluic spoke with Alborz Fallah, the Founder of CarExpert to analyse where the industry is at, where it could be going int the future as well as the potential Nissan-Honda-Mitsubishi merger.

Sharks conjure deep feelings in people - it may be instinctual or perhaps a byproduct of horror films like ‘Jaws’.

In any event, over-fishing is driving reef sharks toward extinction and globally more than a third of all sharks species are now threatened with extinction. Australia is a bright spot, however what is being considered to ensure these species survive in the world’s ecosystems?

4ZZZ's Eliot Rifkin chats about sharks with Colin Simpfendorfer a Professor of Marine Biology from James Cook University’s College of Science and Engineering.

99% Accurate detection of underground nuclear tests is now possible, now what? - Every so often we hear of some ‘rogue’ countries conducting nuclear tests…
How easy is it to hide atomic testing? How does seismic detection methods filter out earthquakes for example? If you detect a nuclear test, then what?

4ZZZ's Eliot Rifkin chatted about refined techniques in underground nuclear test detection with Dr Mark Hoggard from Australia National University’s Research School of Earth Sciences.

Australia has a long history of producing many successful artists and bands topping charts locally and internationally. New research shows since the year 2000, the Australian music charts have increasingly been dominated by American and British artists, sparking concerns for our local industry.

So why are our local artists falling behind and what could be done to reinvigorate the music industry?

In search of potential answers for these questions 4ZZZ's Toni Pankaluic spoke with Tim Kelly, Program Director at the Australian Institute of Music and PhD Candidate at University of Technology Sydney to learn more.

It’s that time of year again, that prelude to Spring… magpie swooping season. Do you really understand these birds and how to live with them and mitigate swooping?
4ZZZ's Eliot Rifkin chatted about magpies with Gisela Kaplan, Emeritus Professor in animal behaviour from the University of New England, as well as an author of some best selling books.

With storm season upon us, itʻs a good time to review flash flooding safety tips - whether at home or in the car.
Do you know how to protect yourself from hail or how to place sandbags? How do you manage an unexpected flood, what precautions can you take, where do you get sandbags and how do you place and fill them?
4ZZZʻs Eliot Rifkin had a discussion with State Emergency Services (SES) Director Brian Cox about safety precautions as well as year round SES free training.

4ZZZ’s Mic Smith discusses 'The 2025 Great Toad Bust' with Kelsi Taylor, the Invasive Species Manager at Watergum. Mic also chatted with ecologist, author and invasive species expert Tim Low about toads and the broad critical threat of more recent other invasive species.

For several decades, disputes and conflicts between West Papua and Indonesia have been ongoing. The indigenous West Papuans believe their nation’s sovereignty was illegally taken by Indonesia post colonialism. As tensions persist, many questions remain such as what is currently going on inside West Papua and the actions being taken by domestic and international parties.

4ZZZ's Toni Pankaluic spoke with Benny Wenda, Chairman and President of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua to learn more about the current happenings as well as the political history shaping the situation.