While the rest of us wrap presents and scrape down the barbecue, volunteer firefighters know holiday plans could be interrupted by a call deploying them overseas.

Already this year, Whakatāne engineer Jamie Rhodes has been shoulder-tapped three times – twice to the unprecedented wildfires in Canada, and most recently in November to Australia.

Large bushfires in the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia raged in spring, heralding what could be a dangerous summer for the country. El Niño often produces hot, dry conditions across the ditch – a recipe for fire. Already, the Pacific is in a strong El Niño.

With eight international deployments under his belt, Rhodes has been overseas helping out his international peers during pre-booked holidays and birthdays. “Everyone misses something.”

Luckily, his family can relate.

“My wife’s been a firefighter, a volunteer for 31 years, going on 32 years. And both my daughters are in it too. They kinda understand what we’re doing – so it’s not a huge surprise. It’s easier for me to go away than for them to see me go away, probably.”

During his two weeks in Australia, Rhodes led an all-Kiwi strike team on the ground, outside rural towns in Queensland. In the outback, water is in short supply – it may be carried and dropped by planes and helicopters, but the ground-based strike team don’t have endless reserves.

That leaves Rhodes – who has been a volunteer firefighter for 27 years – and his team to do “dry firefighting” at the edge of the blaze.

The team might use shovels or rakes to turn over and smother embers, or chainsaws and axes to remove unburnt vegetation and create a fire break. Other times, they might backburn – setting a controlled fire so when the wildfire reaches that spot there’s no fuel left for it to consume.

Days can be long in the field. Rhodes said his team eats breakfast at 5.30am and are on the road by 6am. “We can be out there until 10pm at night, depending on the day and what’s going on.”

It’s physically tough work, he said, with some days harder than others. “We’re in 44-degree heat. It was pretty hot, so you definitely feel it by the end of the day.”

Within Rhodes’ 22-person team, Christchurch firefighter Emily Sutton oversaw a smaller group of five. She and her crew can feel “pretty buggered” by the end of a hard day’s work, she said.

And while sometimes the team might return to a comfy bed in a motel in a rural town, other times they’re kipping in a pup tent, Sutton said.

“You just go with the flow… As long as I’ve got water and food and something over my head – that’s what kinda mindset you have to go into,” she said. “There’s no point complaining about it because it’s not going to get you very far.”

But there’s no shortage of gratitude from the community and the local firefighters, Sutton said. “All the fire brigades and everything were so welcoming to us, it was amazing. You can walk into a fire station and they just welcome you with open arms.”

Sutton praises the “amazing” food. “We were looked after so well.”

Although they’re only together for 14 days, she said, the team develops a strong bond. “By the end of it, you’ve become a massive family. It’s awesome.”

The firefighters’ physical and psychological strength are robustly evaluated before they leave. But this remains a risky job, she admits. During two of her Australian deployments, fire bombing planes have crashed, killing the crew.

“It affected the guys over there a lot. We were walking into it, just as it had happened, we were heading over. It was terrible,” she said.

Seeing animals that perished in the fires can also be tough, Sutton said. An estimated 3 billion animals died or were displaced during Australia’s 2019/20 Black Summer season.

“We were able to save a few of them, which was really rewarding… Obviously you see the bad stuff,” she added.

“It does hit home a wee bit sometimes… that you’re in a pretty dangerous environment.”

But that’s where the training kicks in, she says. Firefighters are “constantly aware” of the risks around them.

Sutton is happy with the support she receives during her deployment. Her workplace receives a newsletter and regular updates to let them know she’s safe. “When I was in Canada, I lost cellphone service. But they were able to say that we were all good, and what we were up to, send photos back.”

The support team also checks in with firefighters once they get back home, to ensure they’re feeling well.

For Rhodes, the people who stay behind are just as important to acknowledge – the spouses and partners that cover family life and the colleagues at work that take on extra responsibilities.

“That’s a huge part for us, because we don’t have to worry about that stuff. The last thing you need when you’re over there is stuff going on back here.”

For the long haul

United Fire Brigades’ Association chief executive Bill Butzbach said firefighters typically have great experiences during overseas deployments.

While the support is robust while they’re overseas, the country does a poorer job in the years after, Butzbach said.

Ongoing exposure to toxic substances and traumatic events can leave physical and emotional scars. Firefighters are at a higher risk of developing certain types of cancer and mental illnesses, for example. “Our people… get pretty messed up,” Butzbach said.

Fire and Emergency NZ offers help. But the United Fire Brigades’ Association wants these to be treated as authorised conditions – meaning ACC support, such as income compensation, would also kick in.

The ailments should be on the list of work-related diseases, Butzbach said, so that if any firefighter is diagnosed, they would automatically get assistance – rather than having to jump through hoops to prove they were exposed to harm on the job, or needing to tie the illness to a specific event.

In addition, volunteer firefighters – like Rhodes and Sutton, who account for 86% of the firefighting force – should be counted as employees when they develop this type of disease, Butzbach argued: “because of the special nature of their work”.

New Zealanders depend on the volunteer stations. “They’re critical… These people are on-call 24 hours a day, every day of the year.”

As humanity’s greenhouse gases create hotter, drier weather – which sucks moisture out of vegetation, essentially creating kindling – wildfires are on the rise in many areas.

“There’s no doubt the world is changing… It’s happening in a hurry – and we do have some risk here.”

For that reason, the country should be investing in proper care of paid and volunteer firefighters, Butzbach said.

“If it’s not good for them, they’re not going to do it… And then we’ll be in a bit of trouble.”

Both Rhodes and Sutton think international deployments provide invaluable experience.

Requests for crews are coming through more regularly – but Rhodes attributes this to the skills that Kiwi firefighters have now built up. “There are a lot of experienced people in New Zealand now… They see what we can do.”

Sutton agreed. “Getting those international deployments, especially when we get new people on board, is bringing that wealth of experience back to each region. It’s a pretty unreal experience.”

Rhodes said Aussies, Canadians and Americans firefighters will return the favour. “They’ll do the same thing for us at some stage.”

You’re living through the hottest year (yet)

Even with weeks to go, scientists at the Copernicus Climate Change Service declared 2023 to be the hottest year on record. Across the globe, this June was the hottest-ever – a pattern that continued in July, August, September, October and November, the agency said.

But that record is likely to quickly be surpassed, as the world fails to wean itself off fossil fuels. The carbon footprints of the US and European nations are falling, but are more than offset by gains elsewhere, according to dozens of researchers. Emissions from coal, oil and gas will reach another record high this year, the team concluded – up an estimated 1.1% from last year.

UN summit produces positive steps, but insufficient action

For the first time, 197 countries have agreed that the world must transition away from planet-heating fossil fuels. A joint agreement, finalised at the COP28 summit’s closing day, “calls on” countries to make the transition, contribute to a global tripling of renewable energy, phase down “unabated” coal, substantially reduce methane emissions and rapidly deploy zero-carbon vehicles – though countries can take national circumstances into account.

Eco Choice Aotearoa’s Laura Gemmell said the development was positive, but warned the agreement has “so much wiggle room”.

In a major milestone, the world also agreed on a general framework for a “loss and damage” fund during the two-week talks in Dubai. Countries that have contributed the most to global warming can offer money to affected communities.

In addition, 50 oil giants pledged to curb the methane leaked from their pipes and wells. Significantly, Turkmenistan joined a global pledge to cut methane emissions 30% by 2030 – something US diplomats have spent several years encouraging the country to do. Oil and gas wells in the Central Asian nation leak millions of tonnes of the highly potent greenhouse gas, according to The Guardian, producing more global heating than the whole of the UK.

Air New Zealand’s first electric plane to arrive in 2026

Air NZ’s very first electric flight, aboard an Alia jet, will take off in three years, the airline announced. But your parcels will likely experience carbon-free flight before you.

The first craft, built by US firm Beta Technologies, will fly cargo rather than passengers – in a partnership with NZ Post.

At just 12m long, the 480km-range plane is about half the size of a de Havilland turboprop. But Air NZ’s Greg Foran says it will “pave the way” for the company to switch to a fossil-free shorter-haul fleet around 2030, with the airline, airports and regulators all needing to prepare.

At the announcement, Beta chief executive Kyle Clark touted the benefits of electric flight: a more powerful take-off, quieter cruising, and overall a “magical flying experience”.

But Air NZ also confirmed it is not considering downsizing business class – with premier customers responsible for much higher emissions than economy, this is an effective carbon-cutting step the airline could take today.

Green shooters

In fitting with the name, this section will give props to Little Gem Seeds, a company helping families to grow their own food.

Jack Johnson and Anastasiya Duyko run the subscription service, delivering monthly packages of flower and vegetable seeds across Aotearoa. Each pack is tailored to the season and the region, and features instructions, activity cards for children and recipes for the eventual produce by chef Jack.

The service uses compostable materials, and funds tree-planting. Leftover packs are donated to schools and other programs.

Passionate about plant-based food – which can help to lower emissions – the pair want to provide a greener and cheaper way for Kiwis to enjoy veggies. They’ve also developed a fairly unique Christmas gift idea for that sustainably minded family that’s hard to buy for.