Dr Catherine Leonard, co-founder of Māori-owned research firm Ihi Research, has spent 13 years studying the hardest problems in New Zealand society — youth crime, drug harm, family violence, mental health, and poverty.
In this episode she cuts through the noise: what does the evidence actually say about boot camps, ram raids, and drug checking?
Why do simple solutions to complex problems almost always fail? And what can New Zealand learn from Scotland's approach to youth incarceration?
A conversation full of data, empathy, and a few uncomfortable truths.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction — what is Ihi Research and where the name comes from
01:30 Doing research with people, not to people — Catherine's founding philosophy
03:00 The myth of \"just work harder\" — why lifting yourself out of poverty is harder than it looks
05:30 Meritocracy and the 50-metre head start — how privilege shapes opportunity
08:00 How the government invests in society — and how Ihi measures whether it's working
09:30 Boot camps: what the evidence actually says (spoiler: don't do it)
12:00 What does work — community-based youth mental health in Lower Hutt
15:00 Why empathy isn't just kindness — it's how we build a safer society
17:30 150 unintentional drug deaths a year in New Zealand — and why we don't talk about it
20:00 Drug checking at Electric Ave — how it works and why police support it
23:30 New Zealand first in the world — drug checking legislation that actually saves lives
25:30 Are we measuring the right things? Wellbeing economics vs social investment
27:00 Ram raids and moral panic — youth crime was actually decreasing
29:00 Scotland's bold move: zero under-18s incarcerated — and what NZ could learn
31:00 Why Catherine is starting her own podcast — and the wrap
Links
Ihi Research - https://www.ihi.co.nz
Instagram - @ihiresearch
Red Nine Studios - https://www.redninestudios.com
Recorded at - @redninestudios
Podcast - @recordedatrednine
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