Volunteers needed to operate Yusuf Islam's peace train when it arrives in Christchurch
British singer-songwriter Yusuf Islam, better known as Cat Stevens, announced last year he was donating an electric-powered peace train to Christchurch.
He came up with the idea while in Christchurch following the March 2019 mosque attacks, when he travelled across the world to perform his classic hit Peace Train at the memorial service held just days after the attacks. He wanted the train to bring smiles to future generations.
The train, a reference to his 1971 hit of the same name, has four carriages to carry children and families and operates without tracks. It is expected to arrive in New Zealand soon, and will be officially unveiled as part of this year’s commemorations of the attacks.
However, the city council needs to find people to drive it and organise the volunteers.
Council parks, programmes and partnership manager Kate Russell said the council planned to run the train in South Hagley Park on the second Sunday of every month – except for the winter months of June, July and August – from 10am to 4pm.
“We’re looking for a group of willing volunteers to drive the train and to act as conductors for people wanting a ride.”
It also wanted someone to co-ordinate the volunteers, organise the roster and train schedule.
“If you love trains, enjoy being around children and are willing to commit to a minimum of three two-hour shifts a year, we would love to hear from you.”
Expressions of interest can be emailed to kate.russell@ccc.govt.nz
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Some Choice News!
DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.
Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.
For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.
Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?
We hope this brings a smile!
Poll: Canterbury is thriving on paper... but are you seeing evidence of Canterbury's improving economy?
As reported in the Press, Reserve Bank Governor Anna Breman recently gave a shout-out to our region, calling Canterbury a "stand-out" for how we recover from tough times. With tech firms growing and exporters investing, the business side of things is looking bright!
👉 But we know that "business growth" doesn't always mean the weekly shop gets any cheaper. While the city expands, many families feel like they’re just trying to keep their heads above water.
We want to know: With the business buzz of 2026, do you feel like things are finally looking up for your household, or does it still feel like a climb?
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16.7% Yes
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60.4% No
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22.9% In some areas ...
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