by Miriam White | Nov 28, 2011 | Uncategorized
On Thursday 24 November, the Auckland launch of Nation Dates was held at the Auckland District Law Society in Chancery St. It was a fantastic evening with Jennie Vickers and Wendy both speaking about the book, and we hope that those who attended enjoyed themselves as much as we did.
A big thank you to Jennie who put a huge amount of effort into organizing the event, as well as Marcus Martin and Dan Suciu of the Auckland District Law Society who were wonderful hosts. We were also lucky enough to have wine sponsored by No1Family Estate.
Below is a picture of Wendy speaking at the event. To see a full gallery of images click on the one below.
by Miriam White | Nov 16, 2011 | Uncategorized
www.EmpowerNZ.co.nz Project Launch
Nation Dates informs the research for our latest project, Project Constitutional Review. Chapter 9 of Nation Dates discusses the current constitutional review and thread 2 on pages 144 – 146 tracks constitutional developments throughout the history of our nation.
Today is three years since the Relationship and Confidence and Supply Agreement between the National Party and the Māori Party (16 November 2008) agreed to establish a group to consider constitutional issues, including Māori representation. The EmpowerNZ website is launched today as part of the McGuinness Institute’sProject Constitutional Review. This website aims to create awareness and spark discussion around the current constitutional review so that all New Zealanders, and in particular 18‐ to 25‐year‐olds, can engage with the Constitutional Advisory Panel in an informed and considered manner.
Project Constitutional Review was established in mid‐2011 in response to the government’s announcement in December 2010 of a wide‐ranging review of New Zealand’s constitutional arrangements. The initial idea for the project came out of an event the McGuinness Institute hosted in March 2011, called StrategyNZ: Mapping our Future. Wendy McGuinness, chief executive of the Institute, notes, ‘There was a clear appetite from participants to develop youth forums and find ways in which youth can become part of the solution. Participants clearly believed a national conversation on our constitution is a great place to start exploring our country’s long‐term future.’ McGuinness continues, ‘This is a very important matter for New Zealanders to address; it is the first time in our nation’s history that we have had an opportunity to treat our constitution as a blank canvas.’
‘New Zealand needs to start thinking about this review now in order to achieve tangible outcomes before the Panel reports back to Cabinet in 2013. After the 2011 General Election and Referendum, there will need to be a large drive to get New Zealanders interested and engaged in the constitutional review.’
EmpowerNZ and Project Constitutional Review will be closely following the progress of the review, with the aim of adding support to a debate that is vital for New Zealand’s long‐term future. By providing a place for public engagement in a new media format McGuinness hopes that ‘the project will have particular appeal to young New Zealanders, ensuring they are not only part of the conversation but actively leading it.’
Constitutional change results from a societal groundswell pushing strongly for improvements to existing arrangements. The Institute wants to help facilitate that groundswell by helping New Zealanders become more informed and engaged with the issues, to ensure this rare opportunity to shape our constitution is not missed. The Institute will also be launching an EmpowerNZ Facebook and Twitter presence to coincide with the launch of the website.
For further information on Project Constitutional Review and the McGuinness Institute see the Institute’s website www.mcguinnessinstitute.org
For more information on the McGuinness Institute, contact Wendy McGuinness:
t: +64 4 499 8888
f: +64 4 385 9884
Mobile: 021 781 200
e: enquiries@mcguinnessinstitute.org
by Miriam White | Nov 7, 2011 | Uncategorized
We now have a new ‘feedback’ tab on this website. This is where you can go to give us your thoughts and reflections on Nation Dates and contribute to future editions. In the back of the book you will see there is a space to jot down dates you feel are missing, our feedback tab is where you can let us know what you have come up with. We are also interested in any events you would like to see happen in the future, if we wrote Nation Dates in 50 years how would we like it to look?
To contribute to the conversation click on the feedback tab above.
by Miriam White | Oct 31, 2011 | Uncategorized
Wendy was invited to join Chris Laidlaw on yesterday’s Sunday programme on Radio New Zealand to discuss Nation Dates.
Chris and Wendy had a lively discussion about the significance of New Zealand’s history to our future. Chris also quizzed Wendy about her passion for the constitutional review and the opportunity it represents for New Zealanders to participate in shaping their future. Wendy shared her vision for providing a copy of Nation Dates to every secondary school in the country free of charge with the assistance of a commercial sponsorship partner.
The interview closed with Chris’s wonderful quote from Tawhiao the third Maori King in 1894: “I know lots of missionaries. They ver’ nice men, ver’ good men, make Maori do what they please. When miss’n’ries come first Maori’s have plenty of land everywhere. They say ‘Let us pra ay, let us pra ay.’ We pray and shut our eyes so we see nothing at all. When we open dem again the land had gone!’. To view the full article, click here.
Listen to the full interview.
by Miriam White | Oct 18, 2011 | Uncategorized
Earlier this month Nation Dates was reviewed by Unity Book’s Lily Richards on Auckland’s 95bFM. Lily has a great perspective on the book:
‘This isn’t dry or boring, or it doesn’t make me feel like I’m at school – it makes me feel like this is the kind of book that everyone should have in their library. Something that you can reference, but also something that’s really inspiring……..it’s very, very informative, but for some reason quite pleasing in the same breath.’
Thanks Lily for your positive feedback! We agree and really want to see Nation Dates become a handbook for everyone who has an interest in New Zealand’s past and future – and from our perspective that should be all of us! It’s amazing the things we have learnt while working on this project – it’s all the little details that surprise and excite. Did you know that it wasn’t until 1977 that automatic dual citizenship with Britain was abolished and those born in New Zealand became simply New Zealanders? And were you aware that in 1886, non-Maori born in New Zealand outnumbered those who had immigrated here for the first time? In her review Lily picks out a few dates that really interest her too.
You can listen to the full review here.
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