Marking a year since the EmpowerNZ workshop
A year ago today 50 participants, supported by 8 facilitators and 10 speakers, gathered at parliament and began drafting a constitution for New Zealand ‘fit for the 21st century’. At the completion of this ambitious exercise, the 50 participants became constitutional ambassadors charged with taking what they had learnt and continuing this important conversation in...
EmpowerNZ Survey submitted to Constitutional Advisory Panel
The window for submitting on the current constitutional review comes to an end this month, so we thought it might be timely to let you know that we are now preparing and co-ordinating submissions both from (A) the Institute and from (B) the EmpowerNZ participants (the 50 young New Zealanders who met at the EmpowerNZ workshop held...
EmpowerNZ group complete their submission!
Last week the Institute had the pleasure of providing twenty EmpowerNZ participants with a space (and a large jar of jelly beans) so that they could work together to draft a submission to the Constitutional Advisory Panel (CAP). Supported by Mihiata Pirini and Marcelo Rodreiguez Ferrere, both facilitators at last year’s EmpowerNZ workshop, the group produced a detailed...
EmpowerNZ participants reconvene in Wellington!
A group of 22 participants from last years EmpowerNZ workshop have arrived at the Institute today to begin work on their group submission on the constitutional review. This afternoon the group will be visiting the Constitution Room at Archives New Zealand and then head to the Wellington Russell McVeagh offices to hear Professor John Burrows...
The World Peace Game
We’ve been thinking a lot about civics education at the Institute this week and it reminded us of this fantastic TED talk. Be inspired as US primary school teacher John Hunter explains how his ‘World Peace Game’ empowered fourth graders so solve all the world’s problems. We are particularly keen for those of you who...
EmpowerNZ featured in the NZ Journal of Public and International Law
The latest volume of the New Zealand Journal of Public and International Law (2020 10 NZJPIL) has a distinctly EmpowerNZ theme, with a copy of the workshop’s draft Constitution featured at the end of the journal. Accompanying the draft Constitution is a description by Dean Knight and Julia Whaipooti of the process undertaken last August...
The McGuinness Institute Discusses Civics Teaching with the Centre for Citizenship Education
Within the many conversations members of the Institute overhear around political, policy and constitutional issues, one commonly voiced sentiment is the frustration of New Zealanders over the lack of learning that takes place in our curriculum around civics and the running of government. On Friday morning McGuinness Institute staff and Wendy McGuinness met with someone...
Constitutional Conversation website is launched!
“It might be a warm korero or a prickly korero, but what we’ve got to do is keep the korero going,” was one of TV Personality Pio Terei’s opening statements during the launch of The Constitutional Conversation website, which will form the major platform for the Constitutional Advisory Panel (CAP) to engage with the public...
Constitutional Advisory Panel at Te Papa
What are your aspirations for Aotearoa New Zealand? How do you want our country to be run in the future? Next week, the Constitutional Advisory Panel will officially launch their engagement website The Constitution Conversation. The public is invited to join the Panel at Te Marae, Te Papa, 11.30am – 2.00pm on Tuesday 26 February....
Judge Joe Williams’ Tough Questions at EmpowerNZ
The speeches and presentations at the EmpowerNZ workshop 28-29 August are now all on YouTube. There were some fantastic presentations at the workshop – we would love you all to watch them and share them with your friends and whanau. The constitutional review is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us to have a national conversation about...
Watch Hon Jim McLay’s keynote address at EmpowerNZ
The Honourable Jim McLay’s keynote address at the EmpowerNZ workshop is now available on our YouTube channel. Hon Jim McLay is the New Zealand Permanent Representative to the United Nations, and a former leader of the National Party. He served as Deputy Prime Minister under Sir Robert Muldoon, and in 2020 was at the epicentre...
A Bit of Excitement for a Friday Night
How about taking five minutes out to listen to the ‘Constitutional Rap’ this Friday- you will never think of a constitution as boring ever again. Big thanks to participants Ihapera Paniora and Pania Newton; they delighted the crowd of more than 200 with their ‘Constitutional Rap’ at Parliament. It was a very entertaining way to kick...
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