Keynote Speaker Dame Fiona Kidman

"Dame" Fiona Kidman

Fiona Kidman has written novels, collections of short stories, poetry and non-fiction. She has been the recipient of numerous awards for her work. Her story collection 'The Trouble with Fire' (2011) was shortlisted for the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Prize and the New  Zealand Book Awards. Her most recent book is 'The Infinite Air', a novel based on the life of aviator Jean Batten.

Kidman is a Dame Commander of the New Zealand Order of Merit, and has an OBE. She is also a Chevalier of the French Legion of Honour and a Chevalier de l'Ordre des Artes et des Lettres (Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters). In her early life she worked in libraries.

http://www.fionakidman.com/

Keynote Speaker - Witi Ihimaera

Witi Ihimaera - "Whale Rider"

Witi Ihimaera is the author of The Whale Rider (1987) which was made into an internationally acclaimed film in 2002. Two other books has been made into films, Kawa (from Nights in the Gardens of Spain, 1995) and the Maori-language production of White Lies (from Ask The Posts of the House, 2007); White Lies was New Zealand's nominee for best foreign film in the 2014 Academy Awards. His latest novel is The Parihaka Woman (2012) and his latest short story collection is The Thrill of Falling (2013).

Witi was the first Maori novelist with Tangi (1973), and he is currently working on Māori Boy, the first volume of his memoir. He teaches creative writing at the Manukau Institute of Technology and lives in Auckland

Keynote Speaker - Mai Chen

Mai Chen

Mai Chen is the Managing Partner of Chen Palmer Public and Employment Law Specialists, and Adjunct Professor in Commercial and Public Law at the University of Auckland Business School.

Chen Palmer has won the Best Boutique Law Firm in 2010, and the Best Public Law Firm in the New Zealand Law Awards in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2013, and was a finalist in the Employment Law Awards in 2011. The Firm has offices in Wellington and Auckland and celebrates its 20th Anniversary in 2014.

Mai is also the best-selling author of Public Law Toolbox published by LexisNexis and was the inaugural Chair of New Zealand Global Women. Mai recently founded New Zealand Asian Leaders, and was a finalist in the Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year, 2014. She publishes Transforming Auckland: The creation of Auckland Council in May 2014. Mai previously sat on the Securities Commission and taught at Victoria University of Wellington Law Faculty and Otago University Law Faculty.

Keynote Speaker - Damon Salesa

Damon Salesa

Damon Salesa is Associate Professor of Pacific Studies, at the University of Auckland.  He was educated at both the University of Auckland and Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar, and received his doctorate in 2002.  He trained as an historian, but works across disciplines and into the present, and has published widely on the Pacific, New Zealand, empire, race, migration, politics and colonial policy.  From 2002-2011 he worked at the University of Michigan, leaving as Associate Professor of history and American Culture.  His recent book, Racial Crossings: Race, Intermarriage and the Early Victorian Empire (Oxford, 2011; paperback 2013), won the Ernest Scott Prize in 2012.  He was one of the authors of The New  Tangata o le Moana: New Zealand and the People of the Pacific which was jointly edited and authored with Sean Mallon and Kolokesa Mahina-Tuai (Te Papa Press, 2012). 

Damon will be taking us into Pacific New Zealand, one of the fastest growing NZ-born populations in New Zealand. 

Keynote Speaker - Dr Ingrid Parent

Dr Ingrid Parent

The 2009 winner of the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL) award for Distinguished Service to Research Librarianship, Dr. Parent is recognized nationally and internationally for her outstanding contributions to libraries and to the library profession.

The digital agenda, including the collection of electronic publications and archival records, the provision of new and efficient digital services, and converting analogue information to digital formats, is an enduring interest for Dr. Parent. While with Library and Archives Canada, she led activities to develop national standards and policies for managing digital material, and has made The University of British Columbia Library’s digital plan a top priority.

Over her career, Dr. Parent has been involved with several international information associations including UNESCO, the International Publishers Association, the ISSN International Network, the World Intellectual Property Organization, and the Association of Research Libraries.

She has been actively involved in the governance of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) for the past 14 years. Dr. Parent completed her two year term as president of the federation in August 2013. Within IFLA, Dr. Parent has been a strong proponent of equitable access to information and promoting the diversity of voices in the world of information.

In 2009 Dr. Parent was appointed to The University of British Columbia as University Librarian after holding increasingly senior positions at Library and Archives Canada (LAC), culminating in her role as Assistant Deputy Minister.

In June 2011, Dr. Parent was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Ottawa. 

Keynote Speaker - Wiremu Doherty

Wiremu Doherty

Professor of Education – Deputy Chief Executive Officer. Provost Academic  Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi Iwi – Tūhoe. Academic Qualifications:        2009 PhD (University of Auckland) 1994 B.A (Hons) (University of Waikato) 1992 B Soc Sc (University of Waikato) 1992 Dip Teaching (University of Waikato)

Wiremu comes from a secondary school background, where he was Assistant Principal at Saint Stephen's School until its closure, and prior to moving to Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi was the Principal of Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Hoani Waititi Marae and Executive Director at Manukau Institute of Technology. Wiremu's research is a mixture of his upbringing in a Māori environment in Te Urewera, Ngāputahi, where Māori was the first language of instruction through to the experiences in teaching and managing mainstream secondary schools. His PhD is on the roots of Mātauranga Māori in tribal based knowledge – Mātauranga-a-Iwi where he combines a kaupapa Māori background with experience in imaging future education and its relevance to Māori.

Wiremu is the Chair of Kai Tuhono the Body established by NZQA to ensure Māori content is used appropriately. He served as a board member on the James Henare Research Centre, University of Auckland and was also the Chair of Te Whanau o Waipareira Trust Academic Board. He is a past president of Te Akatea, the national body representing Maori Principals and Deputy Principals, within this capacity has worked with several Education Ministers and Secretary of Education on numerous initiatives.

Keynote Speaker - Rangimarie Hunia

Rangimarie Hunia

Our words could not do justice to this speaker, particularly as she expresses who she is and what she will deliver to the LIANZA Conference audience so eloquently herself. So, we won't even try. Just head to her video, One people, one destiny, many directions, and let her natural talent speak for itself.