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Seven years ago, New Zealand's confidence as a nation soared as Team New Zealand took the America's Cup for the first time. The win did more than lift our spirits. It turned world attention to our ability to turn great ideas into world-beating yachts. It helped create a booming boat building industry as we capitalised on our world-class yacht design and sailing research. It also spawned innovative technologies like Virtual Spectator, revolutionising live sports broadcasting.
Thirty years ago, a lidded jam jar with tubes attached was brought in as a challenge to a group of engineers. The question? How to humidify the oxygen given to patients needing breathing assistance. Today, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare is a recognized world leader in heated humidification. It has grown five-fold in 10 years, creating 600 new jobs and selling its respiratory technologies to 90 countries around the world.
What made these global successes possible? People with the skills and courage as leaders to recognise an opportunity and inspire others to make that opportunity real and achieve world-class performance.
What if New Zealand's existing and emerging leaders could become part of a national network? What if there was a way to bring their knowledge, experience and a fresh set of perspectives to bear on questions of national importance and opportunities for our nation?
The Leadership Forum, to be held in Auckland from February 19-21, will provide one such opportunity. It will build on the momentum established by last year's Catching the Knowledge Wave Conference, which has had a major impact on our collective sense of New Zealand's potential. It raised national awareness of the need for economic performance to improve if New Zealand is to return to the top half of the OECD. It generated a new willingness amongst private and corporate citizens to take responsibility for making that happen.
"We are building on that momentum with a Leadership Forum that can act as a catalyst for achieving a prosperous, cohesive society," says the executive director of the Knowledge Wave Trust, Bridget Wickham. "Many New Zealanders are willing and active at a local level, or in their own spheres of interest. The Forum will be a way for such people to broaden and deepen their understanding of national issues, develop stronger networks with others around the country, and be better able to engage on national initiatives."
A major focus of the Forum is to identify 100 younger New Zealanders to participate with 50 chosen by the Knowledge Wave Trust and a further 50 through community consultation. Those selected will take part in a pre-Forum emerging leaders programme.
"Inevitably, not all those nominated will be able to attend the Leadership Forum," said Ms Wickham. "However, the search for emerging leaders will, in itself, be a celebration and acknowledgement of the importance of talented leadership to the strength of our communities."
The emerging leaders, selected for the Forum, will join some 350 community, government and business leaders, to focus on New Zealand's future under the three major themes of growth, knowledge and community. These themes will cover the need for a dynamic, growing economy linked strongly to the rest of the world. They will address the importance of excellence in education and innovation in achieving that dynamism, while seeking new ideas on creating safe, secure communities and on fostering the roles and skills of leaders. In addressing these medium-term issues, delegates will take into account such factors as our shifting national identity and cultural mix and our widespread desire for environmental sustainability.
International and national speakers will provide global and local perspectives on key issues. Their role will be to spark action and collaboration across all sectors in the interests of improving New Zealand's economic and social performance.
There are strong reasons for broadening and deepening our national networks. International research consistently demonstrates that networks of civic engagement - that is, how involved people become in their communities - are key to the quality of public life and the performance of social institutions.
One international authority on what holds modern societies together, Professor Robert Putnam from Harvard's Center for International Affairs, will be a keynote speaker at the Forum. Professor Putnam's work shows that in a range of crucial areas such as education, urban poverty, unemployment, public health and the control of crime and drug abuse, the most successful outcomes occur in civically engaged communities.
He found that networks of civic engagement also had a powerful influence in many other areas, such as the well-being of minority groups and the performance of governments. Networks were important contributors to better, more cohesive societies.
Ms Wickham said The Catching the Knowledge Wave Conference identified the scope and scale of the challenges facing New Zealand.
"It inspired the creation of a new network of New Zealanders committed to this country's social and economic success.
"Most importantly, it demonstrated our collective willingness to act. The Leadership Forum is a practical call to expand and strengthen that network to help generate the positive, collective action New Zealand needs to achieve our economic and social goals."
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