KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Alex Hotere-Barnes

Creating relationships that are culturally and socially just.

Alex is a Pākehā graduate of the Kaupapa Māori educational movement. He works closely with teachers, school leaders and community members to help create relationships that are culturally and socially just.

As an educator and researcher with affiliations to Mātaatua, Tainui and Te Tai Tokerau areas, he is fascinated by what supports and gets in the way of mutually advantageous relationships between Tāngata whenua and Non-Māori.

He is presently a full-time PhD student and independent consultant on a range of educational and community development initiatives. Alex is interested in bilingual schooling, philosophy, hip hop, tikanga Māori revitalisation, meditation, being healthy, and having a laugh!

Brianne West

Homegrown social enterprise entrepreneur.

Brianne West is a New Zealand eco-beauty entrepreneur and founder of Ethique, which claims to be the world’s most sustainable beauty brand. Brianne – a qualified biologist – established Ethique in 2012 while completing her second year of a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand.

Ethique was founded from Brianne’s passion for environmental conservation, knowledge of the cosmetic chemistry, and a desire to create a business that went beyond profit. As the world’s first zero-plastic beauty brand, Ethique manufactures and sells solid beauty bars in compostable packaging. As of September 2020, Ethique has prevented more than 9 million bottles heading to landfill and the company aims to save 50 million plastic bottles by 2025.

Kaila Colbin

Technology, humanity, courage!

Kaila Colbin is co-founder of Boma Global and CEO of Boma New Zealand.She spearheaded the hugely successful SingularityU New Zealand and Australia Summits, introducing more than 2,500 people to exponential technologies and their impact on humanity. She trained with Brené Brown and is a Certified Dare To Lead™ Facilitator. She is also a co-founder and trustee of the non-profit Ministry of Awesome and a Director of CORE Education.Her purpose in life is to be an uplifting presence.

Welby Ings

Designer, director & disobedient thinker.

Professor Ings is a disobedient thinker. An internationally renowned speaker and educational reformer, he sees productive disobedience as behaviour that pushes our thinking and action into new and unconsidered realms. Specifically, he questions our anxious micromanaging of thought and our preoccupation with tick box assessment. In 2017, his best-selling book Disobedient Teaching became influential in the reconceptualisation of New Zealand education.

Although Professor Ings is an award-winning author, he is also a designer and director. His interest in film as a story-telling medium has seen his three short films Boy, Munted and Sparrow selected for numerous international film festivals including Cannes. Boy was shortlisted for the 2006 Academy Awards.

MC

Jehan Casinader

Journalist, author and mental health advocate

He was named “Broadcast Reporter of the Year” at the Voyager Media Awards in 2020, and “Reporter of the Year” at the New Zealand Television Awards in 2018.

In the aftermath of natural disasters, terror attacks, sporting triumphs and everything in between, Jehan has helped hundreds of Kiwis to share their vulnerable and deeply personal stories with the rest of the country.

He is the author of This Is Not How It Ends: How rewriting your story can save your life (HarperCollins).

Dinner SPEAKER

The Gala Dinner for the Conference will be held on the evening of August 10th following the second day of the conference.

Liam Malone

Part Biology, part Technology.

The Gold medallist blade-running Paralympian put aside his successful athletic career to follow his passion for technology and innovation which led him to work with internationally renowned artificial intelligence (AI) firm Soul Machines, known for their cutting edge, world leading AI technology.Currently Liam is pursuing his love for media and comedy, presenting inspirational keynotes, and MCing events around the globe.

Liam is widely known as the world number one blade runner – hitting the headlines when after less than three short years in the sport he broke the previous Paralympic records held by Oscar Pistorius. His story of hitting rock bottom while at university to turning it all around and receiving two golds and a silver medal at the 2016 Paralympic Games is nothing short of incredible. His times on the track make him New Zealand’s second fastest 400m sprinter ever – legs or not!

invited SPEAKERS

Lesley Hoskin

Chief Executive, Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand

As Chief Executive at the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand, Ms Hoskin is responsible for providing strong leadership, influence and the drive to lift the status of the teaching profession.

Ms Hoskin’s career began in a large IT company before leaving to run an e-learning and change management business for 15 years while raising her family. In the ten years before coming to the Teaching Council, Ms Hoskin held senior roles within the education sector: leading policy conversations and large implementation teams with a focus to lift student achievement as Associate Deputy Secretary Student Achievement at the Ministry of Education, and leading the teacher payroll recovery project as Associate Deputy Secretary Novopay. Ms Hoskin combines her strategic thinking ability with her passion for bringing solutions that deliver.

Ms Hoskin has a Diploma in Te Reo Māori, a Masters in Public Sector Management, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Management & Leadership from Oxford University.