The Leadership Academy on Stewart Island was a roaring success!  The 7 inspirational speakers ‘fired’ up the locals to dream and believe in the power of ‘doing’. 

Some of what we heard included: –

  • Penny Simmonds Chief Executive of the Southern Institute of Technology reminded us to never be frightened to dream big (she told us how the 0 fees idea was written on the back of a napkin on Stewart Island!) but to always take others with you! She also challenged us to not forget the power of collaboration and to have ‘Yes, and’ and ‘Yes, but’ conversations – to help us think outside the square.
  • Dean Addie, Chief Executive of EIS showed us the infamous ‘lone’ dancer video – and we learnt that all it take is one person to start a movement and that we need to make it easy to be followed and nurture our followers.   Dean shared with us the two books he reads every year – – ‘Oh, the Places you’ll go’ by Dr Seuss and ‘How to win friends and influence people’ by Dale Carnegie.  He also introduced us to the 5 P’s to success – people, passion, principles, progress, process.
  • Clare Hadley Chief Executive Invercargill City Council told us about the PRES acronym.  My point is, the reason is, my example is, in summary.  Claire also encouraged us to acknowledge the contribution of those that have gone before and finding room for what we want now in a changing world and that we need to work to find what’s in the centre so that it’s comfortable for all.  She also encouraged us to be clear about what we want and what you need from others.
  • The wonderful story of South Alive inspired us all to believe in community-led action!  Robyn Hickman, Chairperson of South Alive reminded us not to underestimate small wins and to take the time to work out the format of your group.  She encouraged us to think about getting a brand – something catchy!  She also encouraged us to be ‘strategic’ in a clever way so that we’re successful.  And that by focussing on the assets in the community we will change mindsets.
  • Jason Tibble, Regional Commissioner, Ministry of Social Development ‘wowed’ us with stories of focus, passion and getting s**t done – he shared lots of tools, resources and books that have fuelled his leadership journey from beer (working for Speights!)  to care.  He wasn’t afraid to take the hard news and learn from it – a great lesson! 
  • And the Academy participants learnt from Company Director Errol Millar the difference between governance and management and what some of the essentials of both are!  Most importantly that a little bit of structure can get things working well.  
  • Aimee Kaio, Programme Manager, Tribal Economies, Tokona te Ao of Te Rūnanga of Ngai Tahu talked to us about future focused planning frameworks and steps, challenges, reality checks and living breathing examples from the Bluff community.  She gave us advice about building collaborative higher-level support and getting really good about telling your story, over and over again.  She reminded us that these things take time and it is time well spent – getting the foundation right helps to build a strong whare. 

During the 7 weeks of the Academy every week we took some time to think about how we might progress future-focused opportunities for Stewart Island/Rakiura.

This group of passionate locals wanted to pick up the challenge and run with it!

Since November they’ve done all of this!!

  • Chosen a name – Future Rakiura
  • Developed a vision – ensuring a bright, sustainable future
  • And their purpose – to connect and support the Rakiura community to navigate towards our sustainable future
  • Identified their values
    • Kaitiakitanga – guardianship and protection
    • Manaakitanga – leading with moral purpose
    • Humility, Resilience, Self-determination, Integrity
    • Honesty, openness, transparency, inclusiveness
  • Chosen 5 Project areas (from the 2018 Consultation report)
    • Development – Working together for managed growth and a sustainable future
    • Community – Strengthening community connectedness, cohesion and communication
    • Environment – Preserving our pristine environment for future generations
    • Governance – Continuing to develop Future Rakiura as an effective organisation
    • Capability – Growing and building future-focused community leadership and capability on Stewart Island Rakiura
  • Elected 2 people to co-lead the group
  • Met with key stakeholders on and off the Island

The power of bringing people together and facilitating a planning process is very powerful and it’s so exciting to watch this project come to life!

It’s all about Connecting People!

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