Here in Aotearoa New Zealand we’d like to think that we live in a classless society. That anyone can “make it” and that opportunities are equal.

But today's guest, author Max Rashbrooke, has made a career out of unpacking uncomfortable myths such as this. He shows that there are indeed different classes in Aotearoa New Zealand, and that this affects how citizens engage with government.

During our discussion, Max makes the case for a deeper form of democracy and calls for Aotearoa New Zealand to join the wave of deliberative democracy that is spreading across the globe.

How exciting is that?

If you are ready to have your views of our society challenged a bit, this eye-opening episode is for you.

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Recently, I went back and looked at our podcast stats to see what episodes are most popular. Between the top two episodes, there's a pretty clear theme  - you are hungry to learn more about Māori ways of being and engaging.

Our guest, Kataraina Davis, comes highly recommended. She is involved with a programme called Te Kaa that helps people to understand Māori values, worldviews and practices.

There can be a lot of anxiety and guilt that comes up for non-Māori when thinking about how to work effectively with Māori.

If this is true for you, it might be a signal that there's some more learning for you to do. This episode is the perfect place to start.

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In theory, collaborative partnerships should move mountains. You share information. Coordinate your activities. Unlock new resources. Share power. You see the whole system and respond - together.

But often these partnerships start with a roar… only to peter out as enthusiasm drops and true collaboration falls through the cracks.

Today’s guest, Henry Pavey, has made a career out of turning around average partnership groups into ones that have a real impact. During our conversation, I realised that the challenges Henry faces in the UK mirror the challenges with these kinds of partnerships here in New Zealand.

Fortunately, Henry has got excellent suggestions for turning around an average partnership. These are based on decades of experiences working inside partnerships and most recently as a strategic partnerships consultant.

My hope for today's episode is that it will inspire you to be the brave person that stands up in your partnership group and says, ‘I think we need a refresh’.

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15 March 2019 was a dark day in Aotearoa New Zealand, with a terrorist attack on mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.

Today's show is with Chris Mene, a community engagement practitioner with deep experience engaging communities following trauma.  He played a big role for over 10 years in Christchurch following the earthquakes. His police background has been invaluable in that battleground context.

We talk through the story of Chris's involvement in the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the terrorist attack on Christchurch masjidain.  Chris helped to establish and facilitate the Muslim Community Reference Group and shares his lessons from that process.

As facilitators we can learn a lot from somebody like Chris who has engaged in a context that is heavy with grief.

Everybody brings some level of trauma with them into every group situation. When you can be aware of that reality, and careful about how you show up as a facilitator, you can create space for understanding and healing.

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FULL VERSION AVAILABLE HERE 

Our latest episode, number 29, is with Dr. Toby Lowe on Human Learning Systems - and the show is almost an hour long! So if you're a little bit strapped for time, then we have cut up this shorter episode for you.

What I wanted to do with Toby was explore what it might mean to embrace human learning systems here in Aotearoa New Zealand.

So if you've got a commute or a moment to yourself and you just want to get to the core of what Toby was talking about, then this summary is for you.

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BONUS SUMMARY VERSION AVAILABLE HERE 

Today's guest is Dr. Toby Lowe, who is going to give you a choice about what kind of public service world you want to believe in? He is the lead voice behind what is fast becoming a global movement called The Human Learning Systems Movement.

And it's all about making a different choice when working in public service. It’s about recognising the full person in front of you. It is based on learning, rather than control. Looking at the underlying causes behind the symptoms that you might be seeing, and really trying to get an understanding of the messiness of what's going on, rather than trying to make things linear.

What I wanted to do with Toby was explore what it might mean to embrace human learning systems here in Aotearoa New Zealand.

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Deliberative democracy is a topic that has come up more than once on the Beyond Consultation podcast.

To look at how deliberative democracy might be applied here in New Zealand,  we have not one, but two people here to share their experience working on the Complex Conversations Project that is funded by the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment.

Dr. Tatjana Buklijas works at the university of Auckland, and Dr. Jenny Wigley works at Watercare.  They recently teamed up to research the impact of deliberative democracy through a real-life project with Watercare looking at the future of Auckland’s water supply.

But what is deliberative democracy? Tatjana explains the three aspects:

Deliberative democracy has a rich overseas tradition. It’s allowed countries to make progress on some sticky issues.

How might we build on this in Aotearoa New Zealand while also recognising our own rich history of kōrero in te ao Māori?

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I first met Megan when I moved to Nelson five or six years ago. We caught up for a cup of coffee and I was a little bit in awe of some of the stuff she was talking about.

She's one of the core members of Inspiring Communities and has been with the organisation since it started 15 years ago.

In this episode we talk about the changes she’s seen in community-led development during this time.

We also explore Inspiring Communities’ journey as an organization that's made up of European descended New Zealanders who are authentically asking themselves, ‘How can we be of Aotearoa New Zealand?’

This episode is packed with all sorts of mind-altering gold nuggets.

If you're looking for insight into how to navigate the messiness of systems change or involved in community-led development, you are going to love this conversation.

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Today’s topic was inspired by two things that happened on the morning of recording this episode.

First, our original guest opened up about not being up to the recording session. Life was just too much at that moment.

Second, I was reading this fantastic report called Wellbeing Inspires Well-doing. The report looks at how changemakers’ inner wellbeing influences their work.

These two small things made me realise how important it is to look after your own wellbeing, especially if you are hoping to serve others. In short, if the oxygen mask pops down, make sure you put your own one on before you start helping other people.

It can be really easy to put other people's needs ahead of our own. Even more so now that we find ourselves in lockdown, possibly alongside family and loved ones.

So, if that sounds like something you can relate to, today's episode is for you.

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I first met today’s guest when we were fellow actors in our local drama production, but she is much more than a former theater colleague.

Deputy Mayor of Nelson City Council, Judene Edgar, really epitomizes what it means to be committed, to going beyond consultation.

Her CV is really lengthy (which we discuss), but safe to say that Judene has perspective from so many different angles!

In this episode we look ahead to the future of local governments because Judene is in the thick of some of the reforms that are coming down the pipeline being potentially taken from councils and transferred to regional organizations .

Within this context, how can you enable local power and local decision making when services are being centralized to improve efficiency through scale?

How do you do engagement and consultation? How do you choose the right media? How do you set expectations realistically? We talk about how to keep yourself healthy and well, when you're driven by service and a need to say yes.

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