Helen has a passion for strategies that create regenerative cities. She heads the Strategy and Policy team for Christchurch City in New Zealand.  You will hear through her conversation her love for leading and working in teams that create people centred cities.  Her mentors encouraged her to grow and expand her wisdom beyond what she had formally studied.  This led her on a journey through analytical science, research, working as a commissioner, learning mediation skills and strategic formulation.  Helen has a good way with crafting words and making complex subjects understandable.  I love her phrase “Good strategy and policy in a city is like plumbing and electrical wires in a house.  You don’t know they are there until they go wrong.” So true.  Christchurch found that out the hard way.  The earthquakes of 2011 and 2012 brought poor strategy and policy to the surface (as well as society’s love for driving down minimum standards until things collapse or break).  This left the city broken, in untold social trauma and a $60 billion bill.  A stark reminder to other cities to ensure their strategies and design codes reflect a strong regenerative backbone. Gone are the days of pushing down city systems to extinction.  Helen talks warmly of her mentors and this encourages us to find mentors that help us live a fulfilled journey in serving our fellow neighbours, and that includes the planet.

Enjoy.

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Our annual theme is "Together, we create regenerative cities" 

I am your host David Boothway, and thanks for listening