Introduction

How do you have a national conversation? This was a question I found myself grappling with last year when I was part of an education project in New Zealand. We were trying to ignite an engaging and meaningful dialogue to lay the foundation for a better and more inclusive education system for future generations of New Zealanders. I was now standing in Christchurch’s cavernous Horncastle Arena along with 750 people, cloaked in darkness apart from six white Pouwhenua — carved wooden posts used by Māori, the indigenous peoples of New Zealand — which hung from the ceiling above the crowd…