Globalistas @ NZ International Education Conference
Three of our LatAm CAPE Globalistas featured recently at the New Zealand International Education (NZIEC) Conference in Auckland.
Globalistas is our term for people who successfully develop links with Latin America to do business and look to continue updating their knowledge and skills to seek success in New Zealand and offshore.
Tōmairangi McRae (University of Waikato), Fateh Singh (University of Auckland) and Rahiri Makuini Edwards-Hammond (University of Auckland) presented at the NZIEC conference which theme was ‘Navigating Our Changing World'.
Tōmairangi travelled to Santiago & Valparaíso, Chile in November 2018 on the Strengthening Māori Business Capability programme (Te Hononga-ā-Kiwa) delivered in collaboration with the University of Waikato, Fateh to São Paulo in December 2019 on the LatAm Biz: Entrepreneurship in Brazil Programme and Rahiri to Medellín on the LatAm Biz: Entrepreneurship in Colombia programme.
All three presenters shone in delivering their presentations, speaking about the importance of global competence, what that means in practical terms and the importance of learning about doing business in Latin America in-country and in-region (i.e. Latin America).
Tōmairangi and Rahiri spoke of how motivated they are to inspire members of their own whānau, iwi and peers to step up to new challenges in indigenous, mainstream business and in the wider community. Being a speaker of good Spanish meant that Tōmairangi could access additional learning opportunities in Chile – including the chance to communicate from a Māori woman’s perspective, about being indigenous and what that means in a hyper-diverse country like New Zealand and offshore.
Fateh delighted the audience with his narrative about his early years on a farm in India and then growing up as a Kiwi – to then be catapulted into a global business setting in São Paulo via the Latin Amercia CAPE Programme delivered in collaboration with Young Enterprise. He described this as life-changing and the ultimate way to motivate him in his ongoing studies and future career.
Visiting Leitissimo, a highly successful New Zealand dairy products company in Brazil, among other companies in São Paulo, showed Fateh the core of how to do business in Brazil. Applying that learning in collaboration with Brazilian peers as part of a business challenge and experiencing the mutual learning opportunities was thrilling for Fateh.
Our Globalista rangatahi (young people) are clearly showing leadership in ‘being the change’ - shifting New Zealand’s focus to also include Latin America and to step up our engagement with a wide range of nations, peoples and economies.
Shane Ball, Vice-President, Latin America NZ Business Council announced at the end of the session a new initiative called the Latin America Young Professionals Network, that will provide new opportunities for people like our Globalistas and other students who have great skills and experience in Latin America.
Watch this space for future updates!
