2023 IBSC Annual Conference
Westlake Boys High School
Auckland, New Zealand
July 5-8
Speakers
Ian Taylor
Opening Plenary Session
This Thing Called STEM? It’s in Your DNA!
Wednesday, July 5, 3:30 PM
Profoundly inspiring, deeply thought-provoking, and refreshingly authentic, Sir Ian Taylor CNZM is the founder and managing director of Animation Research Limited. This humble, accomplished, and multi-awarded innovator challenges the status quo of our societies and addresses important social issues relating to our educational system and its impact on our people. His switched-on, creative, solutions-focused, “Don’t see why not!” thinking will stay with you forever.
A prominent businessman from Dunedin, New Zealand, Taylor was born in Kaeo to a Pākehā father and Māori mother. He grew up in Raupunga and went to a Catholic boarding school in Masterton. He and his wife, Liz, have two children. He has an LLB degree from the University of Otago.
A former television presenter, Taylor founded Taylormade Media in 1989 as a television production company. The following year he established Animation Research Limited, which quickly became one of the top computer animation companies in New Zealand and known internationally for its work, particularly in television advertising and sports graphics.
Taylor was inducted into the New Zealand Technology Hall of Fame in 2009 and was named North & South Magazine’s 2010 New Zealander of the Year. The New Zealand Computer Society awarded him an Honorary Fellowship in 2010, the top honor of the ICT sector in New Zealand. Taylor was made a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2012 New Year Honors for services to television and business.
Just as 2020 was shaping up to be the biggest and most successful year in the 30-year history of his company, the pandemic disrupted everything. Hear Taylor describe a two-year journey where his team never used the word “challenge” in the same sentence as the word “COVID.” Instead, they only looked at the opportunities it presented. As it turned out, the opportunities were game changing.
William Pike
Surviving by Dreaming Beyond Limits
Thursday, July 6, 8:30 AM
Westlake Boys High School Old Boy William Pike is on one hell of a journey. From losing his leg in a volcanic eruption, to starting a nationwide youth development program, to mountaineering in Antarctica. This inspirational Kiwi has an unfair advantage when it comes to talking about the need to step outside your comfort zone to overcome challenge, change your life, and achieve extraordinary things.
It’s easy to see Pike’s infectious enthusiasm for adventure, life, and fun. The title of his popular autobiography nicely sums up his character and outlook on life: Every Day’s a Good Day. As a young, passionate explorer, Pike has spent countless days and nights off the beaten track in New Zealand’s backcountry and in far off places such as Antarctica and deep in the South Pacific Ocean.
Prepare to feel motivated, shocked, and inspired as he recounts his captivating tale of survival on Mount Ruapehu, where doctors described his survival as a miracle. Engaging, real, and down to earth, Pike weaves relatable messages into his stories that challenge us to step outside our own comfort zones to achieve our goals and experience the extraordinary.
As well as motivating adults, he inspired the William Pike Challenge, a youth development program with a vision to prepare young people for bright futures. Since 2013, more than 30,000 young people have participated in the program.
Over the years Pike has received numerous awards for leadership, including the 2019 University of Auckland Young Distinguished Alumni Award, 2017 Blake Leader Award, and 2014 Kiwibank Local Hero medal. In 2015, he was a finalist for Young New Zealander of the Year.
Mina Pomare-Peita
For Now, I Will Talk for My Brothers
Thursday, July 6, 2:30 PM
Hear Mina Pomare-Peita’s discuss the power Māori women have and continue to contribute to influence and shape the futures of Māori boys in hapu (subtribe) and iwi (tribe) contexts.
Born and raised in Te Rarawa rohe, beneath Panguru, Te Reinga, and Tauwhare maunga in a farming whānau, Mina Pomare-Peita learned the importance of working hard for the betterment of her kainga and gained an unwavering sense of identity from her people. Their teachings shaped not only her career but also her dedicated pursuit of addressing the persistent power imbalance between Māori and the systems designed around them, getting Māori land back, and growing more leaders to take the baton long after she is gone.
Pomare-Peita earned her master’s in Māori boys’ education and started her Ph.D. researching the extent of Pakeha teachers and how they have influenced and contributed to educational outcomes for Māori. She has been a leader tumuaki for 20 years and an educator for many more.
Pomare-Peita received the 2021 Prime Minister’s Excellence Award – Excellence in Engaging (Te Kura Taumata o Panguru), along with several awards from the Northland Regional Council. She is founder and leadership member of Noho Taiao, a unique, marae-based initiative that uses cultural identity linked to science to inspire and empower young Māori.
Known for her astute mind and forthright attitude, Pomare-Peita also volunteers her time to kaupapa Māori that range from climate change initiatives within our taiao, Te Reo Māori wanānga to organizing ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) services for Panguru and surrounding communities. She is a hāpori leader and continues to do what is right for her iwi, her people. Pomare-Peita instills in her staff and students excellent teaching practices and learning guidelines, he ngākaunui nōnā ki te ao Māori me te ao mātauranga, haramai!
Sir Graham Henry
The Culture of Leadership
Friday, July 7, 8:30 AM
One of New Zealand's most in-demand speakers, Sir Graham Henry coached the All Blacks to glory in the 2011 Rugby World Cup and went on to win Coach of the Year at the International Rugby Board awards—receiving the award for a record fifth time. He finished his All Blacks career as one of the most successful rugby coaches of all time, coaching the All Blacks to 88 wins in 103 tests resulting in an 85.4% winning record. In addition to winning the 2011 Rugby World Cup, the All Blacks have held the Bledisloe Cup every year since 2003, won the Investec Tri Nations five times, and achieved three grand slams against the Northern Hemisphere Home Unions. In 2019, Graham was inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame.
Graham also led the hugely successful Auckland team, which won four consecutive National Provincial Championship titles (1993-96), and the Auckland Blues Super 12 team, the competition winner in 1996 and 1997 and runner-up in 1998. He made his international coaching debut in 1998 with Wales, where he stayed for four years. His major achievements in that role included wins over England and South Africa. In 2001, he became the first non-British or Irishman to coach the Lions on their tour of Australia.
On his return to New Zealand, Graham joined Auckland as defensive coordinator and technical analyst. His immediate impact lifted Auckland to the 2002 National Provincial Championship, a feat that resulted in the Blues—starved of success since Graham left for Wales—quickly tying him up for the 2003 Super 12, which the Blues went on to win.
For much of his life, rugby coaching ranked secondary to Graham's school teaching career. His time at Auckland Grammar School (New Zealand), where he nurtured players like Grant Fox, was followed by the headmaster's job at Kelston Boys’ High School (New Zealand) from 1987-96. Graham himself played Senior Rugby and Cricket in Christchurch, Dunedin, and Auckland, and First Class Cricket for Canterbury and Otago.
Graham currently works with leading New Zealand companies such as Downer, Farmlands, Reckitt & Benckiser, and the Giltrap Spencer Group focusing on team building, culture, and leadership development and regularly speaks internationally.
A shareholder in the successful coaching website The Rugby Site, Graham is often featured on podcasts with coaching tips. He sits on the board of The Plunket and Hillary Foundations and on the advisory board for the Pinnacle Programme. Graham serves as an ambassador for Coastguard and a patron for Kiwis for Kiwi. His speaking topics include the high-performance environment, team culture, motivation, team development, and leadership.
Susan Hassall
Aroha Mai, Aroha Atu (Why a Good Education Still Matters!)
Friday, July 7, 1:30 PM
Since 2000, Susan Hassall has served as headmaster of Hamilton Boys’ High School (New Zealand), following her early career as a teacher of English at the school. She has extensive experience in education, managing change in an organization, and leading a successful school for boys. Hassall holds an MA (Honours) from the University of Auckland and has served actively as an executive member of the Association of Boys’ Schools in New Zealand since its inception in 2002.
With an abiding interest in and involvement with gifted education, she has contributed to the Minister’s Advisory Group for many years. In March 2016, Hassall joined the University of Waikato Council, becoming pro-chancellor in 2017. She chairs The University of Waikato Foundation and serves as a member of the Hospice Waikato Board, chairing the People and Culture Committee. Additionally, Hassall contributes to the wider community in her role as a justice of the peace and a wedding and special occasion celebrant.
In 2021, she received the award of Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her services to education.
Tony Fernando
Finding the Missing Peace
Saturday, July 8, 10:00 AM
A psychiatrist and sleep specialist from Auckland, Tony Fernando earned his medical degree from the University of the Philippines and conducted his psychiatry and sleep training at the University of Pennsylvania. He has garnered multiple teaching awards from medical students and the faculty of medicine at the University of Auckland. In 2012, President Aquino of the Philippines honored Fernando for his services to sleep medicine and medical education. In 2015, he received the chair’s award from the New Zealand Medical Association—the highest recognition given by the association to any doctor—for his work on physician well-being. In January 2017, Fernando received temporary ordination as a Buddhist monk in Myanmar. In 2021, he earned his Ph.D. studying compassion in medicine at the University of Auckland.
Fernando regularly teaches mindfulness meditation and emotional balance to inmates at Mt. Eden Correctional Facility. During the COVID-19 lockdown, he recorded guided meditations for use within the New Zealand prison system, as prisoners spent 23 hours a day in isolation. Fernando plays the cello and is a cheap-eats foodie. Despite his fear of the water, he learned to swim in 2014, has crossed Auckland Harbour a few times, and regularly competes in ocean races.