Regional and local development is experiencing a period of flux in New Zealand, occasioned by a range of key factors, including:

• The economic impacts of COVID
• Climate change and recent weather-related disasters
• The restructuring of the central government support for regional development
• Local government reforms and governance changes
• Market and economic change
• Parallel processes of selective small town population loss or gain and the associated challenges of both
• The impact on new policy requirements on farming

This session seeks to encourage debate around these issues this session and to bring together policy makers, practitioners and academics to discuss the current and future opportunities and challenges which they see playing out in the regional and local development space in New Zealand.

This session is organised in partnership with the Eitenne Nel, RSA Ambassador for New Zealand