Food for thought
There will be three Thinking Brunches in this year’s Page & Blackmore Readers and Writers programme, as part of the Nelson Arts Festival.
In the first Thinking Brunch, titled ‘Balancing Act’, panellists will explore the big question: what does it take to support parents in the workplace and how can we make the career ladder more baby-friendly?
It’s a very timely discussion – following the birth of the Prime Minister’s daughter Neve – about the structural and cultural changes that are needed to support all parents in the workplace.
With stand-up comedian and author Michele A’Court in the facilitator’s chair, the panel features Holly Walker (former Green MP and author of The Whole Intimate Mess: Motherhood, Politics, and Women’s Writing), Lizzie Marvelly (musician, columnist and author of That F Word: Growing Up Feminist in Aotearoa), Renee Liang (playwright, paediatrician, parent and co-author of When We Remember to Breathe) and Rajorshi Chakraborti (stay at home dad and author of The Man Who Would Not See).
Matt Lawrey, creator of the popular NZ cartoon on the pleasures and pitfalls of bringing up kids, The Little Things, leads the discussion in the second Thinking Brunch, titled ‘Parenting in the Digital Age’.
From negotiating screen time, to realising the benefits of the education revolution, to protecting kids from cyber bullies and predators, the digital terrain has created a completely new set of challenges for parents.
Panellists include John Parsons (internet safety and risk assessment consultant to schools and author of Keeping Your Children Safe Online), Steve Henry (education innovator at Otago Polytechnic and father to two teenage boys, one of whom is on the autism spectrum) and Emily Writes (author of Rants in the
Dark and her new book, Is it Bedtime Yet? Parenting . . . the Hilarious, the Hair-raising, the Heart-breaking). The third Thinking Brunch, titled ‘Rethinking Death and Dying’ tackles the inevitable end of life, celebrating the launch of Freerange Press’ new anthology, Death and Dying in New Zealand, which is part of its new Radical Futures series.
‘‘The way we deal with dying and death carries the stamp of our time and place,’’ says editor Emma Johnson.
‘‘Here in Aotearoa, although the majority employ Western responses, we see a growing diversity of death practices. These include strong and continuing traditions such as those of tangata whenua.’’
Dr Kiri Edge, coroner Marcus Elliot and local natural death care advocate Lynda Hannah, who are three of the 16 contributors to the new book, will join the panel discussion, along with Pip Desmond, who has written Song for Rosaleen, a memoir about caring for her mother at the end of her life.
Nelson Arts Festival Readers and Writers co-ordinator Kerry Sunderland will facilitate.
The Thinking Brunches take place on Saturday, October 13, Sunday, October 14, and Sunday, October 21. All three start at 11am.
The Granary Festival Cafe opens at 10am for brunch. Tickets are $16 for the session only or $29 including brunch. A vegetarian option is available.
Tickets available online at nelsonartsfestival.co.nz or ticketdirect.co.nz or in person at the Theatre Royal, Nelson Centre for Musical Arts, Nelson i-Site and Richmond Mall Information Desk.