FROM THE PRESIDENT NĀ TE TUMUAKI

LIANZA President

Tēnā koutou katoa, Kia orana kōtou kātoatoa

My first president’s column. It seems both a very long and very short time since the presidential election last year.

I am now wearing the beautiful presidential pounamu handed over to me at a ceremony on July 1. There is a definite heft to the taonga and the responsibility borne by everyone who has worn it and the desire to be worthy to serve and represent LIANZA is on my mind as I write this column.

Firstly though, I want to acknowledge and thank Erica Rankin for her work leading LIANZA over 2020 and 2021, such a tricky couple of years. Erica, and Anahera

Morehu before her, did a great job working out what the presidential role could look like in a pandemic and rolling with the changes required to remain as connected as possible. LIANZA Office works super hard to support ‘the 3P’s, president, president-elect and immediate past president, the council, and most importantly, all the members of LIANZA and our sector. Kia ora, thank you all.

And so to this coming year. It’s not going to be about stuffing as many things on the ‘to-do’ list as possible! I figured if I write it here it will help me hold to my own ‘rule’ of focussing on the things that are really important and which will hopefully make a difference for our profession.

Our brand new council started the year on June 30 with a twoday face-to-face hui hosted by Auckland Council Libraries at Te Paataaka Koorero o Takaanini and the Tupu Youth Library. Whakawhanaungatanga was the focus. It was a luxury to have two days together to start to build some relationship capital to enable us to better work together when we are meeting online at our various workplaces throughout the country.

LIANZA Council has spent the days since that hui working on a membership strategy, connecting with each other and with you on LIANZA Connect— please jump on and have a chat with us here— and refining our work programme for the coming year. Erica wrote last month about the importance we are placing on developing and refining our 27-year partnership with Te Rōpū Whakahau so we can continue to partner and lead together in an inclusive, respectful way. Richy, Erica and I, and the whole council, want to hear from you early in this term to help us plan out the next two years. We have a fono with the Pacific Information Management Network in planning, attendance at two library assistant day events booked, and a speaking slot at the PLNZ Forum. I am also very privileged to be able to attend the IFLA WLIC in Dublin, I’m sure I will have lots to share about that in the next issue.

He mauria kai whiria!

Ignore Small matters and direct effort towards important projects.