Photo of Amazon river, supplied by: Amazon - Raised Up Sky

A note from our Director

As the end of the year approaches the Latin America CAPE continues to introduce exciting new projects to our stakeholders.

In this Update you will learn about the transformational events we are delivering across multiple locations and formats to prepare New Zealanders to engage and do business with Latin America. Targeted at our business, educational or government audiences, and at the broader public, these activities touch themes ranging from trade diversification and market information to scientific exchanges and environmental issues.

Our innovations do not stop there, however. As you will also see, we have promoted Latin America in the latest TIN report, digitalised our award-winning Toitoi resource for children, and developed relationships with outstanding colleagues in other organisations.

It is a pleasure to share the fruits of our work with you.

Matthew O'Meagher, LatAm CAPE Director

EVENTS

New Zealand and Chile trade webinar

Join us next week for a conversation on ‘Diversification as a Response to Trade Disruptions: Perspectives from New Zealand and Chile.’ The webinar will feature short presentations, discussion between leading trade and academic panellists, and a Q&A with participants.

The following topics will be covered:  

• Covid’s effects on global value chains (as experienced by two South-Pacific commodity exporters)  
• Geopolitical tensions that preceded the pandemic  
• A potential future of “slow globalisation”  
• NZ-Chilean collaboration around trade diversification. 

NZ time: Thursday, 26 November 8:30am-10am 

Don't miss this important conversation, feel free to invite your networks. Zoom registration below. 

LatAm Startup Programme

We are teaming up with Creative HQ’s Lightning Lab to deliver a LatAm Startup Programme to introduce New Zealand startups to the new opportunities the Latin American market offers. 

"Latin America is an exciting region when looking to scale a business. Kiwi founders are often surprised at the resemblance between Latin America and NZ. The opportunities are endless, but knowing what to look for is key. Don’t miss out on this workshop to learn how you could grow your business in one of the coolest parts of the world." - María José Alvarez, NZ Growth Capital Partners

The programme will be delivered across 5 cities in early December:

• 1/12 Tuesday 4-7pm: Dunedin, Petridish 
• 2/12 Wednesday 4-7pm: Christchurch, Ara Institute of Canterbury 
• 7/12 Monday 4-7pm: Wellington, Creative HQ 
• 8/12 Tuesday 12-4pm: Hamilton, Soda Inc. Wintec House 
• 9/12 Wednesday 12-4pm: Auckland, Grid AKL  

Click below to learn more and register. 

Amazon - Raised Up Sky

In a ground-breaking fusion of art and science, which draws on conversations with scientists and indigenous leaders in Brazil and New Zealand, the internationally recognised artist Joseph Michael will explore the interconnectivity of humans and nature through an augmented reality artwork that places the viewer in the heart of the Amazonian rainforest.

We invite you to experience the augmented reality work being developed and watch a short documentary on the creative and technical process behind it in this series of artist talks: 

• 20/11 Friday — Hamilton, University of Waikato 
• 21/11 Saturday — Whakatāne, Whakatāne Little Theatre 
• 24/11 Tuesday — New Plymouth, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery
• 25/11 Wednesday — Whanganui, Sarjeant Gallery
• 26/11 Thursday — Wellington, Te Papa 
• 29/11 Sunday — Christchurch, Christchurch Art Gallery 
• 02/12 Wednesday — Dunedin, Otago Museum 
• 07/12 Monday — Wanaka, Lake Wanaka Centre  
• 09/12 Wednesday — Ashburton, Ashburton Art Gallery 

All talks are free and times at each location vary. Click below to find more details on each event. 

Amazon - Raised Up Sky has been made possible by the Latin America Centre of Asia-Pacific Excellence and is presented with the support of the Brazilian Embassy. 

Colombia & Antarctica

Colombia is not often associated with Antarctica. Yet since 2014, Colombia has deepened its scientific knowledge of the region by undertaking seven expeditions and creating a 20-year action plan for the continent. Join us in our last event of the year to hear from Ángela Posada, a Colombian science journalist and member of six of these expeditions about her experiences and insights. Associate Professor Robert McKay, Director of the Antarctic Research Centre, Victoria University of Wellington will comment on her presentation and our Director, Dr Matthew O’Meagher, will be moderating. The event is co-hosted with the Colombian Consulate in Auckland and will be both online and in-person for those in Wellington. 

• Thursday, 10 December at 11am 
• In-person: Victoria University of Wellington, Kelburn Campus, Alan MacDiarmid Building AM102, register below​
• Zoom: Register here

TIN Report: new feature on Latin America

The LatAm CAPE has supported the inclusion of a feature on the Latin American market in the 2020 edition of the Technology Investment Network (TIN) Report.  

The annual TIN Report, now in its 16th year, is New Zealand’s definitive guide to the technology export sector and a critical reference for benchmarking the performance of New Zealand’s 200 largest globally focused technology companies. The report offers market sector analysis, profiles of the tech industry's fastest-growing companies and promising early stage companies, analysis of ownership structures, an economic impact review, and a look at which New Zealand regions have the greatest growth in technology. 

The TIN Report is a key reference for decision makers and plays an increasingly important role in facilitating the emergence of a transparent technology export community. Our collaboration with the TIN team has led to Latin America being presented for the first time as a separate region in the report. 

The report was launched at Tech Pulse 2020, an interactive online event to be held on 18-20 November. More information below. 

Toitoi digital app launched

It's official, our Toitoi app has launched! You can now get stories about Latin America, written by young New Zealanders, on your mobile devices.  

The app is our digital companion to the Toitoi: Latin America Special Issue, which recently received the Publishers Association of New Zealand Book Design Award for Best Educational Book or Series – Primary 2020.

Available in English, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese, the app can be downloaded for free and is available on all platforms. Readers can listen to the stories and poems in translation, tap to hear individual words and spellings and even record their own narration. 

We commissioned the journal, app and additional digital resources in partnership with Toitoi Media, the School of Languages and Cultures at Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington, and Kiwa Digital.  Journals were delivered to every school and library in New Zealand earlier this year.  

Click below to access the download links and read more:  

LatAm CAPE Spotlight Series 

Our Spotlight Series underlines the impact that our LatAm CAPE programmes have had on our participants and project partners. Check out the insights featured below:

• Terry Shubkin, Young Enterprise Chief Excitement Officer 
• Peter McMenamin, President of LANZBC 
• Brendan Mahar, NZTE Latin America Market Manager  
• Sarah How, Market Insights Programme 2018 participant  

If you are new to the mailing list please see our past updates. If you are not on our mailing list and would like to be please sign up below.