Erica Austin is a social entrepreneur, community weaver, facilitator, photographer and Christchurch Ambassador (LinkedIn). She describes her self as a multi-potentialite, or someone with activities in many fields. As we will hear, in Erica's case, this is something of an understatement.

I was first introduced to her as the Community Activator in the Edmund Hillary Fellowship, a community of 500+ innovators, entrepreneurs and investors committed to New Zealand as a basecamp for global impact. (I am an Edmund Hillary Fellow.)

We have a very rich conversation, touching on many huge themes. 

One is culture and identity, especially in a place with strong indigenous and colonial heritages plus inward immigration. 

As her introduction (using the Maori tradition of Pepeha) makes clear, Erica was born in China, moved to Aotearoa New Zealand when she was young. We talk about Aotearoa New Zealand as both a bicultural and a multicultural nation: "acknowledging that, that Maori people are the first people who've arrived in this land, and then comes multiculturalism, to be able to then create a space for all people to thrive". How she is part of something she calls re-indigenisation, not decolonisation.

Another theme is neurodiversity. Erica was diagnosed with ADHD when she was young, and really sees this as her superpower, which allows her to connect with other people, and people with places.

One consequence is that Erica is involved in many things, and has organised her work according to the Sustainable Development Goals (or SDGs).

Erica's priorities for the next three years are integrating indigenous practice and knowledge into our modern world, and growing the idea of a learning ecosystem, where people are not just learning in schools, not learning just in the organisation, but actually creating multiple different pathways for them to understand and learn to create better future, the future focus learning opportunity.

We did this interview in November 2023, and I remember being energised for days afterwards. I've just re-listened and again have a buzz from Erica's energy, her ambition, her practices of connecting people, and her uses of her superpower.

Links

FESTA

Te Pūtahi Centre for Architecture and City Making 

E.A.Curation

Ako Ōtautahi Learning City Christchurch

Ally Skills NZ 

Leadership Lab NZ 

Asia New Zealand Foundation 

Taonga -- treasure

Tangata Tiriti – Treaty People

Treaty of Waitangi

More on the SDG 0 story here.

More notes here

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Thank you for listening! -- David