December 5, 2013

Fears China Diaoyu/Japan Senkaku Stand-off could lead to World War 3

At worst, the Diaoyu-Senkaku crisis could easily spiral into a (nuclear) World War 3 according to "highly credible" senior diplomats and military planners, including from the United States…
July 15, 2013

A Way Through Cybersecurity Thickets – Open Letter to the New Zealand Government

A way through cybersecurity controversies with the potential to first garner the support of all political parties in New Zealand, and then also international support from the United States, China, and other nations....
July 13, 2013

Fulfilling the promise of new technology unencumbered by security agendas

New Zealand is seen by otherwise friendly nations, including China and others in Latin America and Europe, to be collaborating in a network that spies extensively on them. New Zealand needs to be in a position to communicate comfortably and sustain good diplomatic and trade connections with both...
January 14, 2013

Sister Cities as Asian Century Brokers

The sister-city debate needs to move beyond just retaining or opposing the status quo, by exploring, instead, how more might be made of sister-city relationships
November 11, 2011

Christchurch Post Earthquake Developmental Ladder Award Three: “Campus Central” in the Draft Central City Plan

This Ladder Award blog notes the potential for a village precinct to emerge where a creative mix of education, technological innovation, social mixing and entertainment arts induce people to socialise, study, work, live and shop.
November 9, 2011

Christchurch Post-Earthquake Developmental Ladder Award Two: The Science Alive Educational Trust

Trail-blazing potential to help to connect people where they live, learn, work and create in their localities with on-going, cutting-edge, value-creating, global technological innovation and thinking
November 7, 2011

Christchurch Post Earthquake Developmental Ladder Award One: The Enterprise Precinct and Innovation Campus (Epic) project

Having Silicon Valley-style conversations - "Why is Silicon Valley so successful? It's because all the graduates are in one place and they can bump into each other at cafes and talk about their ideas" (Nevill-Manning Christchurch Press 3 August, 2011)
June 7, 2011

Visioning post-quake Christchurch via “ands” and narratives

Participatory narrative creation can provide a versatile tool for a city engaging in a hugely complex exercise of harmonizing and condensing endless fragments into meaningful wholes.
September 28, 2010

Economic and geo-strategic ruin or coherent communications framework?

Economically, New Zealand's accumulated deficit is $180B and rising. Diplomatically/militarily, does it accept either Chinese or United States naval visits, or both? Or none? Is there a framework for resolving such problems?
September 16, 2010

Social networking – local – after the Christchurch earth quake

I think we’ve heard enough from leaders and would-be leaders who advocate re-building yesterday’s organizations. I think we need to hear more from the new builders, especially those that would like to help build effective local networks.
August 10, 2010

Framing coherent, flourishing community, economic and foreign policy

Successful small countries that offer some cues are Switzerland and Singapore. In their own ways, they have each turned their small size to positive account.
March 19, 2010

Creating knowledge for sustainably bright futures

I fear that without a sense of a mission, universities will find themselves trying to please political masters and markets within very narrow horizons– and will soon end up pleasing no one.