Asia:Nz Online February Newsletter

Building New Zealanders’ Knowledge And Understanding Of Asia
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Asia:Nz Online February Newsletter

A Christchurch Press reporter on a media travel grant sends us a summary of her experiences in the Southeast Asian country
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A member of our Young Leaders Network has helped double the amount raised for a UNICEF project in Laos during the Young Leaders Network Forum 2008
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Event highlights: Aucklanders will be treated to the premiere of Asian Tales: Native Alienz while Wellingtonians can see a spectacular exhibition dedicated to the Terracotta Warriors of Qin. See the Emperor's Dragons at the Otago Museum or get to Porirua for the Crescent Moon exhibition at Pataka Museum.
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Happy New Year of the Ox!
A busy few weeks stretch ahead as we build up to the annual Chinese Lantern Festival in Auckland and Christchurch, the first ABAC meeting of the year which New Zealand hosts in Wellington, and the start of the 2009 round of grants. Read on to find out about these and other events we have highlighted for you in this issue.

Arts and Community

Get ready for the colours, lights, sounds and flavours of another Chinese Lantern Festival! This year we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the festival. Maskchangers, Sichuan rod puppeteers, Wu Opera and the Nine Lion Puppet Theatre will all fly in from China to impress the crowds in Auckland and Christchurch. Read more about the performers or download the Auckland programme here. As usual, we'll also run a schools programme parallel to the festival - find out how to make a lantern and enter this year's school lantern-making competition to win lots of prizes! Bring along your camera and snap some photos of the beautiful lanterns, which you can post on the Lantern Photo Blog set up by the Auckland Photography Festival.
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Knowledge and Research

An increasing number of New Zealanders recognise Asia's importance to New Zealand's future, according to the Asia:NZ Perceptions of Asia 2008 report released by Asia:NZ in late January 2009. Trade and the impact of economic growth as well as tourism were among the positively viewed elements of New Zealand's relationship with Asia. A copy of the full report can be downloaded here.
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Action Asia Business

ABAC New Zealand, in conjunction with the Asia New Zealand Foundation, will be hosting the first APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) meeting of the year in Wellington. ABAC delegates from each of the 21 APEC member economies will meet in the capital on 9-12 February 2009. The main priorities defined by ABAC for 2009 are: accelerating regional economic integration;championing a model of sustainable growth; and strengthening capacity-building and enhancing connectivity.
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Opportunities

Asia:NZ's education programme has scheduled another series of Asia Aware principals' forums for 2009, beginning on 5 March in Dunedin. In addition to those, an offshore forum for principals is planned for 6 to 10 July in Singapore - registrations of interest are accepted until 9 February.
The Crescent Moon: the Asian Face of Islam in New Zealand is a new book commissioned by Asia:NZ, to be launched by the Governor-General Hon Anand Satyanand on 19 February. Author Adrienne Jansen and renowned documentary photographer Ans Westra interviewed and photographed an ethnically, culturally and theologically diverse group who were disarmingly honest. An accompanying exhibition will be open at Pataka Museum, Porirua.
A note on grants: The New Zealand Japanese Language Teacher's Programme (NZJLTP) has an extended application deadline of 9 February. The Emerging Researcher grant application deadline is 20 February. The first deadline for the 2009 round of culture grants closes on 27 March. Action Asia Business grants, a recent addition to Asia:NZ funding opportunities, are available throughout the year without a set deadline.

ENDS

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