Going Bananas is back again this year to bring more special memories
By popular demand after a five year hiatus, our iconic and unique conference returns to challenge perceptions of what it
means to be Chinese and celebrate the journeys, stories and identities of leading local and overseas born Chinese
personalities. The conference will again be held at The University of Auckland Business School on Friday, 30 May to
Sunday, 1 June.
This conference is the fifth event in the Going Bananas cycle. We continue to build a community of interest in Chinese
lives and experiences.
We offer everyone a fresh way to explore and understand the impact Chinese communities make in New Zealand and on the
global stage.
Please register asap for the conference by completing page 12 of this link
http://www.goingbananas.org.nz/PDF/2014_BananaConference.pdf or registering online.
The conference will follow a similar format to the previous Banana conferences with a Welcome Reception on the Friday
evening at which we will launch the sequel “Destinies Divided: A Story of the Chinese Diaspora in WW1” by Meemee Phipps
to her best selling novel “ Memories in the Bone”. However this year we are fortunate to be able to also arrange at
4.30pm on Friday afternoon with assistance from the University of Auckland Creative Thinking Board, “A Creative
Conversation with Anthony Hoy Fong”, the celebrity NZ - born chef and entrepreneur now working in New York.
Thereafter, in the two day conference itself, we have Mai Chen confirmed as the Keynote Speaker on Day 1 talking about
“The Leadership Role Chinese NZers can play to build NZ Inc: Changing your Mindset” plus we are asking Hon Pita Sharples
to be the Keynote Speaker on Day 2 to lead the discussions on Chinese / Maori relationships in a multicultural Aotearoa.
We have also arranged high profile and exciting personalities from USA, Canada, Asia & Australia and from throughout New Zealand to speak on various topics including the following :-
1. High Flying Bananas (Anthony Hoy Fong, Florence Wong, John & Michael Chow, Paul Croucher)
2. Where’s the Yellow Peril – Alive or Dead? - Early Settlers & Poll Tax (James Ng), Recent Settlers (Manying Ip)
3. Global Dragon Voices – David H T Wong – “Escape to Gold Mountain”( A Graphic History of the Chinese in Nth America)
Daphne Lowe Kelley - Finding the Australian Chinese Voice
4. SS Ventnor Saga – The Call of the Ancestors - Wong Liu Sheung & Lynda Chanwai-Earle (Radio NZ) 5. Dragon & Taniwha Relationships - Meng Foon, Hon Pita Sharples & Mary-Anne Lee
6. Emerging Bananas Have Their Say – Tyla Nathan Wong, Jordan Hui, Alice Wang, Deana Yang
7. Bananas in the Dragon Den - Living & Working in China & Asia (Eric Chuah, Lester Khoo, Pat English, Lynnette Xu)
8. Diverse Bananas – Inter Cultural Relationships - Dr Kathie Blunt from Australia & Gar Kee Wu from NZ
9. Creative Cool Bananas –Renae Liang (Playwright), Weilun Ha (painter), J J Fong (actress), Dion Hitchens (Sculptor)
10. Asianisation of Auckland - Pro Vice Chancellor Paul Spoonley (Massey University)
Conference fees are being kept as low as possible for an international conference
Individual (Registration after 1 April 2014) $190
Full time student & persons 65+ (with ID) $100
With 20% discount for NZCA Members