Wanted: More Young New Zealanders' thoughts on changing the flag

A visit of a lifetime to Oscar winning Weta Workshop is just an entry away for year nine and ten students around the country.

The www.nzflag.com schools' design and essay competition closes this Friday. The national winners plus a friend will be flown to Wellington to spend the day at Weta.

Spokeswoman for the competition, Jo Coughlan, said entries have been coming in from around the country which suggests young people do want to have a say on the future of New Zealand's flag.

Students can either design a new flag or write an essay (no more than 500 words) stating the case for changing the flag.

Entry forms are available through all secondary schools nationwide or from www.nzflag.com.

Regional essay finalists will be judged by some of New Zealand's most celebrated writers, editors, broadcasters and publishers including Joy Cowley, Owen Marshall, Alan Duff, Sarah-Kate Lynch, Dame Kate Harcourt, Kate Coughlan and poet Glenn Colquhoun. National essay winners will be judged by TV3's John Campbell and Cate Brett, Sunday Star Times.

The winning regional flags will be judged by CEO NZ Tourism, George Hickton, and Artist Dick Frizzell. They will published 21 November in the Sunday Star Times. The national winner will be determined by public vote.

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