Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Tech Hui '08 Speakers
They are:
Paul Brislen
Brislen has spent ten years covering the ICT sector for a variety of media organisations including TVNZ, Radio New Zealand National, The New Zealand Herald and Computerworld publication. Currently he is the External Communications Manager for Vodafone New Zealand where he gets to play with all the latest toys before they're released to the public.
Tim Copeland
The co-founder of Wellington based company SilverStripe and a pioneer in web application development.
Pete Rive
Pete Rive has been researching and working in virtual reality since 1999. With extensive experience and knowledge of Virtual Reality and Second Life, Pete consults for businesses seeking communications, marketing and knowledge management advice in a virtual world.
Pete’s clients include: Auckland City Council on their Broadband Advisory Group, Auckland Regional Council's Metro Project as a member of the Innovation and Leadership Group, and the KAREN (Kiwi Advanced Research and Education Network) Advisory Group. With over 20 years experience in the screen industry, Pete brings his marketing experience to the rich media environment of the 3D simulator, Second Life. He recently hosted the Government's Digital Future Summit in Second Life.
Pete is the current Chairman of Film Auckland, and is enrolled as a PhD student at Victoria University's Digital Design School where he is studying knowledge transfer and creative collaboration in Second Life. Pete remotely teaches the first New Zealand class in Second Life, with 35 students on Victoria University's Digital Design virtual island.
He is a recent contributor to a US book, Handbook of Research on Virtual Workplaces and the New Nature of Business Practices, edited by Dr. Pavel Zemliansky and Dr. Kirk St. Amant.
Dr. Brenda Leeuwenberg
Brenda was an early internet entrepreneur, back in the days when anyone could (and did) build a website she was involved in creating online resources for New Zealand schools and convincing commercial clients that online was where they needed to be.
She started Webgrrls in New Zealand, an organisation that helped numerous women find their place in what was then an isolating and often frightening IT world. Brenda ran her own web agency, SpunkMedia, before selling up and experiencing the corporate sector for a couple of years.
After spending 5 years working with a web agency in Amsterdam, managing accounts for Sony Ericsson, Sony Europe, Speedo and Dunlop, Brenda has returned to NZ. She is currently managing the production of a website called NZ On Screen - making New Zealand's screen culture accessible to the masses.
Friday, July 20, 2007
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Tech Hui 07 Report
The keynote speaker of the Hui was Mr Bill Day, CEO of Seaworks Ltd. Mr Day delivered an inspirational speech on how to find the drive to do what you want to do and enjoy it at the same time.
Other Speakers Included:
- Former Tech Angels, Rachel Hydes and Kelly Cheeseman who spoke about the courses they are attending at university. Both are studying towards a Bachelor of Design at Massey University and Victoria University, respectively. These two outstanding young women were able to provide insight into their courses at the two Wellington Universities.
- Mr. Martin Langhoff, a programmer at Catalyst IT spoke at length about the world of Open Source programming. Martin has worked in multiple projects associated with education including working with Moodle and cheap laptops for third world countries.
- Sidhe Interactive, New Zealand’s most successful gaming company, kindly allowed us to have some time with Jeremy Burgess who is a part of their coding team. Jeremy took the audience on a tour of positions available in the computer gaming employment market and what one could expect on finding a job there, apparently a difficult thing to do.
- The audience was also enlightened with humour from Kyle and Dylan who described how technology has improved learning for those with visual impairment.
We would like to thank the speakers, and everyone who attended the Tech Hui in 2007. We hope you left the Hui as inspired and motivated as us. We look forward to seeing you in 2008.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Tech Hui Speakers 2007
Bill Day is the Managing Director of Seaworks Ltd, a specialised marine company. He took Seaworks from a startup comapany to a small multi-national company. Seaworks lays underwater cables, runs underwater robots and works in the offshore Oil & Gas industry. In addition, Seaworks also does the marine management for movies by both Stephen Spielberg and Peter Jackson.
Bill has a BA, LLB and MBA as well as a host of professional qualifications. He was awarded the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the year in 2000 .
- Mr. Martin Langhoff
He also has a lot of experience deploying Moodle and other systems in the enterprise and government sector.
- Rachel Hydes
- Kelly Cheeseman
- Jeremy Burgess
Jeremy Burgess currently works as a programmer for Sidhe Interactive, New Zealand’s most successful gaming company. Sidhe Interactive's portfolio includes games such as GripShift, Jackass: The Game, Speed Racer, Frankie Dettori Racing, Rugby League 1 as well as Rugby League 2 for Xbox360, Playstation 2 and PCs.
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Tech Hui '06 Speakers
David Baldwin
David Baldwin was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Contact Energy in May 2006. Prior to joining Contact, he was based in Asia and the US overseeing the energy asset interests of a US-based investment fund. Before that, David held senior roles in Asia and the US with MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company, a US-based global energy company, and Shell in New Zealand and the Netherlands. David holds a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical).
Cherrie Kong
In May this year, Cherrie was invited to speak at the World Congress on Information Technology in Austin, Texas. Along with three other youth in a panel hosted by Don Tapscott, Cherrie discussed the impact of technology on the lifestyles and thought processes of youth today. The main message to the audience (mainly CEOs and decision-makers) was that the net-generation is very different from any preceding generation as consumers, learners and employees, meaning that business, education and management must also adapt to ensure they are catering to their needs.
Prior to this, Cherrie has had many speaking engagements at various events in New Zealand and internationally, from her first presentation at the Telecommunications Users Association of New Zealand (TUANZ) Rocking Ahead with Fast Internet conference in Wellington (2003) to the National Education and Computing Conference in Philadelphia and the Microsoft School of the Future World Summit in Seattle (both 2005). All such engagements have focused on the effective use of technology (in particular information and communications technologies, ICTs) to engage and enable youth, with an enormous focus on access, community and education.
In 2003, Cherrie was heavily involved with the implementation and management of a programme called the Tech Angels at Wellington Girls’ College. Cherrie sought to tap into the knowledge and enthusiasm of students to upskill and inspire college staff in use of ICTs in the classroom. Essentially a mentorship programme where students teach teachers in one-on-one and seminar environments, the Tech Angels fill a gap in the system where teachers have the equipment they need, but not the know-how to use them effectively in their life, workplace or classroom. These students also contribute to the community through volunteer work and also share their acquired knowledge with other students. The Tech Angels are ongoing to this day, boasting approximately 80 students (compared to 15 in 2003!), with the programme being taken on board by many other schools around the country (under various aliases).
Through the Tech Angels, Cherrie has gained experience in organizing conferences, interacting with and representing youth. For this involvement (and others), Cherrie received the Service to the College award and was also Dux/Gold Medallist for that year.
Neil Melhuish
Profile to come.