2021 WRPPA Conference

Jehan Casinader is one of New Zealand’s leading journalists, with a career spanning 12 years in primetime TV current affairs.

He has reported for TVNZ’s flagship programmes, including Sunday, Seven Sharp, Close Up and Breakfast. Jehan was named “Broadcast Reporter of the Year” at the Voyager Media Awards in 2020, and “Reporter of the Year” at the New Zealand Television Awards in 2018.

In the aftermath of natural disasters, terror attacks, sporting triumphs and everything in between, Jehan has helped hundreds of Kiwis to share their vulnerable and deeply personal stories with the rest of the country.

As a survivor of depression, Jehan wants all Kiwis to be able to tell hopeful stories about their lives – stories that promote mental wellbeing. He is the author of a new book, This Is Not How It Ends: How rewriting your story can save your life (HarperCollins, October 2020).

Keynote Presentation

The Power of Stories

Each of us has a story about who we are, where we’ve come from and where we might be going.

But where do those stories come from? How do our stories influence our mental health? And how can we tell more helpful, hopeful stories about our lives – especially as we navigate the ups and downs of Covid-19?

Jehan Casinader has wrestled with these questions. He’s one of New Zealand’s top TV journalists. He is also a survivor of depression.

In this keynote presentation, Jehan will provide a challenging and enlightening perspective on the power of storytelling. He will offer practical tools to help you to reshape your own story.

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Paul Wood, Doctor of Psychology spent almost 11 years behind bars. As an 18 year-old, Dr Paul Wood was completely off the rails. He wasn't coping with the impending death of his mother, he was dependent on drugs, and was an unemployed high-school dropout who was committing crimes to feed his habit. Two days after his mother died he lost control when his then drug dealer attempted to sexually assault him. Paul was convicted of murder for this offence and then spent more than a decade in some of New Zealand's toughest prisons.

During this period Paul became the first person in New Zealand’s history to progress through undergraduate and Masters degrees while in prison. He was also the first person to begin a Doctorate while incarcerated. Paul's educational pursuits dovetailed with a journey of personal exploration and change, both of which gave him a profound understanding of the ingredients required to successfully strive towards our potential, deal with the challenges of change, and build the mental toughness and resilience necessary to flourish in adversity.

Keynote Presentation

Education - The Path out of Darkness

Paul Wood is a Doctor of Psychology, motivational speaker, leadership and development specialist, best-selling author, husband, and father. His area of expertise is in helping people pursue their potential while developing the mental toughness and resilience necessary to flourish through adversity. At 18 Paul was in prison and his life was completely off the rails. Paul will be using his journey from delinquent to doctor to illustrate the process of transformational change, how we can strive to be the best version of ourselves possible, how the belief of others put wind in his sails, and the role of education in leading him out of the darkness of his own ignorance and criminality.

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Paul Rangiwahia uses his creative abilities and art to help solve mental and emotional health issues. Paul is motivated to help change the way we look at our wellbeing in Aotearoa and promote the many benefits of being mentally and emotionally fit.

As Paul says “Taking responsibility for your own actions makes life work better. Liking who we are and what we stand for is surely one of the ultimate quests of life? To do that there needs to be honesty and accountability, that’s just a given. To experience inner peace and fulfilment because of this is something worth striving for.

Keynote Presentation

Best Version 101

I have tried to create a one page guide to being our best version, because when we are feeling at our best, everyone benefits and most importantly, the individual benefits. In a busy world where everyone is vying for our attention, it is easy to lose our way and sometimes things happen that shake our very foundations to the ground. But among the challenges that we all face in varying degrees, are the things we love and are good at. This session is about realignment and a focus on self belief, mindset and ownership. I share strategies and ideas to consider - and challenge the audience to put mental and emotional wellbeing as one of their top priorities.

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Kathryn Berkett has her Masters in Educational Psychology, and has certified as a Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics practitioner with Dr Perry. Kathryn has extensive experience in understanding how trauma can impact on development.

She has worked and trained, nationally and internationally, on the subject of neuroscience for over twenty years, delivering to a variety of organisations including: the Police; Oranga Tamariki; Teachers; Corrections; Parents; Recreation Groups; Mental Health Professionals; NZ Rugby; and Corporates. Kathryn also has a TEDx talk titled: ‘Neuroscience of Device Zombies’.

Keynote Presentation

The Neuroscience of Self-Care – Caring for ourselves so we can care for others

This workshop will unpack the neuroscience of Self-Care. This is essential information for anyone who feels that their job or home life activates their stress response maybe a little too often!!

We will talk about why we activate the stress response, and about what actually happens for us when we get stressed. This workshop will explain the activations that occur in our brain and our body? When we experience stress, an incredible level of activation occurs that alters the function of our physiological systems, as well as our neurological systems. This means our body changes and so does our brain.

When we go into stress, our ability to think and focus is affected. We can become tired, sick, more prone to infections. This can all be due to experiencing stress. Sleep is one thing that can be severely affected, so we will unpack more around sleep and the reasons for it.

This session will help you understand why some days can be exhausting, and offer some helpful tips on how to help manage (but also, how to accept it at times). This workshop is packed full of fascinating information for Self-Care, but also for ensuring we can help our family members and colleagues stay well.

Kathryn's presentation is available HERE.

Norm Hewitt
Ngati Kahungunu, Ngati Tuwharetoa, Ngati Pakeha Motivator, Facilitator, Trainer, Mentor & Coach

Keynote Presentation - The Journey

Norm’s journey, to use a sporting metaphor, has definitely been a game of two halves. The first half dominated by the ‘school of hard knocks’ with physical abuse and bullying suffered and then dished out. The second half about restoration and forgiveness for himself and others.

Norm was born and raised in the Hawkes Bay, his rugby prowess started to shine through at an early age. Over a 14 year rugby career he played nearly 300 first class games and became All Black 938. He captained NPC, Super Rugby and Maori All Black sides. A personal highlight was captaining the Wellington Lions to victory over Canterbury in the final of the 2000 NPC despite having a broken arm.

Norm hit rock-bottom, when his abuse of alcohol was thrust in to the public glare, with an emotional apology for unacceptable behaviour was broadcast to the nation and the rugby world. It was also the moment he realised he had to change and the ‘second half’ of the journey began.

Since then, he has focused on understanding and repairing the negative influences on his life and helping others. He has a strong passion to assist people achieve their potential. He works across a broad spectrum of organisations doing this work and loves seeing the light bulb moments every day.

However, his biggest passion is his family and his highest goal is to be a good husband and father.

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Sue Johnston is a Professional and Personal Development Coach and Facilitator. Sue works with a wide range of leaders and teams in New Zealand and internationally from her base in Greytown.

Sue brings to her practice an integrated mix of wisdom, experience, and skills that allow her clients to experience new insights and growth that feels both gentle and challenging. She has a reputation for establishing a high trust environment that enables her clients to get comfortable with the discomfort associated with stretch and growth as they explore and develop their leadership potential. She supports her clients to more from insights to sustainable actions.

Keynote Presentation

Dare To Lead

Based on the research of Dr. Brené Brown, Dare to Lead is an empirically based courage-building programme. The most significant finding from Brené’s latest research is that courage is a collection of four skill sets that are teachable, measurable, and observable. These skill sets sit at the heart of brave leadership and courageous cultures.

The greatest barrier to daring leadership is not fear; the greatest obstacle is armour–how we self-protect when we feel uncertain. The key to letting go of our armour rests with our ability to do two things.

1. Reflecting on who we are and how we lead.

2. Having the courage to practice and learn new skills.

Sue's presentation is available HERE.