25 Education Conference Speakers in New Zealand

Last updated: August 2026.

Education conferences are most useful when they help people connect a big change with a practical decision. The speakers below bring different views on learning, leadership, technology, culture, community and the changing relationship between education and work.

This directory brings together 25 people featured in current or recent education, learning, leadership and future-of-work events connected with New Zealand. Some lead schools or public institutions. Others work in research, learning design, science, technology, community services or workplace capability.

It is a starting point for event organisers, schools, professional associations, learning teams and organisations looking for a thoughtful voice. The list is not ranked, and it is not a claim that every person is based in New Zealand or available for every brief.

What these speakers bring to the conversation

A strong education conference makes room for more than one kind of expertise. It may need a system view, a classroom story, a research lens, a community perspective or a practical example of learning that changed behaviour.

The people below are intentionally mixed. Together, they open useful questions about how people learn, lead and work through change in Aotearoa New Zealand.

1. Madeline Newman

Executive Director, AI Forum New Zealand

Madeline Newman brings experience across strategy, transformational change, people, process and technology. Her current work at AI Forum New Zealand gives her a practical view of how artificial intelligence is becoming part of education, services and civic life.

She is a strong fit when an audience needs to move beyond excitement about new tools and think about risks, policy, opportunity and the human choices around adoption.

2. Mahsa McCauley

Communication and Information Commissioner, New Zealand National Commission for UNESCO, and Associate Professor of AI, Auckland University of Technology

Mahsa McCauley works across artificial intelligence, education, policy and the public interest. She is also Chair of AI Forum New Zealand and the Founder and Director of She Sharp Charitable Trust, which supports women in technology and girls entering digital careers.

Her perspective is useful for audiences asking how technology can expand opportunity while still protecting people, widening participation and keeping education connected to society.

3. Hana O’Regan

Chief Executive Officer, Awarua Whānau Services

Hana O’Regan returned south in 2025 to lead Awarua Whānau Services. Her work has also included language revitalisation, identity, cultural development, te reo Māori, education and long-term leadership across community and public life.

She brings a valuable reminder that education is connected to whānau, history, language and hope. Her contribution suits events that want to explore equity and leadership through a strong sense of place.

4. Lea Vellenoweth

Tumuaki, Te Kura Matua o Wainuiomata

Lea Vellenoweth speaks from the practical reality of leading a kura and building trust with whānau, staff and ākonga. Her leadership story includes service, courage, equity and the work of making a shared vision visible in everyday choices.

She is a useful voice for school and education audiences that want to talk about leadership as service rather than status, and about creating places where young people want to belong.

5. Chris Duggan

Founder and Chief Executive Officer, House of Science

Chris Duggan founded House of Science, a charitable trust that brings hands-on science and pūtaiao resource kits to primary and intermediate schools across Aotearoa New Zealand. Her 2026 keynote focuses on curiosity as a leadership practice and on asking better questions in complex conditions.

Her work gives conference audiences a concrete story about moving from a local initiative to a wider education network. It also makes science learning feel connected to confidence, culture and future-ready learners.

6. Eteroa Lafaele

Co-Founder and Director, Head of AI and Culture, Fibre Fale

Eteroa Lafaele brings technology, culture and community into the same conversation. That combination matters when education leaders are deciding how to introduce artificial intelligence without losing sight of people, identity and relationships.

He suits an event that wants to explore the cultural work around technology, not only the technical possibilities. His perspective can help audiences ask what responsible adoption should look like in their own context.

7. Tania Vercoelen

Learning Experience Design Lead, Cognition Evolve

Tania Vercoelen leads the Cognition Evolve learning experience design team across New Zealand and Australia. Her work starts with performance needs and business goals, then turns them into digital, blended or face-to-face learning.

Her conference contribution is especially practical for learning teams. She can help audiences think about design, discovery, gamification and the difference between content people complete and learning that changes what people do.

8. Sonya McIlroy

Senior Learning Designer, NZ Post

Sonya McIlroy designs practical, people-centred learning at NZ Post, with a focus on performance analysis, behaviour shifts, compliance, risk and accessibility. Her work connects enterprise priorities with the everyday situations that employees actually face.

She is a strong fit for audiences interested in making complex learning clear and relevant. Her work shows how inclusive design can support both organisational needs and the people expected to act on them.

9. Nicola MacDonald

General Manager, Operations, Optimism

Nicola MacDonald heads the learning and design team at Optimism. Her work spans instructional design, digital development, learning frameworks and the strategic conversations that help organisations work out what they really need.

She brings an operational lens to conference conversations about learning. That makes her a useful choice when the audience wants to connect development work with the way an organisation runs, serves customers and supports its people.

10. Sam Kelsey

Skills Development and Human Resources, Hohepa Hawke’s Bay

Sam Kelsey brings nearly 30 years of experience in skills development and human resources. At Hohepa Hawke’s Bay, her recent work has included expanding online and blended learning and developing culturally grounded resources for support workers.

Her story suits audiences who want to discuss capability in the disability support sector. It also shows why useful learning needs to be accessible, culturally meaningful and designed for the real decisions people make at work.

11. Punit Parekh

Learning Experience Designer, 2degrees

Punit Parekh was the lead designer of Reimagine Care Learning at 2degrees, a blended learning experience built around confidence, capability, consistency and on-the-job behaviour. His work combines learning design, facilitation and behavioural insight.

He brings a clear example of learning designed for the flow of work. That gives conference audiences something more useful than a general promise about digital learning: a way to think about practice, empathy and performance together.

12. Angela Liew

Senior Lecturer, Accounting and Finance, University of Auckland

Angela Liew’s current research examines the organisational and human impacts of digital transformation in accounting firms. Her work includes data analytics, robotic process automation and the work readiness of accounting graduates.

She is a valuable voice for audiences exploring how technology changes professional identity. Her perspective links higher education, workplace capability and the question of how people stay ready when tools and expectations keep moving.

13. Gehan Gunasekara

Professor, Commercial Law, University of Auckland

Gehan Gunasekara works in commercial law, with research interests that include information privacy, franchising law and the social effects of organisational and government data use. He is also Deputy Head of the Department of Commercial Law.

His contribution helps audiences look at the legal and ethical side of digital change. That matters for education and workplace leaders who need to think about privacy, accountability and human agency alongside productivity.

14. Isuru Fernando

Digital Innovation Lead for Azure, Microsoft New Zealand

Isuru Fernando works at the intersection of AI, cloud technology, design and organisational change. His current role focuses on digital innovation for Microsoft Azure in New Zealand, following earlier leadership work at Google and IBM.

He is a good fit when a conference wants practical discussion about adopting new technology. His work can help an audience move from a tool-first conversation to one about capability, ethics and the human design of change.

15. Michael Witbrock

Professor of Computer Science, University of Auckland

Michael Witbrock leads the Strong AI Lab and co-directs the Natural, Artificial and Organisational Intelligence Institute at the University of Auckland. His research sits at the intersection of machine learning, reasoning and natural language understanding.

His work gives education and business audiences a research-informed way to discuss artificial intelligence. He is especially relevant when people want to understand both what new systems may make possible and how society might use them responsibly.

16. Michelle Dickinson

Technology and Innovation Leader, Matter Workshop

Michelle Dickinson is a nanotechnologist, materials engineer, author and science communicator. Through Matter Workshop, she continues to connect science, engineering and emerging technology with practical learning and public understanding.

She is a strong speaker for audiences that need complex ideas made clear without losing their substance. Her work shows how curiosity and good communication can help people engage with innovation rather than feel shut out by it.

17. Stephen Beck

School Leader, Hurunui College

Stephen Beck brings the perspective of an area school to the conference stage. His contribution focuses on an area school journey, where education, community, local identity and the needs of learners are closely connected.

He is a useful choice for audiences that want a grounded school leadership story. His perspective can move a conversation away from generic change language and towards the practical realities of leading in a distinctive community.

18. Mike Hart

Area School Leadership Advisor, Area School Leadership Advisors

Mike Hart works with leaders in the area-school model, where primary, secondary and community responsibilities overlap. That setting creates a useful lens on how leaders balance different ages, needs and expectations in one school community.

He brings practical value to an audience considering leadership, governance and shared practice across composite or rural schools. His work helps make the distinctive context of area schools visible.

19. Erica Stanford

Minister of Education, New Zealand Government

Erica Stanford is New Zealand’s Minister of Education. Her portfolio includes system decisions about curriculum, assessment, qualifications, learning support and the pathways young people take into further study and work.

She is relevant to conferences that want to connect classroom practice with public policy. The Ministry’s current work on the future of NCEA also makes her a significant voice in conversations about how qualifications should prepare learners for what comes next.

20. Meredith Kennett

President, New Zealand School Boards Association

Meredith Kennett represents school boards in conversations about governance, community responsibility and the conditions schools need to serve learners well. Her perspective brings the role of trustees and presiding members into a wider education conversation.

She suits events that want to explore how good governance supports school leadership. Her contribution can help audiences think about the relationship between accountability, trust and local decision-making.

21. Ripeka Lessels

President, New Zealand Educational Institute

Ripeka Lessels brings the perspective of New Zealand’s largest education union to questions about teaching, leadership and the future of schooling. That makes her relevant to discussions about the workforce conditions that shape what schools can do.

She is a useful voice when an event wants to hold policy, professional practice and the lived experience of educators in the same conversation. Her contribution adds depth to debates about change in schools.

22. Dan Hikuroa

Associate Professor of Māori Studies, University of Auckland

Dan Hikuroa connects mātauranga Māori, earth systems science and community-led approaches to sustainability. He has also served as a UNESCO New Zealand Commissioner for Culture and works across research, policy and community settings.

His perspective broadens the meaning of future-ready education. He helps audiences explore how indigenous knowledge, science and relationships with te taiao can shape better decisions about the future.

23. Julie Roberts

Education Advisor and Researcher, New Zealand Council for Educational Research

Julie Roberts works as an Education Advisor and Researcher at NZCER. She brings experience in mathematics facilitation, primary teaching, mentoring, leadership coaching, assessment and professional learning in schools and clusters.

She is a strong fit for audiences that want to connect research with classroom practice. Her work helps turn questions about assessment and learning progress into choices educators can use.

24. Nicholas Pole

Chief Executive and Chief Review Officer, Education Review Office

Nicholas Pole leads the Education Review Office, which examines the quality of education in New Zealand schools. His conference work focuses on assessment, evidence, strategic planning and the decisions leaders make to improve learning.

He brings a system-level view that is still close to the practical work of schools. His contribution suits audiences looking for a clearer connection between evidence, accountability and better outcomes for learners.

25. Terina Tehau

School Leader and Workshop Contributor, Te Pā ō Rākaihautū

Terina Tehau contributes to conversations about cultural, social and emotional intelligence as part of academic success. Her school context brings learning, culture, relationships and community into the same picture.

She is a useful voice for audiences that want to talk about the conditions that help young people thrive. Her contribution also shows why future-ready education needs to include belonging, identity and connection.

Conclusion

Three themes run through this group. First, useful education work connects ideas to action, whether that means designing a learning experience, changing assessment, adopting AI or leading a school community.

Second, the future of work is not only a technology question. It is also about culture, privacy, identity, confidence, governance, language and the relationships that help people learn through uncertainty.

Third, the strongest conference voices make a complex issue easier to hold. They give an audience a clearer question, a richer picture of the people affected and a practical next step.

About the Author

Jonno White is a leadership consultant, keynote speaker and Certified Working Genius Facilitator. He is the author of Step Up or Step Out and works with schools, organisations and leadership teams around the world.

Jonno helps leaders build organisations people would move cities to work at. His work is practical rather than motivational, with a focus on ideas people can use on Monday morning.

Next Read

If you are planning an education or leadership event, the Consult Clarity home page explains how Jonno helps teams turn big questions into useful next steps. You can also read more about Jonno's work and approach before deciding what kind of session would fit your audience.

If you want a practical keynote, workshop or facilitated session for your people, email jonno@consultclarity.org and tell me what your audience is working through.