Uncategorized
Blind Citizens NZ 2024 National AGM and Conference
Submitted: Thursday, October 17, 2024Categories: News and Events, Uncategorized
Friday 18 October and Saturday 19 October 2024
He Tāngata, He Tāngata, He Tāngata
Join us for our 2024 AGM and Conference business sessions and an exciting line-up of Guest Presenters (additional details below).
We start at 9am Friday 18 October and we go through to approximately 5:15pm Saturday 19 October. We are live-streaming or you can go to our YouTube Channel. Here are details for each of these options:
YouTube Channel: Blind Citizens NZ Citizensnz – YouTube
Our programme and agenda information is available in MS Word, PDF, BRF, Audio and Braille Ready File as follows…
MS Word and PDF | Agenda, Programme outline with Guest Speakers
MS Word and PDF | Programme and all attachments
Audio | Programme and all attachments: https://aicomms.nz/download/ConferenceAudio24.zip
TellMe | Programme and all attachments: select 1-1-4-3
Braille Ready File | Programme and all attachments
2024 Conference Vol 1 PP. 1-53.brf
2024 Conference Vol 2 PP. 54-105
2024 Conference Vol 3 PP. 105-159
2024 Conference Vol 4 pp. 160-202
Acknowledgement of financial support Sep 2024
Submitted: Monday, October 7, 2024Categories: Uncategorized
Blind Citizens NZ is appreciative of donations received from our members and supporters, for funding from Blind Low Vision NZ and Te Pou
Blind Citizens NZ Board | National Office Contacts Sep 2024
Categories: UncategorizedBoard
- National President: Jonathan Godfrey: a.j.godfrey@massey.ac.nz
- Members-at-Large:
- Martine Abel-Williamson: martine.the1@xtra.co.nz
- Wendy Chiang: wendy.chiang@gmail.com
- Andrea Courtney: andycoute@gmail.com
- Chrissy Fern: fernmeek@gmail.com
- Tewai Halatau: tewaihalatau@gmail.com
- Paula Waby: paula.waby4@gmail.com
Focus | Items for publication
- Email articles to: admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
- Post: PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242
National Office
- Physical: Ground Floor, 113 Adelaide Road, Newtown, Wellington.
- Post: PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242.
- Email: admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
- Phone: 04 389 0033; 0800 222 694.
- Fax: 04 389 0030.
- Website: http://www.blindcitizensnz.org.nz
- Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/BlindCitizensNZ/
- Chief Executive: Rose Wilkinson: rwilkinson@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
Is Braille one of your passions | Appointee needed for
Categories: UncategorizedIf Braille is one of your passions, we hope you will read on… Blind Citizens NZ has representative | appointee positions on several national organisations. When the terms of office for these positions fall due the Board decides whether to reappoint the incumbent or to publicise the position. When publicised, unless otherwise notified by the incumbent and | or they have served the maximum term set by the respective organisation, they may submit a further expression of interest.
The Board resolved it would publicise its appointee position to The Braille Authority of New Zealand Aotearoa Trust (BANZAT). The term of office is three years.
Leyna Coleman has served two terms as Blind Citizens NZ’s appointee (six years) and is eligible and welcome to reapply. Expressions of interest from financial Ordinary (voting) Members of Blind Citizens NZ who meet the required criteria for this position are likewise welcomed. As an overview only is provided in this Focus issue, anyone interested should request the position description which outlines all requirements, attributes etc. The Board of Blind Citizens NZ will give preference to prospective appointees who can demonstrate competence and | or are suitably qualified in the following areas. You will:
- be able to read uncontracted Braille by sight or by touch;
- be able to demonstrate some experience in one or more of the following:
- be a Braille reader who uses Braille on a daily basis;
- be a parent of a Braille user;
- have some experience of the production of Braille;
- have some experience of the teaching of Braille;
- have knowledge of deafblindness;
- have had some involvement in advocacy for Braille.
Skills in three of the following five areas are also required. You will:
- be a touch reader of contracted Braille and rely on Braille as your primary means of literacy; and | or
- be the holder of either a Trans-Tasman Braille Proficiency Certificate, a Braille Writer’s Certificate, a Braille Proficiency Certificate, or an equivalent qualification as determined by the Board of Trustees from time to time; and | or
- have a sound knowledge of technical aspects of codes, e.g. mathematics, music, foreign language; and | or
- have an understanding of international attitudes and standards; and | or
- have had three years’ experience in either Braille transcription or Braille teaching.
Expressions of interest in this position will be considered by the Board at its November 2024 meeting. These should identify the strengths, expertise, knowledge, and attributes you bring to the position. Please contact National Office for the position description (contact details at the end of this Focus issue).
Expressions of interest must be received at National Office by 4pm, Thursday 14 November 2024 via either of the following:
- Email articles to: admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
- Post: PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242
2024 Annual General Meeting and Conference
Categories: UncategorizedWe are counting down the days now to our AGM and Conference. Anyone who intends to register needs to contact our National Office as soon as possible i.e. registrations closed on 25 September. Please be assured we will do all we can to assist people requiring accommodation. People registering to attend virtually (using Zoom) also need to register please.
On Thursday 17 October, for people attending in person, we have three side events planned. If you are present in person, you are welcome to come along and join in. There is no cost involved, and you do not need to be a member or linked directly with any of these activities which include:
▪ Te Tiriti o Waitangi Advisory Group, 1:00pm-3:00pm: before the AGM and Conference information will be shared that tells people about the korero | discussions that will be held at this event.
- Guide Dog Handlers’ Special Interest Network, 3:15pm-4:15pm: this is an opportunity for Guide Dog Handlers, those who aspire to be a Handler, anyone who may have been and family | whānau, to come together and share experiences. Also to learn more about the Guide Dog Handler Special Interest Network.
- Braille Special Interest Network, 4:30pm-5:30pm: Braille users, readers, learners and anyone interested in learning more about Braille will benefit from this event. You will also learn more about the Braille Special Interest Network.
Moving to our two-day AGM and Conference event, this starts at 9am Friday 18 October when Te Huia Bill Hamilton honours us with the official opening. We finish after the Conference Dinner on Saturday 19 October during which we also present organisational awards. Business sessions and guest presenters are spread across the two days.
Registration Forms are available from our National Office, Branches and Networks. Alternatively, you can register online from these options:
- Blind Citizens NZ Members: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/VZVYN9J
- Observers | Guests: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/V5XG26P
Focus Editor – Call for Expressions of Interest 2024
Categories: UncategorizedThis is another call for expressions of interest from Ordinary (financial | voting) Members of Blind Citizens NZ for our Focus Editor position. Expressions of interest will be considered by the Board at its November 2024 meeting.
The term of appointment can be for 12 months although a two-year term is preferred.
Anyone interested in finding out more about this position can contact National Office for full details. Expressions of interest close at 4pm, Thursday 14 November 2024.
ShakeOut 2024
Categories: UncategorizedNew Zealand ShakeOut is our national earthquake drill and tsunami hīkoi. ShakeOut 2024 is happening Thursday 24 October at 9.30am. It is a self-run earthquake and tsunami drill. Civil Defence will not send a notification.
It takes place across the world to remind people of the right action to take during an earthquake.
You can start the drill in whatever way works for you. All you need to do is Drop, Cover, and Hold for 60 seconds and practice your evacuation if you are in a tsunami evacuation zone.
In an earthquake Drop, Cover, and Hold.
Pāheke, Hīpoki me Pupuri
- Drop down on your hands and knees.
- Cover your head and neck.
- Hold on to your shelter.
Drop, Cover, and Hold are the right actions to take in an earthquake. This:
- stops you from being knocked over,
- make you a smaller target for falling and flying objects, and
- protects your head, neck, and vital organs.
Do not run outside during earthquake shaking or you risk getting hit by falling bricks and glass. Practising Drop, Cover, and Hold means you can quickly take the right action in an earthquake.
There is information, including in large print, audio, and Braille about how to Drop, Cover, and Hold in different situations or if you have a mobility impairment here: https://getready.govt.nz/emergency/earthquakes/drop-cover-hold
There is also a range of information on general emergency preparedness available in alternate formats including large print, audio, and Braille here: https://getready.govt.nz/alternate-formats
If Blind Citizens NZ can assist you in obtaining any of this information, do not hesitate to let us know. Contact details are at the end of this Focus issue.
Membership Subscription Review Discussion Paper
Categories: UncategorizedBackground: At Blind Citizens NZ’s 2022 Annual General Meeting and Conference, the Board submitted a discussion paper about membership matters. This is an area the Board continues to focus on.
Before sharing the next steps, we reflect on outcomes of the subsequent Special Meeting of Members held in March 2023 which required the Board to implement the following process…
<begins> That Blind Citizens NZ as per the Membership Subscription Review proposal, offers individuals who have not paid a subscription in the last five financial years to be given access to Blind Citizens NZ events as if they have paid a subscription, with this offer ending on 30 June 2025.
What this means is that for anyone who has not paid a subscription since 2018, that for the next two years to 30 June 2025 inclusive you:
- will receive information such as newsletters and notices of meetings from your local Branch or Network;
- will receive Focus, along with updates informing members of our work from National Office;
▪ can participate in activities including General and Annual General meetings, but you can’t vote or stand for election to the Board, a Branch Committee or a Network. <ends>
Constitutional Requirement | Membership Engagement Plan: Membership matters are primarily set out in Rule 5 Membership. Rule 5.2.3 states: “Annual subscriptions for Ordinary Membership shall be set at rates to be determined by the Annual General Meeting from time-to-time.”
This requires the Board to bring the matter to an Annual General Meeting for discussion. The topic is also identified in the Membership Engagement Plan as an action to occur in conjunction with this year’s AGM and Conference.
Related actions are as follows… Item 5: Review the organisation’s annual membership subscription rates and any impact this may have on prospective members and those overlooking membership renewal.
Actions Involve:
- The Board taking a paper to the 2024 AGM and Conference that considers whether the rates should remain the same, or should there be one rate i.e. $10 regardless of whether the person is waged or non-waged.
- Consider whether there are other ‘membership’ elements that should be refreshed for discussion at the same time (during this year’s AGM and Conference).
Points for discussion: Blind Citizens NZ’s membership subscriptions include an unwaged rate ($10) and waged rate ($20).
This applies to both Ordinary and Associate Members. Branches retain membership subscriptions which contribute towards supporting expenses for various activities, travel to and from General and Annual General Meetings, and other costs such as for newsletters etc. Annually, Branches receive a $20 payment from National Office for each Member-for-Life registered with their Branch. National Office covers costs for items such as Focus which is distributed to all members, and Branch and Network Representatives to attend in person, the national AGM and Conference.
The Board has heard from some Branches and Ordinary Members that membership subscriptions should be the same rate for unwaged and waged membership categories. In some instances, it has been suggested that Blind Citizens NZ do away with membership subscriptions i.e. that these should not be charged.
In addition, the Board is aware for example, that of the seven disabled people’s organisations that are members of the DPO Coalition, Blind Citizens NZ is the only DPO currently charging a membership subscription.
The Board is asking Ordinary Members for your views – should subscriptions be one rate regardless of being unwaged or waged. If so, what should the rate be?
Should Blind Citizens NZ stop charging a membership subscription? If this happened what would the implications be for Branches, Networks, and those who have chosen to make a one-off payment for our Membership-for-Life category?
If there is no membership subscription, then consideration must be given to identifying how someone becomes a member of Blind Citizens NZ. There is a requirement under section 26 of the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 that in part addresses this situation. This makes it clear there is a requirement for someone to consent to being a member of an organisation.
Next Steps: This paper is being presented to the 2024 AGM so that it can be discussed. It is also being publicised in this Focus issue to reach as many of our members as possible.
The views shared at the AGM and Conference will be a starting point. The Board welcomes further contributions from Ordinary Members, Branches, and Networks by 20 November 2024. The Board will then give further consideration to this matter at its November meeting.
The Board is clear that all decisions need to be well-informed. It is not intending for there to be any sort of decision reached at this year’s AGM and Conference.
Related decisions will be reached by the Board at its November 2024 meeting. One of its decisions may be to convene a Special Meeting of Members early in 2025 to further discuss this topic.
Blind Citizens NZ 2024 Election Update
Categories: UncategorizedAll Ordinary (financial) Members should have received ballot material for the election of two Member-at-Large positions. There are three candidates for the two positions. In alphabetical order by surname they are: Beverley (Bev) Duncan, Tewai Halatau, Maria Stevens.
Ballot material (CVs, voting paper etc.), were dispatched | posted on Thursday 19 September 2024. Voting closes at 4pm, Tuesday 8 October 2024. The official announcement will be made on Friday 18 October 2024, at the AGM and Conference.
Success is not an accident
Categories: UncategorizedGetting involved in new projects is something I do a lot. When someone asks if I can help, or can I do something, the first word I think of is usually “yes”. Being National President of Blind Citizens NZ has increased my exposure and given me some chances. I’m not telling this story to be boastful. I’m sharing because of the consequences of taking my chances, making some opportunities, challenging a mindset or two, and the impact that a handful of people have had with relatively small acts with massive long-run effects.
Way back in 2015, the DPO Coalition needed someone to join a working group looking into disability data and evidence. Perhaps the only uninspiring thing for me was the name. You guessed it, the Disability Data and Evidence Working Group. At that time, the DPO Coalition was quite reluctant to appoint representatives who were not sitting at the DPO Coalition table. I don’t feel at all immodest in saying that I was a natural selection. I was Vice-President of Blind Citizens NZ and a statistician. As it happens, there are very few people in the statistics community who identify as disabled, and even fewer who are linked to any disabled people’s organisation (DPO).
I’m still part of that work, and it is because of my engagement with it, that Stats NZ were very aware of my interest and knowledge. Key Stats NZ staff had also seen me in action when they attended a DPO Coalition meeting, which I happened to be chairing at the time. In late May, I was asked to Chair the Independent Evaluation Panel advising the Government Statistician on the Future of Census for 2028 and beyond.
That one position for the DPO Coalition led to a few other opportunities, including the one that matters most so far.
To take up this opportunity meant several things had to be sorted out in a real hurry, not least of which was dropping to part-time at Massey. The salary saved on me was needed to pay someone else to cover teaching commitments so my students weren’t adversely affected. This had the support of my line managers at work because they could see this opportunity as recognition of my contributions to my profession. One of those people was also critical in some other employment opportunities which I will mention soon.
At the beginning of September, I was a panellist in the opening session of a series of webinars exposing the value that disabled people can bring to research if collaborations are inclusive. In preparation for that session, I was asked to prepare a short description of what I do and a little about how I do it.
Well, I teach undergraduate students, supervise postgraduate students, do research, and I do Statistical Consulting with clients all across campus. The tricky part was describing how I do it. The question really did not need me to say that I answer emails, do Zoom meetings, etc. because that’s what everyone does. They wanted me to talk about something I do which is not usual to people in my profession or perhaps something the audience doesn’t think I can do which must be an insurmountable barrier. I chose to mention that “today, I do all of my own marking”, and that “I no longer need a sighted person to read the students’ work to me”. I chose this because it is not an accident.
We were also asked what had made a difference in our lives as students and as professionals. I chose to mention two people.
One was a Mathematics lecturer. The course in question was 300-level Axiomatic Geometry. The diagrams needed in the assignment were proving difficult to explain to anyone who hasn’t taken this course, because the diagrams did not use the rules of geometry we were all taught in primary school. Everyone I asked to help draw the diagrams for me, proved that the education system had successfully conditioned them all to the point that the abstract geometry of my assignment was utterly foreign and therefore impossible to draw.
I approached the lecturer and told him that I had a problem with the assignment and a potential solution. Maybe you’ve guessed it, but I told him that I couldn’t find anyone to draw the diagrams but I was prepared to tell him what I wanted drawn. I thought this was brilliant. I would not have to suffer the consequences of a person’s inability to deal with abstract rules of geometry because the lecturer was the most qualified person around and I knew he could follow my instructions. In my excitement over the genius of the solution, I wasn’t ready for him to answer, “I’ll think about it”. Maybe the disappointment I felt was written all over my face because he then said something like, “no wait, I shouldn’t have to think about it; let’s give it a go”. We did it a couple of days later, and this time I admit it, I am boasting; I nailed it. His willingness to try was all I needed.
The second noteworthy event was about the first job I obtained as a member of the academic staff. The role was called “Graduate Assistant” which meant I would have to do 180 hours of work per year doing student support jobs which the lecturers didn’t want to do for themselves.
There were five Graduate Assistants in the Department of Statistics as we were known back then. We had to do tutorials, computing labs, assignment marking, and hours in a drop-in clinic for struggling students. When my application was discussed, the fact that I could not do any marking was apparently raised at the appointment committee meeting. I learned much later which person had gone into bat for me and pointed out that the workloads could be arranged so that there was no marking for me to do. I also learned that the point was made that they could fit one Jonathan into the mix, but not two.
As an aside, one of the other four Graduate Assistants was not all that happy that she would have to do more marking. However one of the others loved the idea of doing marking and not having to deal with as many students so the work was juggled even further.
The attitude that carried the appointment committee’s favour represents an approach that looks to what a person can contribute as against what they can’t do. I’m sure we still need to convince people that we can be productive contributors if only we are given the chance to do so.
Many readers will know that I seem to have been the first blind person to get a job as a lecturer in statistics anywhere in the world. My first opportunity to be a lecturer came down to a two-horse race, and for reasons that don’t matter for this article, I came second.
By that time, I had over four and a half years proof that I could do everything lecturers were doing except marking. I interviewed really well, but the panel chose the other guy.
I was asked though, if I would consider taking a fixed-term contract as an Assistant Lecturer instead. I hadn’t even heard of such a job title, because there weren’t any around. It turned out that an Assistant Lecturer was the same as a Lecturer but on 80% of the salary. That sucked.
I could have refused, but it was obvious to me that the same someone had gone into bat for me again. I pretty quickly decided that it was not a matter of 80% v 100%. I was being offered 80% instead of nothing, 80%, and a chance to prove the panel chose the wrong candidate. I had two years to prove it.
As it happens, another position came up in our department about eighteen months later. This time there were lots more applicants. This time the panel had no wiggle room because I had totally proven my worth, and my marking had been completed courtesy of Job Support funding for a support person to read all that handwriting. It has just ticked over the twenty-year mark since I gained that permanent full-time position. The “other guy” has gone off to academic obscurity.
There are plenty of other events in my life where a person has done something that has had a profound and lasting impact. The events I chose to mention above all came about because someone or a small group of someones gave me a chance to do something new. Some of these relatively small thoughtful acts have led to much greater things. I do however need to mention how I can mark my students’ assignments today.
The finished product of what most people think of as statistics is piles of numbers in lists or tables as well as graphical displays. It’s the graphical displays that stifle many blind and low-vision people’s interest in taking courses in statistics at university. Maybe the ugly mathematics has something to answer to here too, but there are plenty of blind mathematicians out there.
The reality is though that the tabulated results and the pretty graphs are just the endpoint. In a modern world, so much of being a statistician involves thought, planning, experimentation, and talking about it.
The main way statisticians work with data is by using a programming language because the mouse-driven point-and-click, dialogue box and menus-type software are inefficient.
As it happens, I studied statistics at a time when blind people could not use Windows. I was reliant on the old DOS environment. While my classmates were quickly pointing and clicking their way around, I was learning obscure code and typing a lot. I had to learn more programming skills than my immediate peers.
In the last ten years, I have removed all interaction with the point-and-click software still used by some of my colleagues. When their software of choice gets its latest cosmetic facelift, they have to re-write all their notes. I only have to re-run the programs I wrote years ago. Today, I am amongst the most efficient of my colleagues because I made more forward-looking decisions.
What is truly beneficial to me, and to any blind person forced to take courses in statistics, is that the way I process my programs leads to output documents that are in stock standard HTML. That’s right, my output is effectively a web document. My screen reader reads this content very well, perhaps better than the same content would be read in any other standard format.
What’s even better though, is that because this is now the modern practice for 21st century statisticians, it is also what we have to teach our students.
To prove to me that they’ve learned how to do statistical work properly, my students now need to give me the code they wrote and the final document they created. Their original work is plain text which works well with my screen reader, and my Braille display, as does the final output HTML document. Sure, I can’t see the graphs they created, but I can see the code they used to make their graphs. If I don’t understand their code, I can put it into ChatGPT to get an explanation.
I’m also interested in understanding how good ChatGPT is in giving me a description of the actual image. ChatGPT is the latest tool I have worked with as part of the research component of my day job.
Over the years, I’ve looked into a host of ways to help a blind person understand their data or the tools needed to succeed in mathematics or statistics courses at university. Primarily because I need to be able to do this to do my job. This is why I said that it is no accident that today I can do my own marking without sighted support.
Focus Editor – Call for Expressions of Interest
Submitted: Saturday, April 6, 2024Categories: Uncategorized
Áine Kelly-Costello produced their first Focus publication and editorial in June 2022. At the time of their two-year appointment, Áine explained that due to a range of commitments they would likely not be available for a further term. As editor this issue of Focus is the last in which we hear from Áine in this role. We wish Áine all the very best as they move on to another chapter in life. As we farewell Áine as our Focus editor it is the reason for the Board to call for expressions of interest from amongst Ordinary (financial | voting) Members of Blind Citizens NZ for our Focus Editor position. The Board will consider expressions of interest in the Focus Editor position during its July 2024 meeting. Key aspects for prospective editors to bear in mind when expressing interest include that:
- the appointment will be for a two-year term (and may be renewed at the Board’s discretion);
- Focus is the official national publication of Blind Citizens NZ;
- Focus is sent to all members who are registered on our database as of 1 July 2018 in their preferred format (audio, Braille, large print, electronically) and it is uploaded on Blind Citizens NZ’s website;
- Focus is the mechanism for communicating a number of constitutional requirements such as notices of the national AGM and Conference and scheduled elections;
- Blind Citizens NZ’s membership is the target audience but the publication is provided to all Members of Parliament, stakeholders, supporters, etc;
- editorials are intended to raise and promote debate on issues that are current and topical to the blindness community, and stimulate reader-interest in submitting ‘Letters to the Editor’; and
- there is an opportunity for the Focus Editor to bring their editorial style to Focus.
Anyone interested in finding out more should contact National Office for full details of the position. Áine is also happy to talk to anyone considering applying for the role. You can contact them using their personal email ainekc@gmail.com
Expressions of interest close 4pm, Tuesday 2 July 2024.
Blind Citizens NZ 2024 Scheduled Election
Categories: UncategorizedRose Wilkinson, Returning Officer
This year’s Blind Citizens NZ Board election involves two Member-at-Large positions, the terms of office for which conclude at the end of this year’s Annual General Meeting and Conference (18-19 October). The two Member-at-Large positions are currently held by Wendy Chiang and Tewai Halatau.
How I lost Braille and found it again
Categories: Uncategorizedby Jonathan Craig
Editor’s note: Jonathan Craig is a Melbourne-based policy and advocacy advisor and a former editor of Blind Citizens Australia’s quarterly magazine, Blind Citizens News. We marked World Braille Day, Louis Braille’s 215th Birthday, on January 4 this year. Jonathan’s contribution below offers an important perspective on Braille education and associated-policy-making for our younger generations.
It’s almost 5:00, but the end of the workday feels like a retreating mirage. My jaw is locked tight in concentration. My eyes are streaming with the effort of decoding the merciless robot chattering in my ears. After nearly 8 hours of this, the signal keeps turning into noise – the noise of a drill, or maybe a jackhammer.
But no, I’m still behind my ergonomically ideal desk, getting paid to sit and write, not sweat and toil in the sun. “Suck it up!” I shout at myself in the ringing echo chamber my skull has become. “You work in an office. How hard can it be?”
This isn’t a story you can tell children. When I was a kid, employment for blind adults was a distant and nebulous prospect to me. But the highhanded warnings my teachers gave me seemed equally irrelevant to my reality. “Audio books aren’t real reading!” they said. “It’s lazy! You’ll get square ears listening to that all day! Your imagination will ossify, and you’ll be a mindless zombie couch potato!”
I’m unsure why they didn’t understand that teenagers are naturally lazy. I could drag around the new Harry Potter book in 37 volumes, or I could have Stephen Fry read it to me off a pocket-sized device. Which did you think I would choose? Framing my decision as a moral failure only annoyed me and diminished their authority in my eyes. “I can imagine this massive book hitting you in the head very vividly thanks,” I thought to myself.
Refreshable Braille was supposed to solve the portability problem.Page 21 of 32
My parents, who’d also been lectured about the importance of Braille, sold some shares to buy me a $10,000 notetaker, which was invaluable for presentations, maths, proofreading and various other tasks.
But even when I first got it, connecting to the internet, or transferring files to and from the device, required antiquated cables, confusing obsolete software, and ancient arcane magic. As flash drives and Wi-Fi became commonplace, I grew increasingly dissatisfied with this difficult user experience. Around that time, the Unified English Braille code was introduced. While I now feel the changes were rational and necessary, as a teenager with a rebellious streak, I was preoccupied by a sense of injustice. Imagine what would happen if someone tried to enforce massive changes to written English! When I was told the alterations were to make Braille more like print, I became certain this was totally unreasonable and unfair.
I dragged my notetaker, kicking and screaming, through five years of uni, where it continued to be incredibly useful and incredibly frustrating. By that time, I knew what $10,000 was worth and my inability to love it more did feel like my own moral failure. I put it in a drawer, where I couldn’t stumble across it and be overwhelmed by guilt and resentment. And for several years, the only Braille I read was on pill boxes and lifts.
The reasons I stopped using Braille had nothing to do with the format itself, and everything to do with the way I saw it. But if you ask people my age, a lot of us will tell you similar stories.Page 22 of 32 Though the competing options were a factor, I believe Braille usage, for students in the early 2000s, was complicated by a perfect storm of weird politics, terrible technology and alienating messaging from its proponents. We all acknowledged that there were things Braille did better than anything else. But for many in my generation, Braille wasn’t fun. Braille wasn’t cool. Braille was work.
It was work that got me reading Braille again. At the high volume and speed my job required, the editing and proofreading I’d once enjoyed became hellish. And however much I gritted my teeth, my attention was never consistent enough to catch every mistake a sighted reader would have. If I’d wanted to convince my younger self not to abandon Braille, I might consider telling him about the embarrassment of being bad at the thing you love most. Terrified of misusing more of someone else’s money, I dreaded choosing a new device, but the market had transformed while I wasn’t watching. Though still costly, notetakers now relied on much more modern technology, and the mainstream Android operating system, meaning you could now install any app on your device. Braille displays which could connect to your computer or phone provided a much cheaper option. Every eBook, document, webpage and social media post was now at my fingertips. I started out with some of my favourite short stories, relearning the old motions. I soon realised that reading with my fingers freed up my ears for music. So I listened to records while reading reviews and liner notes. I followed the scripts of Shakespeare plays. After relying on it completely for so long, silencing my speech felt liberating. For the first time in years, I was reading Braille the way I had when I first started learning — not for work, but for fun.Page 23 of 32
If the 2000s were the storm, the 2010s were the rainbow. Many of the issues I endured growing up have now been resolved. The aforementioned advantages of Braille were always there, but it is far more attractive now that it has become as portable, simple and flexible as any other format.
And yet, new threats are emerging. I was luckier than I realised to live in a place where I could receive a quality Braille education from qualified specialist teachers. Every night I would complete my homework in Braille, and they would quickly transcribe it for my class teacher to mark. When our fellow students practised handwriting, me and my best friend would learn new contractions together. When I was in primary school, laptops were bulkier, more expensive, and generally less user friendly. Now iPads, with highly capable screen readers built in, are commonplace at home and at school. There is a growing temptation for education departments to view Braille teaching as antiquated, inefficient and redundant, now that speech to text is so accessible. Training someone in Braille and employing them for the benefit of only a few students is expensive when anyone can teach touch typing. Braille education is one of the most controversial topics covered on Jonathan Mosen’s popular Living Blindfully podcast. Many listeners were upset by his assertion that people who were blind and had never learned Braille were technically illiterate. At first this felt like the same tiresome rhetoric I heard in high school. But listening more carefully, I came to understand that Mosen was thinking about how to keep Braille in the classroom.Page 24 of 32 “The people that I’m trying to reach when we have this discussion about literacy, are not other blind people,” he said, as he sought to wrap up the fractious discussion. “They are public policymakers who are looking at every turn to short-change blind children, and those blind children aren’t able to speak up for themselves.”
Mosen is right to argue that Braille is in danger, and the blind community should work together to protect it. As he frequently points out, sighted educators were suspicious of Louis Braille’s code when he invented it, and we had to fight for its adoption. Alexander Graham Bell, most famous for inventing the telephone, spent much of his energy teaching Deaf people to speak and discouraging the use of sign language. Though mainstream understanding of disability has certainly matured since then, we still know what’s best for us better than anyone else, and it would be naive to imagine the fight is over.
In my experience, the fight is harder when children themselves aren’t convinced. Thinking back, I realised that the commandments that I must love Braille mostly came from sighted people. These were well-meaning passionate allies who nonetheless couldn’t get through to me, thanks to my previously mentioned rebellious streak.
I can’t go back in time and talk to my younger self, but it is interesting to consider what I, as a blind adult, would say to a child like me, given the choice of learning Braille, which is hard, or listening to speech, which is easy.
I don’t believe a child growing up these days has any reason not to love and enjoy Braille as much as I now do. And I think love and joy are the keys to engaging a new generation.Page 25 of 32 Though prophecies and practicalities may work for some, they didn’t for me. But the first time a child sees a refreshable Braille display, they are captivated. They can watch the pins rise and fall for hours.
There’s no one approach that can win over any kid. Even as an adult, I gradually progressed to using Braille every day as I realised how it could improve the things I already loved doing. But when we see that mix of joy and curiosity, we should remember what it looks like, and nurse it however we can. If Braille is to survive, and even thrive, as I believe it should, we need to keep that feeling going and find creative ways to inspire a love of Braille. But most importantly, we should aim never to let any kid grow up fearing it again.
Note: Blind Citizens NZ is looking into the state of Braille in New Zealand and the development of a strategy for literacy through Braille. This involves several strands that includes working with Blind Low Vision NZ. To be connected with fellow members interested in Braille advocacy, join the Braille Special Interest Network by emailing BlindCitizensNZ-BrailleNetwork+subscribe@groups.io
Acknowledgement of financial support
Categories: UncategorizedBlind Citizens NZ is appreciative of donations received from our members and supporters, for funding from the Lotteries Grants Board, Te Pou, and Blind Low Vision NZ Focus, Volume 60 No 1 – April 2024
Blind Citizens NZ Board | National Office Contacts April 2024
Categories: Uncategorized- National President: Jonathan Godfrey: a.j.godfrey@massey.ac.nz
Members-at-Large
- Martine Abel-Williamson: martine.the1@xtra.co.nz
- Wendy Chiang: wendy.chiang@gmail.com
- Andrea Courtney: andycoute@gmail.com
- Chrissy Fern: fernmeek@gmail.com
- Tewai Halatau: tewaihalatau@gmail.com
- Paula Waby: paula.waby4@gmail.com
- Focus Editor, Áine Kelly-Costello
Email articles to: focus.abcnz@gmail.com - Post: PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242
National Office
Physical: Ground Floor, 113 Adelaide Road, Newtown, Wellington.
Post: PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242.
Email: admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
Phone: 04 389 0033; 0800 222 694.
Fax: 04 389 0030.
Website: https://www.blindcitizensnz.org.nz
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/BlindCitizensNZ/
Chief Executive: Rose Wilkinson: rwilkinson@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
Ways to support Blind Citizens NZ’s Income
Categories: UncategorizedGeneration Efforts
Blind Citizens NZ has both Charitable and Donee status. This is important for anyone thinking about the mutually beneficial outcomes of payroll giving and making us your charity of choice. Income received through donations, bequests and payroll giving for example, go a long way towards supporting the many facets of our work i.e. our advocacy, promotional campaigns, and communication and community education. Making Blind Citizens NZ the recipient of a bequest or legacy, is another way you can support us.
Making a Bequest: Through our efforts and your financial support, we are working on the removal of barriers faced by blind, deafblind, low vision, and vision impaired people. Blind Citizens NZ has been extremely fortunate to benefit from legacies and we take this opportunity to recognise generically, the generosity of those people and their families.
Your Will can make a lasting gift and Blind Citizens NZ would be extremely grateful for any contribution. If you choose to leave a gift to Blind Citizens NZ, we suggest the following will assist your legal advisor…
“I give and bequeath to the Association of Blind Citizens of New Zealand Incorporated (CC41040):
- $ (a specific dollar amount); or
- A specific percentage of my estate; or
- The whole or a specific percentage of the residue of my estate.
Free from all duties and charges, as a contribution to the Association of Blind Citizens of New Zealand Inc to be applied for general purposes only, for which the receipt of the Association of Blind Citizens of New Zealand Inc shall be sufficient discharge to my trustees.”
To find out how we inform those who have pledged their support to us, if you have questions, or you wish to make a contribution contact:
- Rose Wilkinson 021 222 6940 | 0800 222 694;or
- Email: bequest-info-blindcitizensnz@groups.io
Opportunities to regularly engage with the National President
Categories: UncategorizedWe publicised in our December Focus issue, opportunities for members to engage online with the National President Jonathan Godfrey. These opportunities are scheduled to happen on a regular basis and do not have any specific topic allocated i.e. members can raise topics for discussion, clarification etc. The schedule of dates from May to December 2024 inclusive follows. These are held from 5pm-6pm on the following Tuesdays:
- May 14th;
- June 25th;
- August 6th;
- September 17th;
- October 29th;
- December 10th
Membership Renewal Reminder | Form
Categories: UncategorizedIt’s that time of year where reminders to subscription-paying members about membership renewals are issued. Your annual membership subscription can be paid at a Branch or Network event. If this is option is not suitable, there are alternate, safe options to replace the in-person approach. You can ask your bank to assist by making a one-off payment. Asking your bank to set up your membership renewal payment at the same time each year is another option. Otherwise internet and phone banking are options to pay your annual subscription. A renewal form that may be useful when renewing your membership is included in Focus.Page 28 of 32
Join | Renewal Membership Form, 30 June 2025
Membership renewal falls due 1 July annually. You can hand the completed form and subscription to your local Branch Treasurer. If depositing funds into Blind Citizens NZ’s bank account, sending this form complete with all details will be really helpful. You can send mail to PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242. You can email us to admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz, or phone on 0800 222 694.
Unfortunately, we are no longer able to accept cheques. Renewal of your membership by internet banking is encouraged.
Blind Citizens NZ’s bank account details are 06-0230-0002634-00.
Please include your name and the reference “MembSub” and let National Office know you have renewed your membership using online banking.
Full Name: _________________________________________
Address: __________________________________________
Phone No: ________________
Date of Birth: ______________
I prefer to receive information (select preferred format): Braille | Audio | Print | Large Print | Email
Email Address: ________________________________________
Please select your membership category from the options below. Delete information that does not apply. $ 10 / $20 = one year’s unwaged / waged Ordinary Membership. ▪ $ 10 / $20 = one year’s unwaged / waged Associate
Membership (sighted friends and family, etc.) ▪ $300.00 = my one-off payment for Membership-for-Life. I include a donation of: $________.
This is a contribution towards (select from) Board and National Office, or Branch activities
2024 Annual General Meeting and Conference
Categories: UncategorizedHe tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata
The Board has confirmed dates and the venue for this year’s AGM and Conference. We will be at the Sudima Hotel Christchurch Airport. Once again and to make the most of everyone’s availability, and mindful of people’s travel time this will again be held over two days.Page 26 of 32
We start at 9am Friday 18 October and will finish following our Conference Dinner the evening of Saturday 19 October. Business sessions and guest presenters will be spread across the two days.
Financial assistance for ‘first time’ attendees The Board is allocating funds to support ‘first time’ attendees. Funding for ‘first time’ attendees is about providing financial assistance for Ordinary (voting) Members.
To be eligible for financial assistance as a first-time attendee, in addition to this being the first time you would be attending a Blind Citizens NZ AGM and Conference, three requirements need to be met. You must:
- be in a position to make a financial contribution (each situation is determined on a case-by-case basis);
- commit to attending the full two days of the AGM and Conference including the Conference Dinner (attendance can be on a daily basis, or staying at the Sudima Hotel Christchurch Airport.
- be an Ordinary (financial voting) member of Blind Citizens NZ. If you meet these requirements and would like to take advantage of this opportunity, please contact the Chief Executive for further information via one of the following options:
- Email: admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz and put “2024 first-time attendee” in the subject line;
- Post: PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242;
- Phone: 0800 222 694;
Applications for financial assistance for first time attendees close 4pm, Thursday 15 August 2024. The Board will make a final decision about the number of members it can support following the close of expressions of interest.
Registration details (costs etc.), will be publicised in our June Focus issue. They will also be available from our National Office, Branches and Networks by the end of April. To lighten the load a little with paying your registration costs, you can take advantage of the option to pay by instalment. You can find out more and put a payment plan in place by contacting National Office. Each situation is considered on a case-by-case basis.
In the meantime we hope you will save the dates and start planning to come along.
Call for Applications to fill Blind Citizens NZ’s World
Categories: UncategorizedBlind Union Primary Country Delegate Position
Call for nominations
Rule 10 Elections, clause 10.1, directs Blind Citizens NZ in its election procedures. In publicising this year’s scheduled election and the call for nominations, members are advised that: ▪ people currently in these positions are eligible for re-election;
- the term of office for each of the two positions is three years;
- successful candidates will commence their term immediately following the conclusion of this year’s Annual General Meeting and Conference (18-19 October);
- the election for the two positions happens at the same time by a ballot of all eligible Ordinary (voting) Members;
- nomination forms and | or email nomination procedures are available upon request from National Office.
Anyone standing for election is encouraged to take the time to ask for, and become familiar with, the duties and responsibilities of Blind Citizens NZ’s Board Members. This information identifies the much-needed skills, experience and knowledge for a Board Member of Blind Citizens NZ. Additionally details that identify specific skills and expertise required of candidates in this year’s election will be available by mid-May and can be obtained from Blind Citizens NZ’s National Office. These details will also be published in our June Focus Issue. Contact details for National Office are at the end of this Focus issue. Here are the details about timelines and procedure for the election of all positions.
To be eligible for nomination for any position, you must:
- a. live in New Zealand;
- and b. for at least 24 months of the past five years up to and including 29 August 2024, have been a (financial) Ordinary Member of Blind Citizens NZ.
Nominations require two people to support you i.e. one to move and another to second your nomination.
There are two ways nominations can be completed and submitted. You can use a paper form or the email process.
If using the paper form, signatures of all three members involved in the nomination are required. Email procedures similarly require the same people to confirm their respective role in the nomination process. If choosing the email procedure, you are required to contact the Returning Officer at National Office prior to commencing this process. This is important, as there are instructions unique to the email procedure that must be followed. The email procedure mirrors, as closely as possible, the requirements for the paper-based option.
Ordinary Members, financial as at 29 August 2024, are eligible to stand for election to these two positions. The closing date for nominations is 4pm Thursday 29 August 2024. Candidates are required to provide their CV at the same time as their nomination is submitted to the Returning Officer.
Nominations and CVs should be sent to the Returning Officer at one of the following:
- Post: Blind Citizens NZ, PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242;
- Fax: 04-389-0030;
- Email: election@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
Once nominations close, if the maximum number of nominations for the two positions is received, no election will be needed. Candidates will be declared elected unopposed. Should nominations exceed the number of positions being elected, an election will then be held.Page 15 of 32
Voting in the election
Ballot material (names of people standing for election, information they have provided about themselves etc.), will be sent to all Ordinary Members recorded as financial on the member database at National Office as at 4pm, Thursday 29 August 2024. No later than Thursday 19 September 2024, ballot material will be distributed in the voting member’s preferred format.
When does voting close? Completed ballots (votes cast by voting members) must be received at National Office no later than 4.00 pm, Tuesday 8 October 2024. Vote counting will take place no later than Wednesday 16 October 2024.
Ways to cast your vote in Blind Citizens NZ’s election: there are several options available for members to participate in the election process. Election (ballot) material about candidates standing for election is available in large print, audio, Braille, by email, and via our National Feedback Line bulletin on TellMe. If you are in any doubt about what your preferred communication option is to receive information and vote in Blind Citizens NZ’s election, please contact our National Office to check.
You choose your preferred voting option:
When voting in Blind Citizens NZ elections, you can choose one of three options. It is important to remember that the way you vote, can be different from the way you choose to receive your election (ballot) material. You can cast your vote using the large print form, the Braille-card option, or TellMe. For many reasons we encourage members to try TellMe. This offers a truly independent, confidential, and empowering voting experience.
Using TellMe means you can independently do all the things you need to do in an election – you hear about the candidates standing for election, and you can cast your vote. Casting your vote by TellMe means you are in control. This includes certainty that your vote will be received by the due date and time. There is no worrying about whether a postal ballot will reach its destination in time to be counted.
Postal votes offer less certainty that your vote will arrive by the close of voting. If you would like to know more about using TellMe and casting your vote using this option, please contact our National Office.
Applications needed for Blind Citizens NZ’s World Blind Union Primary Country Delegate Position Rose Wilkinson, Chief Executive
Blind Citizens NZ is New Zealand’s country member to the World Blind Union (WBU). The number of delegates (representatives) assigned to country members is based on the country’s population. New Zealand has two delegate (representative) positions. Each of these positions differs in terms of the status given to them. However it is important to recognise that the work the two delegates carry out is complementary and requires them to work together. Each of the two positions must be held by an Ordinary Member (voting | financial) of Blind Citizens NZ. Details to inform interested members about this position are a little further on in this item.
On this occasion the Board is calling for applications for the primary WBU Country Delegate position.
These close 4pm, Tuesday 7 May 2024. At its May 2024 meeting, the Board will finalise its approach and timeline towards short-listing and interviewing candidates. This information will be conveyed to those who have submitted applications.
The Board has determined the term of office for this position will align with the secondary WBU Country Delegate position. Once appointed, the successful candidate will serve their term through until November 2025.
About the WBU Country Delegate Position
Applicants must be aware the successful person appointed to this position, if they are not already on the Board of Blind Citizens NZ as an elected member in their own right, will be co-opted to the Board. This is a constitutional requirement which in turn means the successful person becomes a Board Member. Being co-opted to the Board means the successful applicant is obliged to attend Board meetings and to fulfil the duties and responsibilities expected of a Board Member. The point of reference for this constitutional provision is Rule 6.3 “Co-opting Additional Board Members”.
Applicants should firstly request the WBU Country Delegate position description. It is also advisable to obtain a copy of the role and responsibilities of Board Members. Each of these documents sets out the respective skills, requirements and attributes the Board believes necessary for the person in this role. Applicants shortlisted for this position will be interviewed by a Panel appointed by the Board of Blind Citizens NZ.
Where to send applications
Applications close 4pm, Tuesday 7 May 2024. These are to be submitted to Blind Citizens NZ’s National Office via either of the following two options:
- Email to: admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
- Post to: PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242
Blind Citizens NZ 2024 Scheduled Election
Categories: UncategorizedWho’s an Island? Not me
Categories: UncategorizedJonathan Godfrey, National President
I depend heavily on my computer to get a lot of things done but I really do not like having all of my life constrained by what I can do with it. Most of the time spent on my own involves my laptop whereas most of my time when I can forget all 21st century technology involves spending precious time with people.
I’m starting to be more aware of something that is affecting me, and as I tell others, I discover I’m not alone. Online environments are often necessary but are also demanding a lot of my energy. I find online meetings and classes much more tiring than face to face ones; I seem to be forced into communicating with more and more people using my computer; and due to lack of use, I don’t have a reliable landline at home or at work anymore. I check stock availability for supermarkets by looking online too. It even looks like I can’t start a new hobby without spending a bunch of time online, checking prices across town and doing comparisons with online stores.
I have had some experiences of late looking online for products which have left me feeling shut out and bereft of the information I need to get on and enjoy my new hobby. That said, I have also had some amazing interactions with people, both real face to face people and some by way of an email exchange.Page 9 of 32 I’m willing to bet that most of you who have tried to purchase something online have found the product descriptions woefully inadequate. Has the store just taken a photo of the item and decided you can read all the information on the back of the packet? Does the photo even show a sighted person what could be read if they had the item in hand? I suspect that some blind people only buy items they have a high degree of familiarity with, or take an occasional punt on a new product even without the details they’d get in store. My closest supermarket does the photo thing for a lot of products; so do major hardware stores; so do many of the major big barn retailers across the country. They seem to be allowed to get away with not passing on all consumer information even to their sighted customers.
However, often a description isn’t enough and I need to get my hands on some things to see how they are used. Are they too fiddly, too flimsy, or utterly useless unless I find a sighted person to help me set them up. In the end, I have to make a phone call or pay a visit
So, back to my new hobby. I’ve managed to get to a few stores to see what they actually sell; one key store’s website is actually very 20th century and does not list any products at all. That antiquated business model was the store that had the most things I needed to put my hands on to understand so the trip was worth it. However, their prices are on the high side so purchases were made sparingly. This led me back to the second-hand market, online retailers and thus the joys of inadequate product descriptions.
I’m the annoying TradeMe customer that asks people to write descriptions.
I ask them to actually take measurements (using real scientific units), and then asks for more specifics on the suburb I must travel to so that I can estimate the cost of the taxi versus a courier. My interactions have frequently gone unanswered, but a couple have worked out very well indeed. My work for Blind Citizens NZ takes me to Wellington often so I’m making purchases down there as well. I bought three large bottles (five litres) off one bloke having a clean-out of his storage unit; our email exchange and chat were so pleasant that he’s just sent me another message now that he’s found a fourth bottle. I expect to pick that up in a couple of weeks’ time.
OK, you’ve been told my new hobby could be expensive and involves five litre bottles (glass by the way, not plastic). You may have guessed already or have found out via an email list discussion, but for everyone else, I’ve started making wine and beer at home. I am still investigating the merits of a home distillery unit, none of which are on sale in Palmerston North. My interest initially came about courtesy of another hobby (gardening) and the consequential glut of fruit that falls off heavy- producing feijoa trees. Having realised that I need my children’s help to eat my way through the harvest from four trees, I had to think quite seriously about the problem I’ve made for myself by planting sixteen more feijoa trees at the farm. Last year’s first go at feijoa wine was pretty successful so we’ll do that again in the next month or two. My apple tree at home feeds the family; we’ve dehydrated it, frozen it, juiced it, and even eaten some without processing of any kind. We still have surplus though, so cider season is also soon upon us. By the way, making cider vinegar is really easy; I will never purchase it again in my life. I’ve worked out how to process 15kg of plums in three days too.Page 11 of 32 The by-products of all of this fermentation are good in desserts and smoothies.
“But Jonathan, how do you read the hydrometer so you know how much alcohol you’re brewing?” I don’t. I currently rely on sighted assistance for that. I have also had a really helpful response from an online Australia-based customer care service. I noticed on their website they said that if I could not use the pdf recipes, I should email them and a plain text copy could be sent to me. In my email, I mentioned being blind. In my second email, I pointed out that I couldn’t read the hydrometer. The helpful response to that included a link to a product description and a YouTube video, as well as to a shop that sells the product in New Zealand. That’s great assistance from a beer-loving aussie! I’m keen to get one of these gadgets because it will talk to my phone, and my phone talks to me. But my internet searching has told me there currently isn’t one in stock anywhere in New Zealand. I will continue to rely on sighted assistance for a while it seems.
Embracing new technology is what has helped keep me efficient and effective in my work, and actually also in my fun time too. My new hobby could prove very expensive if I didn’t shop around a lot, including using online stores and the second-hand market. Being able to ask people questions and get my hands on things has proven crucial to get this new hobby and the feijoas off the ground.
People are essential to me for my enjoyment of life; in fact, there isn’t much I really like doing completely on my own. I chose a profession that links me to people; I chose to start a family, and I do tend to choose hobbies and pastimes that end up bringing family or friends into that hobby/pastime too.Page 12 of 32 My conclusion is that this man is not an island. I strongly suspect that the most successful blind people aren’t completely self- reliant; they have a need to work with other people to get on in life. Is this independence? Yes and no. I am currently interdependent on others for much of what I do and I’m totally OK with that.
I need to work “with” people to bring out the best in me. P.S. my next intellectual challenge is to work out how to fill a bottle to within 40mm of the top without wasting any of the liquid coming out of the fermenter. Will I do this on my own one day? Who knows.
PPS by the time you read this, the last of the 2023 feijoa wine will have been consumed. There was not enough to share.
Taking heart from the past to chart a path forward
Categories: UncategorizedIn my final Focus editorial, I’m stepping back to reflect on where blindness advocacy has come from and ask us to find courage as we continue.
He whakataukī: ka mua, ka muri – looking back to look forward Change never comes quickly or easily for marginalised groups but there is a long and proud history of blindness advocacy in Aotearoa, in no small part due to the efforts of what is now Blind Citizens NZ. At its formation in 1945, the Association was one of the only disability advocacy organisations in the country. With this comparably early head start on organised advocacy, in 1958 blind people won non-means-tested benefits, a victory whose impact endures to this day. Our pioneers also recognised the value of a publication by and for our community, and the foundation of this magazine, Focus, dates back to May 1962.
During the 90s and early 2000s, our community was calling the shots in our main service provider. Blind people successfully co- designed its new Parnell precinct so that it would meet the needs of blind advocacy, social and recreation groups. Most of the organisation’s senior management leadership team was blind. Visionary members of our community also rewrote its constitution, bringing out self-determination officially into action by turning it into an Incorporated society where we could elect our governance board ourselves.
What I see from these wins is a clarity of purpose and a courage to collectively stand up for our people.
I don’t think that courage is gone but among the fragmented, complex landscape we all live in now, we have to work that much harder to channel it and to recognise that the wins of years past were starting points and not the end of the road.
As the late matua Moana Jackson said, “to be courageous to me, is just the deep breath you take before you make a hard decision”. The knowledge about the gains made by and for our blind community in the past are the assurance and spirit we need to hold to when change feels impossible.
Take the welfare system. Non-means tested benefits for blind people was a massive victory but 75 years later, blind people in a relationship with sighted people are still impacted by MSD’s penalising relationship rules preventing one from accessing the non-means tested Supported Living Payment entitlement, impacting the SLP if the sighted partner earns too much. Meanwhile, and more significantly, barriers to accessing SLP at all are hugely more significant for the rest of our disabled community. Even for those who get it, they lack the automatic non-means-tested right we have access to. Many are also noticing an upswing under this current Government in being forced to go through more rigorous medical verifications of long- term conditions which haven’t changed. May our solidarity with our wider community be loud and unrelenting towards liveable incomes for all.
Turning now to the question of blind leadership in general and especially in our main service provider, we can’t underestimate the importance of backing our own people.Page 5 of 32 While the ability Blind Low Vision NZ’s membership have had for the past two decades to elect a board of our choosing is notable, even under such an arrangement, not a single member of Blind Low Vision NZ’s senior management team is blind, nor has there been a blind member since the most recent member left six years ago. Contrast this with the five blind members of senior management employed in the late 90s. I am aware that in the recent Chief Executive recruitment process, the Board had the chance to appoint a blind candidate with the requisite skills to run the organisation. Meanwhile, the successful candidate – and I do wish her the best nonetheless – isn’t previously known to our community, is sighted, and hasn’t worked in the disability sector before. If the board of the day and CE cannot be relied upon to appoint people who know and our trusted by our community, I’m not sure how we in turn are meant to trust those managers not to further erode an organisation which in recent years has been egregiously impacted by the KPI-driven managerial focus of its former Chief Executive, and lost most of its institutional knowledge by outsourcing core services and creating a work culture many former employees found untenable. Speaking of blindness services and supports, despite the regressive recent move reducing disability support funding to remain within a capped budget, I hope we will still be moving gradually towards personalised budgets under Enabling Good lives. As such, it’s a good exercise for all of us, I think, to determine what we consider some essential pillars of blindness services and supports which should not be eroded or indeed should be re-established and adapted under whichever organisation(s) are best placed to do so.Page 6 of 32 To my mind these include orientation and mobility, adaptive daily living, funding for canes and glasses, funding for adaptive blindness tech (which isn’t tied to work or study), technology training, equipment shop, Braille instruction and provision, guide dogs, professional counselling, the library, accessible format services, peer support, and recreational activities including locally-organised gatherings and regional/national camps. Many of these offerings could be funded individually as is the direction of travel under Enabling Good Lives, and others may best be funded in a lump sum budget to the provider(s). I hope that disabled-led services are prioritised in service procurement processes. Eligibility should extend to everyone lawfully living in Aotearoa who is blind or functionally blind, and kaupapa Māori and Pacific offerings should be well-funded core offerings, not considered optional add-ons.
The shifting digital context is a notable feature of the 2010s and 2020s, and the connectivity afforded by voice and video calling platforms like zoom and Microsoft Teams is game-changing particularly as it’s also an accessible option for those who are still using landlines or who are new to using a computer without sight. Blind citizens NZ has leveraged this to gather members’ input on topics from the blindness education curriculum to Total Mobility, and I know that Auckland Branch and possibly others have been diligent in endeavouring to provide a hybrid zoom option for meetings too. This connectivity can also pave the way for regional or national issue-based organising or other less formalised ways for members and wider blind community to connect, even if in- person branch/network meetings don’t exist in their area or aren’t so good a fit.
I have also observed that, as someone in my late 20s, most of my peers don’t spend much if any time on email lists but are more active on a variety of social media platforms. Finding and maintaining a variety of ways to connect that can serve the massive diversity of our membership and the wider community both socially and for advocacy remains essential.
Thinking about what it means to be an organisation located here in Aotearoa, as Pākehā I’m heartened by the fairly recent organisation of Blind Citizens NZ Māori members into the Te Tiriti o Waitangi group. I hope that they will be unafraid to take the time they need to figure out what they’d like tino rangatiratanga for Māori to look like within Blind Citizens NZ and to challenge all of us members and especially Pākehā to embrace this. To this Group, kia kaha, kia maia.
Turning to the very publication you’re reading this in, I’m signing off as editor for now and hopefully handing on the baton of Focus editor should someone wish to pick it up. I want to thank those of you who’ve written for Focus during my tenure, who’ve read articles or given feedback, and who’ve contributed to many discussions which have informed my thinking about what topics to cover and how. Ngā mihi maioha ki a koutou. Most of you will be aware of the large-scale cuts and ending of shows across Newshub and TVNZ in recent times and society is the poorer for that.
Investing time and money in the fourth estate is a core pillar of accountability to power. Media by, with and for our community remains as critical as ever. This very likely won’t be the last time I have something to say in Focus, and/or in whatever shape or form Blind Citizens NZ media may take into the future. I encourage all in the blind community to contribute to keeping our media going.Page 8 of 32
Inspired by the words of matua Moana Jackson across all the areas where our community don’t yet have the resources and means to thrive as we could be, may we all take many courage- filled /deep breaths to back ourselves and back each other. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā rā tātou katoa.
Acknowledgement of Financial Support (Dec 2023)
Submitted: Thursday, December 21, 2023Categories: Uncategorized
Blind Citizens NZ Board (Dec 2023)
Categories: Uncategorized- Board
- National President: Jonathan Godfrey: a.j.godfrey@massey.ac.nz
- Members-at-Large:
- Martine Abel-Williamson: martine.the1@xtra.co.nz
- Wendy Chiang: wendy.chiang@gmail.com
- Andrea Courtney: andycoute@gmail.com
- Chrissy Fern: fernmeek@gmail.com
- Tewai Halatau: tewaihalatau@gmail.com
- Paula Waby: paula.waby4@gmail.com
Blind Citizens NZ Delegates to World Blind Union
- Jonathan Godfrey: a.j.godfrey@massey.ac.nz
- Thomas Bryan: tsbryan@gmail.com
Focus Editor, Áine Kelly-Costello - Email articles to: focus.abcnz@gmail.com
- Post: PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242
National Office - Physical: Ground Floor, 113 Adelaide Road, Newtown, Wellington.
- Post: PO Box 7144, Newtown, Wellington 6242.
- Email: admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
- Phone: 04 389 0033; 0800 222 694.
- Fax: 04 389 0030.
- Website: https://www.blindcitizensnz.org.nz
- Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/BlindCitizensNZ/
- Chief Executive: Rose Wilkinson: rwilkinson@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
Blind Citizens NZ is appreciative of donations received from our members and supporters, and for funding from Blind Low Vision NZ
National Office Closing and Opening for Christmas and New Year
Categories: UncategorizedIt’s been another busy year and the Board and I have begun mapping out the necessary approach to our work for 2024. As we begin to wrap up the year for 2023 I encourage members to stay in touch with Branches and Networks for information that comes from National Office. Alternatively, let me know if you wish to directly receive information that comes out. You can contact me via 0800 222 694 number or email admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz Phone calls and emails will be passed along to me for my attention.
Our National Office closes at noon on Thursday 21 December 2023. We reopen on Wednesday 17 January 2024. In between times and although I am on annual leave, I remain available as always for emergency situations.
Last but not least to our members, supporters, stakeholders and readers, from the Board and staff of Blind Citizens NZ, all the very best for Christmas and the New Year and above all else, stay safe. We look forward to engaging and | or working with you in 2024
Blind Citizens NZ Braille Special Interest Network
Categories: UncategorizedBlind Citizens NZ now has a Braille Special Interest Network. This brief news item is intended to let Braille users and readers, and anyone aspiring to learn Braille about this recent development. A key element of Special Interest Networks is that it is the topic that attracts people’s interest and where peer support flourishes.
Although a majority of members of a Special Interest Network must be Ordinary (voting) Members of Blind Citizens NZ, anyone who is blind, vision-impaired, deafblind or has low vision who is not a member, can also join.
Chantelle Griffiths is the elected Coordinator of the Braille Special
Interest Network. The Network’s first AGM will happen between 1 July and 31 August 2024.
If you have email and would like to be connected to this Network, you can send a request to join by using the following email address: BlindCitizensNZ-BrailleNetwork+subscribe@groups.io
As the Network creates its way of supporting each other and sharing experiences etc., there will be information provided on a regular basis on our TellMe bulletin.
For further information please feel free to contact the National Office on 0800 222 6940 or email to admin@blindcitizensnz.org.nz
Opportunities to engage with the National President throughout 2024
Categories: UncategorizedAs indicated in National President Jonathan Godfrey’s Focus column, he will be setting aside time on a regular basis to engage with members on topics you might like to raise. These opportunities will be quite separate to any other opportunity that might be offered for a specific reason such as for example, the Total Mobility Scheme which will be a specific topic during April or May 2024.
Dates for these regular opportunities with the National President via ZOOM, where people can join by phone or using other technology, will routinely be held from 5pm-6pm on the following Tuesdays:
- February 20th;
- April 2nd;
- May 14th;
- June 25th;
- August 6th;
- September 17th;
- October 29th;
- December 10th.
Timely reminders along with Zoom details will be provided via our TellMe bulletins, Branches, Networks and email.
Focus Editor
Categories: UncategorizedÁine Kelly-Costello produced their first Focus publication and editorial in June 2022. At the time of their two-year appointment, Áine explained that due to a range of commitments they would likely not be available for a further term. March 2024 is when Áine’s term comes to an end and they will provide their final Focus editorial. It is for this reason that the Board is calling for expressions of interest from amongst Ordinary (financial) Members of Blind Citizens NZ for our Focus Editor position. The Board will consider expressions of interest in the Focus Editor position during its July 2024 meeting.
Key aspects for prospective editors to bear in mind when expressing interest include that:
- the appointment will be for a two-year term (and may be renewed at the Board’s discretion);
- Focus is the official national publication of Blind Citizens NZ;
- Focus is sent to all members who are registered on our database as of 1 July 2018 in their preferred format (audio, Braille, large print, electronically) and it is uploaded on Blind Citizens NZ’s website;
- Focus is the mechanism for communicating a number of constitutional requirements such as notices of the national AGM and Conference and scheduled elections;
- Blind Citizens NZ’s membership is the target audience but the publication is provided to all Members of Parliament, stakeholders, supporters, etc;
- editorials are intended to raise and promote debate on issues that are current and topical to the blindness community, and stimulate reader-interest in submitting ‘Letters to the Editor’; and
- there is an opportunity for the Focus Editor to bring their editorial style to Focus.
Anyone interested in finding out more should contact National Office for full details of the position. Áine is also happy to talk to anyone considering applying for the role. You can contact them using their personal email ainekc@gmail.com
Expressions of interest close 4pm, Tuesday 2 July 2024.
Challenging Others Challenging Ourselves
Categories: UncategorizedBlind Citizens NZ’s 2023 AGM and Conference was held from October 13-14 at the Naumi Auckland Airport Hotel. Approximately 65 attendees participated in-person and online via Zoom or the YouTube livestream. This article provides some highlights of the AGM and Conference. More in-depth details will be available in the Minutes.
The day prior to the AGM and Conference three very separate, informal events happened. Whilst publicised at short notice these events for people to attend in person reflect items topical to the blind community. They are also relevant to Blind Citizens NZ’s ongoing programme of work. Attendance was open to anyone from the blind community to join in-person (not just members of Blind Citizens NZ). Events by topic were held in relation to:
During each of these occasions, participants talked freely within their group, sharing related aspirations, experiences and areas that Blind Citizens NZ might potentially address. For many attendees the opportunity also provided much-valued peer-support. There were ‘report-back’ opportunities during the AGM and Conference during which outcomes could be shared. Some reporting back influenced resolutions for the Board to action.
Blind Citizens NZ continues to build knowledge as it progresses on its Te Tiriti o Waitangi journey. The Board’s Te Tiriti o Waitangi Advisory Group comprises John Puhara, Daniel and Harete Phillips, Victor West, Maria Stevens, Joseph and Francis Twomey, and Sharleen Tongalea. Working alongside Te Huia Bill Hamilton, the Tiriti o
Waitangi Advisory Group’s work influenced tikanga for Blind Citizens NZ’s AGM and Conference. This influence was evident throughout the AGM and Conference and will continue to be developed moving forward.
Immediately following the Conference opening by Paula Tesoriero, Chief Executive Whaikaha | Ministry of Disabled People, we enjoyed a performance by the Kapa Haka Group from Mangere Bridge School. This group of tamariki | young people aged 8-12 led by Matua Jordan Kaie gave an outstanding performance. Description from Audio Described Aotearoa highlighted what the group was wearing, facial expressions, along with body movements and actions for each of the songs performed.
- Blind Citizens NZ’s Guide Dog Handler Special Interest Network, bringing together current and aspiring Guide Dog Handlers.
- Braille – an opportunity for users and readers of Braille to discuss the potential for a Braille Special Interest Network.
- Te Tiriti o Waitangi – members of the Board’s Advisory Group talked about the work they are doing in relation to Blind Citizens NZ’s journey to being more inclusive of everyone.
Guest presenters spoke to the theme ‘Challenging Others, Challenging Ourselves’, each bringing their thinking and experiences to the forefront, while relating these back to the purpose of their presentation. Presenters were:
- Paul Hutcheson, mediator and facilitator;
- Prudence Walker – Kaihautū Tika Hauātanga Disability Rights Commissioner;
- Joy Lanini – National Manager Connections and Funding, Your Way | Kia Roha;
- Ben O’Meara – one of six Deputy Chief Executives to the Chief Executive Whaikaha | responsible of Policy, Strategy and Partnerships;
- Robbie Francis-Watene – Co-founder of the Lucy Foundation.
- Clive Lansink – Chair RNZFB Board of Directors.
Award presentations are always a highlight, and this year was no different…
Beamish Memorial Medal and Bar: This is the first time in Blind Citizens NZ’s history that the Beamish Memorial Medal has been awarded to anyone a second time. A second presentation of this award will be known as the Beamish Memorial Medal and Bar.
Presentation of the Beamish Memorial Medal and Bar was made to each of Mary Schnackenberg and Clive Lansink. This recognises the respective continued outstanding contributions to society by Mary and Clive in their particular fields of service to the community.
Extra Touch Award: Metlink Public Transport | Ngā Waka
Tūmatanu is the recipient of the Extra Touch Award. This recognises their work across the disability community and with Blind Citizens NZ in particular to improve accessibility of public transport. Advocacy with Metlink Public Transport has occurred at both a national and with Wellington Branch. Following many years of advocacy Metlink are introducing across the Wellington Region Audio and Visual announcements on its bus services.
Johnston Cup for Leadership: presented to Carl Halliburton, this award recognises the contributions he has made both for and on behalf of Blind Citizens NZ. Amongst his experiences Carl has been a Board Member, he remains Chair of our Wellington Branch and is moderator of each of Blind Citizens NZ’s Blind-Discuss and Member Forum email lists. Carl’s unassuming manner are amongst factors that influence others.
Remit and Resolutions
For each of the following items, updates will be provided as progress is made.
Auckland Branch’s Remit raising concerns about Braille, and requiring the Board to commission a comprehensive, externally conducted investigation into the state of Braille in New Zealand was passed by a significant majority.
Three resolutions of significance are being progressed and in brief these relate to:
- Guide Dog Handlers and the provision of Guide Dog Services.
- Blind Low Vision NZ Library Service – accessing and using this service.
- Pedestrian Crossing Safety – the variable types of pedestrian crossings and the lack of consistency of implementation of these throughout New Zealand.