Dame Margaret Bazley receives Blake Medal for leadership

Dame Margaret Bazley receives Blake Medal for leadership


New Zealand’s premiere leadership honour, The Blake Medal, was tonight presented to Dame Margaret Bazley at the Sir Peter Blake Leadership Awards by Governor General, Rt Hon Sir Anand Satyanand at Government House in Wellington.

Dame Margaret is the Chair of both Environment Canterbury and the New Zealand Fire Service Commission and is a member of the Waitangi Tribunal. Tonight she became the sixth recipient of The Blake Medal, the supreme accolade of the Sir Peter Blake Leadership Awards.

Dame Margaret joins a stellar cast of New Zealand leaders on the Blake Medallist honour roll: Sir Ray Avery (2010); Dr John Hood (2009); Sir Murray Halberg (2008); Professor Paul Callaghan (2007); Sir Stephen Tindall (2006); and Sir John Anderson (2005).

Chair of the selection panel, Sir Ron Carter, says Dame Margaret’s successful leadership of a number of important and national committees, working parties and commissions caps her significant contribution to New Zealand in the realms of health, transport, state services and social welfare.

“Dame Margaret’s leadership has transformed public policy and administration in New Zealand. She is seen to be people focused, someone who listens to others, has determination to do the right thing and does not shy away from tough calls.”

As well as honouring one outstanding leader, the Sir Peter Blake Leadership Awards recognise six Emerging Leaders demonstrating considerable potential.

This year there was a Special Leadership Award presented to Sam Johnson, the founder and leader of the Canterbury Student Volunteer Army, which was organised following the earthquake on September 4, 2010.

The 2011 Emerging Leaders are (in alphabetical order by surname):

Name Title Pursuit Age Region
1 Raelene Castle CEO Netball New Zealand 40 Auckland
2 Dr Andrew Coy CEO Magritek 43 Wellington
3 Rebecca Elvin Lawyer Currently completing Master’s degree in Conflict Resolution at King’s College in London 27 Tauranga
4 Derek Handley Founder The Hyperfactory 33
5 Tawera Nikau CEO Aotearoa Construction. Former rugby league player; contribution to Huntly community and wider New Zealand 44 Huntly
6 Heather Skipworth Founder IronMaori 40 Hastings

Chief Executive of the Sir Peter Blake Trust, Shelley Campbell, says the Sir Peter Blake Emerging Leader Awards provide an opportunity to recognise leadership excellence across a range of fields.

“The Sir Peter Blake Trust encourages the Emerging Leaders to continue to develop their leadership qualities for the good of the nation. This year’s recipients are an outstanding example of how we can all develop our leadership skills in our chosen field and aim to reach our full potential to make a greater contribution to our communities.”

The Sir Peter Blake Leadership Awards were established in 2005 to inspire and celebrate great leadership. The Awards are open to all New Zealanders and selection includes a rigorous process reviewing nominations for leaders from all sectors of society.

The selection panel for this year’s awards is made up of a group of New Zealand leaders in their own right: Sir Ron Carter (Chair), Mick Brown, Sir Eion Edgar, Dr Lester Levy, Hon Fran Wilde, Sir John Anderson, Jane Huria and Alison Paterson.

The Sir Peter Blake Leadership Awards officially launch New Zealand Leadership Week (1-8 July), which aims to raise awareness of the importance of great leadership and showcase the work that is being done to develop leadership capability throughout the country. More than 150 events are being held across 14 regions.

For more information visit www.sirpeterblaketrust.org/leadership/leadershipweek

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Notes to editors:
Photos and bios for the Blake Medallist, the six Emerging Leaders, and the Special Leadership Award, are available on request. For more information about the Sir Peter Blake Trust and Leadership Week events please visit www.sirpeterblaketrust.org