Kerrin Vautier To Head New NZAI Advisory Board

8 July 2002

Research economist Kerrin Vautier is to head the new Advisory Board of the New Zealand Asia Institute, Vice-Chancellor Dr John Hood announced today.

“Kerrin Vautier, who teaches competition law in The University of Auckland Business School and holds several company directorships, is well-qualified to chair the Advisory Board,” said Dr Hood.

“A foundation member of the board of the Asia 2000 Foundation of New Zealand until 2001, Ms Vautier was also for the last eleven years the Chair of the New Zealand Committee of the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council. She brings to this position a very wide range of business and academic experience in terms of New Zealand’s relations with Asia.”

The New Zealand Asia Institute was established in May 1995 as a university-wide initiative to promote research, debate and publications on New Zealand-Asia issues, and to strengthen the university’s linkages with external constituencies in New Zealand and in the Asian region.

“The Institute is a key player in our strategic goal of developing international relationships and activities that benefit students and staff and ensure that our university is best placed to make a significant contribution in the wider arena,” said Dr Hood.

“I am pleased that the new board includes representatives from among many of the Institute’s stakeholders. The board will be able to contribute to developing Institute programmes in line with the university’s own strategic priorities for research and for our linkages with Asia. The University of Auckland operates in a city where one in nine residents were born in Asia.”

The other Advisory Board members are:

- Hon Phil Goff MP

- Pansy Wong MP

- Mr Simon Edwards, CEO of HSBC New Zealand

- Mr Lex Henry, a board member of the Asia 2000 Foundation of New Zealand and Special Counsel with Minter Ellison Rudd Watts

- Mr John Maasland, the Chair of the ASEAN/New Zealand Combined Business Council

- Mr Ian Mackley, Managing Director - Corporate with Beca Carter Hollings & Ferner

- Mr Michael Park of the Korean Business Council

- Associate Professor Rajen Prasad of Massey University at Albany

- Sir Paul Reeves, Visiting Professor at Auckland University of Technology and also a member of the Asia 2000 Foundation board, and

- The Directors of the North Asia and South/Southeast Asian Divisions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade (currently Mr Tony Browne and Ms Sarah Dennis).

While essentially a board of external advisers, several senior staff with an interest in the Institute activities also represent the university. They are the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research), Professor Tom Barnes; the Pro Vice-Chancellor (International), Professor Barry Gustafson; the Deans of the Faculties of Arts and of Business & Economics, Professors Douglas Sutton and Barry Spicer; the Head of the School of Asian Studies, Dr Richard Phillips; and Emeritus Professor Nicholas Tarling, who is a Fellow at the New Zealand Asia Institute.

The Institute’s Director is Dr James Kember, formerly New Zealand Consul-General in Hong Kong.

Further information on the work of the New Zealand Asia Institute is available from its website: www.auckland.ac.nz/nzai .

ENDS

© Scoop Media