New Zealand Chinese Language Week 2025 Opening Ceremony Rocks!

Parliament’s Grand Hall was a high-energy mix of modern technology and Wētā wizardry with human connection through language learning and traditional Chinese culture through song at the opening ceremony for New Zealand Chinese Language Week on Monday.

The week runs from August 31 to September 6 and is a celebration of Chinese language learning and culture.

This will be the 11th year that New Zealand Chinese Language Week has been held.

The New Zealand Chinese Language Week Trust was formed in 2014 by a group of academics, politicians, and business people who wanted to encourage the learning of Chinese language.

At Monday’s opening ceremony, there were awards to 21 inspiring language superstars, youth ambassadors, and teachers.

Sir Richard Taylor demonstrated some of Wētā’s technology with a human-sized robot and an unveiling of the company’s massive TCM Cultural Experience Center which opened in Zhuhai, China last month. The TCM Cultural Experience Centre is a real-world example of how building close relationships in China can result in incredible opportunities for creative New Zealand companies such as Wētā Workshop.

A significant report was launched, highlighting the findings and recommendations from the national language learning forum held last month. New Zealand Association of Language Teachers president Juliet Kennedy will discuss the report, which shows that language learning in New Zealand is in its lowest levels since the 1930s, and look at recommendations for the future.

The evening finished with Rangitoto College student Lucy Singleton singing her winning entry in the national Chinese song competition.

New Zealand Chinese Language Week Trust chair Jo Coughlan says language skills not only open doors to opportunities for people, but they also boost creativity, with new neural pathways developing in the brain.

“Learning a new language can make students better at literacy and mathematics as well.”

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