Stanford said it herself; Hagley is the only School in the country that qualifies for this part-time student fund. They offer a kind of education that is unique and gets incredible results for a wide range of learners. and what's their reward? Funding cuts. 😡😡

I.E 'We want teachers to work even harder, with less resources and achieve better results.'

'Staff from the Ministry of Education Christchurch office have met with Rowan [Milburn, that is!] to discuss ... which covered ways the school could continue to provide services and programmes with reduced resourcing.'

🍫 Pack supplies - bring enough water, food and clothes for changing weather!
💪 Know your limits - don't push yourself too far!
📡Bring a communication device - like Personal Locator Beacons, satellite messenger devices and radios.

I don't think public position carries much weight for the National/Act/NZ First Government...
Public opinion on RSB was 98.7% opposed and they went through with it anyway.

Over the course of four days, it was a real privilege to meet these resilient people who seek to protect and preserve the Tibetan ways and language. It is a story we have seen before.

The exploitation of Tibet for its resources is also ongoing and raises significant concerns, not only in terms of environmental impact; but also, in forcing many Tibetans who have lived traditional nomadic and semi nomadic lifestyles to settle in cities and abandon traditional ways.

There is a deep concern that in Tibet there is a programme to overwhelm Tibetan language and culture. Examples include putting children in Chinese language only boarding schools, preventing young people from becoming monks, and seeking to control the succession of the Dalai Lama.

I also visited the Tibetan Archives where there are thousands of Buddhist manuscripts in Tibetan – often with beautiful calligraphy in gold on rice paper from the 1400’s – where they can be preserved.

She spent two years in gruelling conditions before being released and finally escaping Tibet to find a home in India.

They each gave first-hand accounts of their own experiences in Tibet – including one young woman who, at fifteen years of age, was put in a prison for protesting publicly by shouting things like “Free Tibet” and “Long live the Dalai Lama”.

One of the most moving moments was a meeting with some young people who had recently managed to leave Tibet – one walked for 12 days through the high Himalayas to reach Nepal.

While there have been calls for a free and independent Tibet the position of the Tibetan Administration is that they simply seek autonomy within China and an ability to be Tibetan and live in a Tibetan way. This is the “Middle Way” advocated by the Dalai Lama.

The annexation of Tibet by China and the fleeing of the Dalai Lama in 1959 is well known – and there has long been an international movement to protect the rights of the Tibetan people.

This is a truly extraordinary democracy which seeks to both administrate the affairs of Tibetans in India and to preserve Tibetan culture and language.

I knew that meeting the Dalai Lama would be amazing (and it was), but it was also very special to meet many of the people operating the Tibetan Government in Dharamsala, in India against the foothills of the Himalayas.

hmmmm. I will investigate

🏎Petrol or grocery or store vouchers
🍫Chocolates and other non-alcoholic treats
🎁Rolls of wrapping paper, gift tags, sellotape, gift bags.