John Vujcich: History made at Panguru

John Vujcich

A historic meeting of the Kaikohe-Hokianga Community Board took place recently at Panguru, one of our most isolated communities.

The board holds alternate meetings in various locations throughout the ward, to better engage with the people they represent. What made the Panguru meeting historic was that, for the first time, it was streamed live on to the board's Facebook page.

Some large councils, such as Auckland and Christchurch, live stream meetings, but I'm not aware of any other community board that has done it in New Zealand.

The results were spectacular. There were about 20 physically present in total, in itself a much higher attendance then normal, but 300 views online.

"Some large councils, such as Auckland and Christchurch, live stream meetings, but I'm not aware of any other community board that has done it in New Zealand."

Overall there were 700 views, and 2300 engagements. Putting that into perspective, this is far more people than those attending all our council meetings over the last three years combined.

In one sense you could not have picked a more difficult location. The network connection was marginal, the acoustics were poor and the equipment very minimal. But with determination, and commitment of the community board to better engage with its people, difficult odds can be overcome.

Meetings are also specifically structured to enable local people's concerns to be heard. There is an initial open forum, where standing orders are dropped to hear those concerns, the more formal part of the meeting following the agenda.

Community boards are not a committee of council, and stand outside the council. They have a broad role that is not limited to the council's normal domain, and can advocate directly on behalf of their community on any issue and to any entity, including central government.

Don't underestimate the ability of your community board to advocate on your behalf. And they are not limited to the likes of roads, sewerage, footpaths and so on that council is responsible for.

The purpose of live streaming was to make the board meeting more accessible, and I can't think of a better way.

How many young people from Panguru are living in Auckland, Australia or other parts of the world? How many of them have a strong connection with home and want to be engaged in some manner? How many have been forced to leave for lack of job opportunities but still want to see the local community grow and develop?

Through the smart use of technology there is no reason why we cannot engage with all those parties interested in the small community they come from, and enable them to contribute. It is a very good medium to get your concerns out to as wide an audience as possible. It is a very good medium to get your voice heard and advocate on behalf of your community.

Well done Kaikohe-Hokianga Community Board!

Attend the next community board meeting online if you can't make it in person, at www.facebook.com/kaikohe.hokianga.communityboard/