NEXT BRANCH MEETING
Wednesday, 20 August 2014, at 5.45pm
Nathan Li will speak on His Experiences as Founder and CEO of Educa
Nathan Li came to New Zealand in 2001 to study Computer Science at Victoria University in Wellington. After graduating, he spent time working in the IT industry. When Nathan’s one year old daughter Nancy first started childcare in 2009, he and his wife constantly felt they were disconnected from her life. “After talking to the early childhood teachers and parents who were in the same situation, I realised it was a common problem. With strong will to make a positive change to the world, I started Educa” says Nathan, the Founder and Managing Director of Educa.
Educa is about bringing education into the digital space. The online portal is designed for early childhood teachers to record, organize and share updates about each child’s education and development. At the next Wellington Branch meeting, Nathan will be talking about his experiences in coming to New Zealand, and setting up his own business, which is now based throughout the country.
Connolly Hall, Guildford Terrace, off Hill Street, Thorndon, Wellington (see map)
(Car park up Guildford Tce beside Hall)
An optional Chinese buffet meal, supplied by the Fujiyama Café, will follow the meeting at 7 pm. Orders for the $11.00 meal (please pay at the door) will be taken up till 6pm. If you think you may be arriving late, please let the Secretary know in advance.
MEETING DATES FOR REST OF 2014
The dates Connolly Hall has been booked for monthly meetings for the rest of this year are 17 September, 15 October and 19 November.
ALSO COMING UP THIS MONTH
9, 16, 23, 30 August, 3.15 pm Mandarin Corner, 20 Kelburn Parade
28 August, 7.15pm Chinese Film: Ordinary Heroes, Committee Room 1, 101 Wakefield Street.
12 September, 12.15pm Happy Everyday: Park Life in China, The Film Archive, Wellington
REPORT FROM LAST MEETING (from Kirk McDowall)
On the 20th July 2014, the Wellington branch of the New Zealand China Friendship Society (NZCFS) welcomed John Lake, Wellington photographer and participant in the Wellington Asia Residency Exchange, which is a collaboration project between the Asia New Zealand Foundation and the Wellington City Council. John travelled to Beijing for three months in September 2013 in association with Up the Punks, a project that focused on punk culture in New Zealand.
The Up the Punks project first began in 2000 in Wellington. In 2012, an exhibition was held in the capital that focused on telling the story of punk culture from individual’s perspective, with the use of social media. As a result of John’s experiences with the Up the Punks project and his involvement in this field, he applied for the Wellington Asia Residency Exchange. His proposal aimed to expand on the ongoing project by exploring cross cultural interaction in regards to punk culture in New Zealand and China. As well as highlighting the similarities and differences between the two countries, it aimed to help connect the two countries through greater awareness and understanding of one another.
John first travelled around Northeast Beijing and stayed in migrant villages that were undergoing urban growth. A main purpose of his proposal was to be involved with the local community, specifically members of the local art district. In order to understand the context surrounding punk culture around Beijing and China, John spent time going to different villages and cities and talking with people involved in this culture. This occurred at the local level and often meant going to concerts and bars associated with punk, heavy metal and rock music. He documented the experiences through photography and interviewing a number of bands, from the first generations to current bands, as well as expats in the area.
From these discussions, a number of key ideas became apparent. These included highlighting the pace of change in the community, with a growing focus on material wealth rather than family and community bonds. This led to an increasing alienation of individuals or areas, especially for those places that were not considered to be developing. In addition, the challenges and expectations surrounding today’s youth, as well as the opposition to authority and influence of westernisation. These were often incorporated into the lyrics or influenced members of the bands. Similar ideas are apparent in punk culture not only in New Zealand, but around the world.
In order to share aspects of New Zealand punk culture with local Chinese citizens, Up the Punks set up a kiosk in a shopping centre and gave a performance to shoppers. Through this, they shared information about New Zealand, its culture as well as the similarities and differences between the two countries.
Upon returning to New Zealand, John produced an exhibition in Wellington that focused on online media. He was also involved in producing a bilingual punk magazine that is available online. There was a strong focus on raising awareness and sharing the findings from his trip with the local level, as this is where punk culture is most apparent in China as well as New Zealand. Up the Punks highlights society’s interpretation of punk culture and its evolution over time, but it also reinforces the importance of forming connections with different people and communities around the globe. As shown from John’s experiences in Beijing, culture is one way to help create and maintain this bond. If you would like to read more information about John’s experiences in Beijing and the Up the Punks project, please visit www.upthepunks.co.nz/.
REPLACEMENT TREASURER
Eugenie McCabe, our current Branch Treasurer, regretfully cannot continue in her role as Treasurer for personal reasons. If you are able to help, or know someone who can, please contact one of the members of the committee.
NEW MEMBER – The NZCFS Wellington Branch welcomes Pengbo Jiang as a new member to the organisation.
SUBSCRIPTION RENEWAL REMINDER
Please remember that 2014 membership subscriptions renewals are now overdue. We will endeavour to contact any members who have not yet renewed.
NEW ZEALAND CHINA FRIENDSHIP SOCIETY FUTURES GROUP
NZCFS Quiz Night
The NZCFS Youth Quiz Night held on 11 July was a great success. Approximately forty people joined the quiz night, including Branch President Michael Powles, Asia NZ Executive Director John McKinnon and Chinese Embassy Cultural Secretaries Yuan Yuan and Han Lixin.
The quiz questions focused on New Zealand and China, and included entertainment, geography, current affairs and wicked facts. The winning teams received gifts from the Wellington Branch and the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China. Bubble Milk Tea was donated by Noah’s Art Teahouse. All teams did very well in the quiz, and three teams drew for first place! The winning team was decided by guessing the current population of China, and the team with the closest guess won (it is currently 1,392,472,656). We hope to organise another quiz night in the near future so keep an eye out for it.
NZCFS Youth Website
Remember to check the NZCFS Youth Website, which is available at www.nzcfsyouth.org. The site contains articles from members of the NZCFS, showing their experiences from New Zealand and China, as well as information and events. This site will be running in conjunction with the main NZCFS website. If you would like to add an article to the website, feel free to contact Faye or Kirk ([email protected]). Make sure to check out the Facebook page as well, www.facebook.com/NZCFSWellington, to learn more about this group.
CHINESE FILM 中国电影 – Thursday 28 August 2014, 7.15pm
Venue: Committee Room One, Wellington City Council, 101 Wakefield Street. Gold coin donation. With support from Confucius Institute, Victoria University of Wellington
千言万语 Ordinary Heroes (128 minutes, 1999 Movie)
Director: 许鞍华 Ann Hui Cast: 李丽珍Rachel Lee，李康生 Lee Kang Sheng，黄秋生 Anthony Wong，谢君豪 Tse Kwan Ho
Ordinary Heroes is a dramatic representation of true events surrounding an Italian Priest (here called Kam, and played by Anthony Wong) in the world of HK political activism during the 1970’s and ’80s. It is interwoven with the fictional story of a girl named Sow (Rachel Lee) who is suffering from amnesia after an accident. Her boyfriend Tung (Lee Kang-Sheng) is trying to help her remember who she is.
80年代香港故事，人的命运随着时代大潮起伏。 失去记忆的凤在暗恋她多年的东支持和帮助下把记忆巡回。一首熟悉的调子“千言万语”，以及她最不愿记起，一个令她放纵痴恋的男人。
MANDARIN CORNER 汉语角 3.15pm – 4.30pm on Saturdays during school terms
Seminar Room, 20 Kelburn Parade, Victoria University of Wellington.
The Confucius Institute has available a team of Mandarin Language Assistants and other resources which will greatly benefit Mandarin Corner. NZCFS Wellington and NZ Chinese Language Association Wellington are partners. If you wish to improve your Chinese language skill, share your China experiences or talk to someone who has been or lived there, this is a great place to go. To find out more, please do not hesitate to contact Cici（孔璟瑗）[email protected] 欢迎大家！
Bonus: Snacks and drinks are provided.
HAPPY EVERYDAY: PARK LIFE IN CHINA AT THE FILM ARCHIVE
The New Zealand Film Archive will be showcasing the documentary film, Happy Everyday: Park Life in China, which immerses the viewer in a version of retirement unlike anything seen in the West – elderly ravers cutting loose to pounding techno and mass maraca troupes trancing in unison. New Zealander Peter O’Donoghue shot, directed and edited this entertaining, ambivalent picture of recreational activity in the leafy public parks of Shanghai and Beijing. There are some marvellous displays of senior fitness, and some sharp dance moves too.
12.15pm on Friday 12th September at the Film Archive, Wellington. Ticket price is $8, which includes a cup of homemade soup.
UPCOMING NZCFS TOURS
• Garden and Missionary Tour 2015 late April-May: Shanghai/Suzhou, Sichuan, Beijing, with a range of different garden styles from the three locations, including classic gardens, a water village, public parks, and pandas.
• Explore China – The North Central Region 2015 late July–August: this tour will focus on Inner Mongolia, and central North China to the south of this vast province. It will aim to be there in time for the range of cultural festivals of the Mongolian people.
• Photographers Tour 2015 September 5-27: it will visit the west, in Sichuan, Tibet and Yunnan provinces, and travel at a photographers pace with plenty of time to capture the diverse landscapes, people and exotic cultures.
For more information see nzchinasociety.org.nz/news/tours-to-china/ or email [email protected].
“REWI ALLEY IN CHINA” 
A gallery of photographs displayed in the “Rewi Alley in China” exhibition at the Canterbury Museum last September is now available for view on our website nzchinasociety.org.nz/17096/rewi-alley-in-china/ This fascinating exhibition, which was facilitated by the Shanghai People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries in conjunction with the Shanghai Municipal Archives Bureau and the New Zealand China Friendship Society, was composed of about 80 framed photos and facsimiles of documents signed by Rewi during his time in China, and Shanghai in particular. Among the exhibits, some related files on Rewi’s work in Shanghai Municipal Council were released for the first time.
The exhibition was in five parts: “Early Life”, “Shanghai Memory”, “Participation in Gung Ho Cooperative Movement”, “Establishing the Bailie School” and “Days in China”.
OBITUARY FOR DAVE FEICKERT, 13 DECEMBER 1946 – 2 JULY 2014
Dave Feickert, long time member of NZCFS, died on July 2nd, 2014, aged 67, after a long battle with liver cancer. He leaves behind his wife, Jiang Bingjing, and daughter, Sonia (by his first wife British author Marina Lewycka), as well as two grandchildren. As President of the Whanganui branch, Dave was on NZCFS National Executive and at Executive meetings. Dave’s objective judgement on issues and his clear statements and contributions to discussion will be very much missed. Members of the Society knew him best as an advocate for coal mining safety standards, in particular in China and here in New Zealand following the Pike River Mine disaster. Dave was known to fight ardently for the underdog, but it is only since he passed away, that we have become aware of the many times during his life when he laid his reputation on the line for those who were unable to do so for themselves.
OBITUARY FOR CECIL FOWLER, 29 June 1921 – 18 July 2014
Cecil Passed away peacefully at home aged 93 on 18th July, surrounded by family. Leader of social change and lover of people, during her lifetime she worked tirelessly in Trade Aid, the Council for Civil Liberties, the NZ China Friendship Society, and the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. Cecil Fowler was made a life member of the Society in 2002. She served on National Executive over a number of years, including two years as National Secretary from 1987-9, and one year as North Island Vice President. She took 7 trips to China, either as leader or co-leader. In the 1990s and 2000s she served as Auckland Branch President at different periods, and on the Auckland Guangzhou Sister City Committee for its duration. Xie Yuan, the President of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, gave his condolences in a letter that can be found at: nzchinasociety.org.nz/Condolences-from-CPAFFC.pdf
