uLearn23 is a call to action for educators to stand together like kahikatea – our metaphor for strength and unity of purpose.

The uLearn23 theme ‘Kia tū kahikatea!’ challenges us to collaborate as delegates and colleagues to address issues of inequity for learners.

The kahikatea is a powerful metaphor for uLearn. The tallest tree in Aotearoa, it can live for 600 years in the domain of Tānemahuta. It represents stability and sustainability in numbers.

Kahikatea thrive together in groves sheltering other trees like pūriri and kahikātoa. They provide materials for tools, whare and waka, they are canopies for flora and fauna to thrive in. Their roots intertwine in a network which sustains and feeds the grove.

The call to collaborate prompts us to consider ways we can co-design to support equitable outcomes in our learning communities, recognise those allies who can help us to achieve them, and respond to others who seek our support as allies.

uLearn23 brings together diverse leaders and groups who utilise the resources at hand to create local solutions. As we are inspired by the stories, initiatives and solutions brought to the stage, we are asked to consider our roles in challenging inequity – as allies, as ākonga, as whānau, as āinga, as kaiako, kura, school and centre leaders, as funders, as change agents, as civic leaders, and as visionaries. uLearn gives delegates a place and time to ask – What role will I play? How will I get there, and who will be with me?

For uLearn this year we gather with pride in Manukau – the centre of a diverse region, rich in innovation, leadership and wayfinding.

Nō reira me mihi ki ngā whenua o Waikato, o Te Ākitai o Waiohua hoki. We acknowledge the lands of Te Ākitai Waiohua and Waikato iwi.  

The experiences of local Māori and Pacific leaders show us what transformational work looks and feels like, and the opportunities we have to support, participate in, or lead equitable outcomes in education in local, national and global settings.Aotearoa has experienced adversity, our own ‘whakapae ururoa,’ so uLearn23 is an invitation to learn about recent and not so recent challenges being addressed by communities along Great South Road (our conference location), in the surrounding communities, and right across Aotearoa.

With an array of Kaihautū/Keynote speakers, workshops and presentations, uLearn23 equips delegates with networks, challenges and the tools to use in our multiple journeys towards equity for our communities. By the end of the conference we will be reinvigorated and have a stronger sense of unity, motivation and understanding of what’s ahead, and how we will  move forward together.

Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari, he toa takitini | My strength is not the strength of one, it is the strength of many.

A fai ia vave e o’o i lou va’a alo na’o oe. Ai fia tulimamao lou va’a i le taunu’uga tatou aloalo fa’atasi | If you want to go fast go alone, but if you want to go far go together.

Ko koutou, ko mātou, ko tātou!