Hauora hinengaro: He ara tūroa 2025 conference report
When people gathered at the Hauora hinengaro: He ara tūroa conference in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland in early November, it was a first for more than one reason. The day-long event was the first-time people from across the mental health and addiction sector have met to look at how crisis responses are working for people and their whānau. It was also the first time in over a decade that Australian based TheMHS Learning Network have run an event in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Bringing together over 200 people generated a lot of energy and discussion. The final session led by Ember Innovations was an opportunity for people to explore where we need to head with crisis responses.
The energetic, participatory workshop generated a lot of ideas. These have been documented in a short synthesis report: He Tirohanga o Te Ara Tūroa Bold Directions for the future of Aotearoa's Mental Health System (download link below).
The conversations notes showed “….a strong appetite for courageous system change, collaboration over competition, and investment that honours lived experience, youth leadership, and community power.”
We acknowledge the facilitation by Ember Innovations team led by Anya Satyanand.
To capture the conversations and ideas being shared during the day, illustrator Kim Anderson was on hand. She has created six stunning visual stories that cover each of sessions during the day.
These illustrations are being shared under a Creative Commons licence 4.0. This means you are free to copy, distribute and adapt the material, if you attribute it to Te Hiringa Mahara - Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission and abide by the other license terms. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
Early planning is already underway for a 2026 conference. TheMHS and Te Hiringa Mahara are working in partnership to run Hauora hinengaro: He ara tūroa as an annual event.
For TheMHS executive director Peter Gianfrancesco, this is about more than a conference. “What we do, and what we have been doing for thirty-five years, is bringing people together around rich and current content to move the dial forward on mental health reform. TheMHS should not be thought of as a conference company. It is a movement of people who want to see better mental health services.”
Sign-up to our mailing list to receive regular updates, including event announcements: www.mhwc.govt.nz/sign-up