How I Influence Policy In New Zealand

Holy moly it's July and I have been a blog slacker. As I am already pretty well into my last month of work, I think it is time to start reflecting upon my TRUE purpose in New Zealand... POLICY. DUN DUN DUN. But actually, I'm here to immerse myself in the world of policy, so let's create a sort of flowchart that tracks how my work influences the big boys and girls.

Let's start with MOI.

HELLO THUR

I do research and compile information and relevant, current views/knowledge on a variety of topics, like green technologies, pest management, and demographics.

This information then gets put together by me and my supervisors at the Royal Society of New Zealand, who compile it and present it to...

Experts! Like David Suzuki! Except they're usually New Zealand-based and have knowledge about the topics the RSNZ is writing on and help contribute their expertise to the Royal Society so that they can create comprehensive, concise, and informative issues papers and briefs to...

Parliament. The information hopefully catches the eye of an MP or two who feel strongly about the issue we are presenting. The next step is...

The Prime Minister's cabinet. The current government is the National Party, which is pretty much the equivalent to the Conservative Party in Canada. These ladies and gentlement can then influence...

The Honourable John Key, Prime Minister of New Zealand. This is a picture of him putting back a brewski while Prince William tends to the grill (LIKE A PEASANT). He can, of course, influence how his party votes on bills and if our papers have something to do with moving that forward, then I have done my job!

Of course, the Royal Society of New Zealand is non-partisan and has been working for over a hundred years with different governments and its main goal is to provide well-being for New Zealanders in the realms of science, technology, and the humanities.

It's actually sort of nice to see this all laid out because it let's me know that, yes, I'm getting the policy work done. As much as a twenty-year-old intern can, at least.