New Zealand as a whole has been incredible for its people and nature. Everyone I’ve interacted with has been friendly and understanding from restaurant staff to random locals. The nature is absolutely stunning. The temperate environment combined with the abundance of tectonic activity creates landscapes like I’ve never seen. My favorite landscape was Piha which had black sand beaches with huge volcanic masses jutting out of the ground.
The major city we lived in, Auckland, has been a fantastic city. The streets are clean, the food is fantastic, city transportation is accessible, and the population is diverse. These aspects reflect cultural differences in New Zealand compared to the United States. One is the focus on nature preservation and cleanliness of cities. For example, before starting a hike in New Zealand, there are shoe cleaning stations that hikers are required to use in order to protect their wildlife, like the massive Kauri trees. Another cultural difference is the recognition and respect given to the native people, the Māori. This is reflected in all of the signage around New Zealand; the first language used is the Māori’s language and next to it is English.
During our visit, I had the opportunity to learn from and speak with New Zealand’s executive director of the chamber of commerce, Mike Hearn. This gave me a new perspective on how New Zealand navigates international trade, relations, and politics. For example, New Zealand has an open trade policy and tries to establish as many trade partners as possible. Compare this to the U.S.’ strategy of tariffs and trade blockage and you can see a major difference in the countries trade strategies. Over the next week in Australia, I look forward to learning their unique geopolitical perspectives as well as their history and culture.
