LGOIMA under the spotlight
How well are councils working with the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act (LGOIMA)? This year the Chief Ombudsman launched his first round of...
Category : Communication
Online abuse
Abusive and threatening comments on social media are on the increase. Ruth Le Pla charts the rise of online nastiness towards local body candidates and...
Lance Burdett – Pouring oil on troubled councils
Lance Burdett used to be a crisis negotiator. Now he helps councils handle angry, aggressive or threatening customers. He spoke with Ruth Le Pla about...
Innovations in Council Communications
Council communications must reflect the needs and wishes of very diverse community members. Patricia Moore finds they span everything from radio announcements to Timaru District...
Innovations in digital engagement
Online tools designed to solicit feedback, aid civic engagement, citizen science, ideation, social research and even deliberative democracy are there for the taking. Patricia Moore...
Truth or spin?
We are brokers of the truth – not brokers of good news. Elizabeth Hughes’ continuing series on Local Government 101. The line printed above is...
How to work with the media
Forget media training, says Elizabeth Hughes. Instead, focus on learning about the media, how they operate and what they need – just as you would...
Matamata-Piako adopts 'We Are.' branding campaign
We Write. About branding. Matamata-Piako District Council is one of the first local bodies to take up LGNZ’s “We Are.” branding campaign which is now...
How to Avoid the Kiss of Death
PowerPoint can be the worst possible tool in the hands of some council presenters. Michael Brown shows how to turn it from slave master to...
Councils not so bad at consulting
Auditor-General Lyn Provost’s report Consulting the community about local authorities’ 10-year plans – presented to the House of Representatives recently – says that local authorities have generally...