ICDE World Conference pledges to advance lifelong learning

Co-hosted by Te Kuratini Tuwhera o Aotearoa Open Polytechnic of New Zealand and Massey University Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa, attendees representing open and distance education across vocational and academic higher education shared research and best practice from across the globe. 

Inaugural Education Policy Forum reaches accord 

As part of long-term legacy planning supported by Business Events Wellington, the conference was preceded by an Education Policy Forum for the first time. It attracted more than 250 education leaders, with an opening address from New Zealand’s Minister for Vocational Education, the Hon Penny Simmonds. Participants were united in their commitment to make education more inclusive, scalable, and sustainable for all — especially for the fast-growing number of older learners globally. 

A report on ways to improve education policy collated at the event, dubbed the Tākina Accord, was presented to New Zealand’s key government agencies in early 2026, as well as distributed amongst ICDE attendees globally. 

Conference co-convenor and ICDE President Dr Mark Nichols, who is also Open Polytechnic Executive Director, Learning Design & Development, says: “The event was really around policies that would incentivise education systems that are inclusive, scalable, and sustainable. More broadly, it points to policymakers needing to revisit those policies that appear to assume full-time, 18-year-old students, fresh out from high school.” 

Conference co-convenor and Provost of Massey University Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa Professor Giselle Byrnes adds that the feedback from the forum demonstrated the need to modify tertiary education policy settings and funding mechanisms in New Zealand to reflect learners’ changing expectations. 

Incorporating indigeneity encourages momentum 

Another new feature was the purposeful incorporation of indigeneity as a major theme, with the Māori concept of ako as a touchstone concept anchoring the entire event. Delegates were welcomed to the conference with a traditional Māori mihi whakatau by Ngāti Pōneke. A keynote presentation from Distinguished Professor Linda Tuhiwai Smith CNZM, Ngāti Awa, Ngāti Porou, Tūhourangi, offered a powerful reflection on cultural identity, colonisation and knowledge. 

The feedback from conference delegates regarding the theme of ako was overwhelmingly positive, Byrnes adds. Several delegates committed to bringing this new perspective of knowledge back to their home contexts, and ICDE hopes to feature more Indigenous and First Nations’ voices in future conferences. 

“The conference provided a safe space for participants to explore, acknowledge and appreciate the co-existence of different world views and be exposed to a range of epistemologies and knowledge systems. This was new and exciting for many people.” 

Both Byrnes and Nichols remarked upon the conference’s success, from the glorious Wellington weather to the valuable input of both PCO Conference Innovators and Business Events Wellington. 

“It was a fantastic opportunity to showcase Aotearoa and the manaaki , or hospitality, we could extend to our international and local visitors. Tākina was an outstanding venue in every sense of the word. The catering was terrific, and the location of the accommodation clustered around the conference venue was simply superb. 

“In every respect, it exceeded our expectations in regard to how the conference felt, how it ran, and the buzz that was created.”