The assault on the knowledge commons
New Zealanders' ability to know our own history is under threat - just when we need this knowledge most

Just when we thought there was nothing more to destroy, the government continues its unrelenting assault on our commons. This time our knowledge commons - our knowledge of our own history.
Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage has announced plans to disestablish the majority of its historian positions and get rid of the digital production roles essential for maintaining platforms such as Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand and NZHistory.net, which are a vital source of information about our history utilised by students, researchers and the public. (They are an invaluable go-to for researchers and writers like me.)
This will effectively end decades of vital public history work. These cuts constitute a serious threat to New Zealand’s capacity for historical research, education, and public engagement at a time when such work is more crucial than ever.
This is what three of New Zealand’s leading historical organisations have to say:
PHANZA, NZHA, and NZHTA* express profound alarm and deep opposition to the proposed restructuring of MCH. The changes threaten to dismantle decades of world-class historical scholarship, shutter vital resources for history research, and harm public education. The proposed elimination of historian positions catastrophically reduces the ability of New Zealanders to preserve, discover, and share their stories.
*Professional Historians’ Association of New Zealand Aotearoa, New Zealand Historical Association and New Zealand History Teachers’ Association. See their full statement at this link.
If you care about our history and believe that the government should too, here are some things you can do.
Write to Paul Goldsmith, Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage P.Goldsmith@ministers.govt.nz
Write to Leauanae Laulu Mac Leauanae, Secretary for Culture and Heritage and Chief Executive (via his Executive Assistant: Bridie.Cooper@mch.govt.nz)
Write to Erica Stanford, Minister of Education E.Stanford@ministers.govt.nz
Write to your electorate MP
Write a statement in support of MCH’s historical work to be included in the PSA’s decision and send it to Grace Miller (contact person at the PSA for the historical community on this matter) at grace.millar@psa.org.nz.
This is the PSA news article about it: https://www.psa.org.nz/news-media/govt-cuts-will-undermine-access-to-new-zealands-history
It suits the ACT-driven agenda to remove history from knowledge. If we don't know things were different how can we ever think of changing them. They are tearing down all the useful things which guide policy
-making. They hope to make very small government which privileges the already powerful and wealthy, seem like the "natural" situation. It makes me feel a bit sick.