Connections: Rotorua and Eastern Bay of Plenty

Joanna Heslop

Current Location: Wellington
Telephone: 04 439 8007
Mobile: 022 646 5495
Email: joanna.heslop@mfat.govt.nz

Ko Aotea te waka.
Ko Taranaki te maunga.
Ko Waingongoro te awa.
Ko Ngati Ruanui te iwi.
Ko Te Paea Hinerangi te wahine toa.
Ko Joanna Heslop taku ingoa.
I mahi au ki te Manatu Aorere.
Ma whero ma pango ka oti ai te mahi.

I currently work in the Pacific division of MFAT with responsibility for New Zealand’s relationships with Samoa and Cook Islands. My previous role in the International Security and Disarmament Division was varied, with work on bilateral and regional security, peacekeeping, disarmament and counter-radicalisation.  Over the course of my MFAT career I look forward to working in a wide range of divisions and overseas posts. My particular interest is in trying to understand how other people see and interpret the world so as to prevent accidental misunderstandings.

Of Ngati Ruanui Maori and Scottish descent, I grew up in New Plymouth. I gained a Master of Music degree and Honours in English Literature at Victoria University and was a professional opera singer for over a decade. My career took me to Russia, where I was a Soloist of the Academy of Young Singers at the Mariinsky (Kirov) Theatre for almost 3 years. Returning to New Zealand, I undertook a Masters degree in Strategic Studies, winning the Prime Minister’s Prize, and joined MFAT in 2008.

My connections with Rotorua and the Eastern Bay of Plenty are mainly personal, with close friends living there. I won the Lockwood Aria in 1999, performed alongside Ngati Rangiwewehi at the Edinburgh Tattoo in Wellington in 2000 and have returned several times to support causes close to my heart:, regeneration of native bush and fundraising for Books in Homes. I am keen to support the growth and prosperity of the region – an outward-focused, culturally and geographically fascinating part of New Zealand.

As the Rotorua and Eastern Bay of Plenty Connection within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, I will:

• Be a contact point within MFAT for Rotorua and Eastern Bay of Plenty residents with international interests, be they in business, services, arts, culture or other areas;
• Provide relevant information, both into and out of MFAT, on topics that I know to be of interest to my contacts in Rotorua and the Eastern Bay region;
• Maintain an interest in the region throughout my career and bear in mind its interests while I am posted abroad;
• Visit Rotorua and Eastern Bay of Plenty at least once every year while I am based in New Zealand, before leaving to go on posting, and during New Zealand-based leave during my postings.

 

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