Turning Points: 150 years of University of Canterbury history: WORD Christchurch Festival 2023

At its core, history is about stories and narrative. What we tell stories about, how we tell them, who tells them (or doesn’t), what is or isn’t included and why. 2023 marks 150 years for the University of Canterbury and a richly illustrated history of the University is being published to mark the occasion. The WORD Christchurch Festival session Turning Points: 150 Years of University Canterbury History features the editor, Dr Chris Jones, in discussion with its principal author Dr John Wilson, contributors Professor Cheryl de la Rey and Professor Te Maire Tau, and local history writer Margaret Lovell-Smith

Telling stories might be easy, but telling honest stories and ones that might reflect how the past was not like we would want it to be, or what work might still need to be done to create a more open and diverse University is less easy. The past can also surprise us and challenge our assumptions or show us something we didn’t even think to ask about.

As someone who has done it in his own small way, the process of writing history isn’t always simple. How do you tell all the stories you want to tell? How do you choose what is told and isn’t told? How do you make all the stories fit together into something bigger (especially when different people are writing them)?

For this book, many of those telling the stories of the University’s 150 years have strong connections with it: whether as students or employees. This panel discussion event looks like it’ll be a great insight into how they wrote this particular book, but also how the different speakers approach writing history more generally. Come along and learn all about how messy it can be to write history and what it’s like to try and tell the stories of 150 years of an institution and its people!

And why not have a look at some other work these authors have written from our collection:

• Dr John Wilson
• Professor Te Maire Tau
• Margaret Lovell-Smith

Turning points: 150 years of University of Canterbury history
Friday 25 August 12.30pm to 1.30pm

A New History: The University of Canterbury 1873–2023

Take a deep dive into UC's storied history. This richly illustrated, case-bound volume, designed by Aaron Beehre, published by Canterbury University Press, will officially launch on 12 December 2023.
Find out more and register your interest in the book

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