Wellington conference keeps NZ connected to global Ed Tech industry

This coming June Wellington will host the Ed Tech for Export 2014 (eT4e) conference, showcasing local talent and bringing experts in the global $86 billion education technology industry right to our doorstep.

The focus of eT4e is business growth and global opportunities for local companies and individuals in the educational technology sector. A diverse range of providers in education, training and research will come together with game and app developers, hardware, software and content developers, along with local and international speakers. The conference is organised by Grow Wellington, the region’s economic development agency, and Education New Zealand, and will be held on the 19th and 20th of June.

By 2017, the education technology sector is set to grow to $257 billion globally, says Gerard Quinn, CEO of Grow Wellington. “Wellington as the high tech capital is the ideal centre for this conference, which is key to encouraging the industry collaboration needed to ensure New Zealand enjoys a part of this growth.”

With Wellington companies such as Totara LMS and Learnko, and Auckland company Vital English performing well in global markets, Quinn says New Zealand is already considered a producer of quality and innovative education technology. “However we have to keep up with development and the speed of technological advancement. Today’s children who enter the labour market in ten years’ time will need technological skills that are unknown in education environments today,” he says.

Among those sharing their expertise are Lee Wilson, the CEO of Filament Games in Wisconsin; Dr Erkki Sutinen, head of edTech Research Group from the University of Eastern Finland; Jennifer Carolan, the head of NewSchools Seed Fund in California, a non-profit venture philanthropy firm; and Jan Zawadzki from Hapara, also from California.

Registrations will open next month.

For further information on eT4e 2014 visit