Ethics

Dio Blue – Ethics Olympiad Andee, Jasmine, Amy, Manon. Ella and Pricilla placed second overall.

Junior School Soapbox winners , L-R: Andee Bell, Jasmine Hughes and Priscilla Bhaga.

At the start of Term 3, an ‘Instagram live’ with experts in ethical fashion Amanda Butterworth, Deborah Crowe and Andrea van der Meel replaced the Ethics Dinner that we had planned and that unfortunately had to be cancelled. They shared fascinating insights about how greenwashing (making an unsubstantiated claim to deceive consumers into believing that a product is environmentally friendly) can drastically alter consumer decisions. They also talked about how COVID and ongoing supply chain issues have impacted the fashion industry.

Under the umbrella of ethics, we have organised the Loves Me Not programme for Year 12 students, which is always movingly received. Loves Me Not is a whole-school approach to prevent abusive behaviour in relationships. It was originally established by the mother of murder victim Elliott. The aims of the Sophie Elliott Foundation are to prevent violence against women by raising awareness about the signs of abuse in dating relationships.

A new initiative was to involve all of Year 10 in a tutor class programme discussing case studies that centred on ethical issues. In Term 3, 26 teams (two New Zealand schools and 24 Australian schools) competed online in the Ethics Olympiad competition. Each ethical case lasted an hour and 15 minutes. Our girls did an incredible job listening to different points of view and engaging in discussions with other teams. They expressed their personal views in a respectful and empathetic fashion.

A senior team won the New Zealand competition and took part in the international final coming fifth. Competing for the first time, our Junior School teams came second and seventh in the Australasian competition. The students were trained by Nina Blumenfeld and Ayelet Zoran-Rosen.

These are exceptional results for Dio, with both teams (Year 6) being among the youngest to compete. Most of the teams were Year 8 students, so our girls did incredibly well!

On Saturday 3 September, Maisie Cavanagh attended the Auckland High School Grassroots to Government introduction at Auckland University. She reports: “We began the day listening to two different stories of how Green MP Chlöe Swarbrick and Labour MP Naisi Chen got into politics as young women. We then had an introductory workshop on public policy, making us think about issues in our lives that we could address and how that would be executed.

“After lunch, community group representatives came in to talk to us about what they do, important issues within their communities and how we, as youth, can make a difference in our communities. This event was a really great way for me to learn more about politics and public policy as well as meeting people who are my age and looking to get into politics. I feel that I have definitely learnt a lot more about how I can utilise my voice within my community and make changes which I feel are needed.”

We relaunched the Junior School Soapbox this year and this was an excellent opportunity for Year 6 students to use their knowledge of the UN Sustainable Development Goals to write a two-minute soapbox speech addressing a topic within their chosen goal. After a couple of lessons with Ms Blumenfeld about what a soapbox was and how to write one, every student presented to their class. From these heats, 12 Year 6 students were chosen for the big final, which was run by the Ethics Prefects. Congratulations to Jasmine Hughes who spoke movingly about poverty; runner-up was Andee Bell and Priscilla Bhaga came third. We were impressed by all the finalists and their ability to express their ideas.

Dio Orange – Ethics Olympiad Nina, Claudia, Zoe, Zara and Emily placed seventh overall.