WORLD CONGRESS 2010 – GENERAL INFORMATION
Arriving in Auckland
For those participants who will arrive by air, the easiest way from the airport is by shuttle bus which provides door to door service to Sky City or hotels. If several people are travelling together it is likely to be cheaper and faster to take a taxi. Taxis and shuttle buses leave from designated, clearly marked areas at the Auckland domestic and international airports.
Venue
All sessions will take place at the Sky City Convention Centre in Federal Street, Auckland. The centre is easily accessible from Albert Street via an escalator - opposite the Crowne Plaza Hotel, from the Sky City casino via a sky walkway and from the Federal Street entrance to the Sky Grand Hotel. The congress will take place on Levels 4 and 5.
Parking
If you can avoid parking at Sky City, please do! The parking cost is very expensive, although the early bird price on the Sky City website is $13 per day, in before 9:00am and out before or by 6:00pm. When you park at Sky City parking, remember the colour of the area in which you park, the number of your car park and the end nearest to your vehicle as the car park is enormous and difficult to navigate unless you're very familiar with it. The Auckland Link Bus stops outside Sky City.
Registration
The registration desk will be situated in the lobby of the Sky Walk in the Auckland Promenade and will be open at the following times and dates.
· Monday 12 July 11:00am to 5:00pm
· Tuesday 13 July 7:30am to 4:30pm
· Wednesday 14 July 7:30am to 4:30pm
· Thursday 15 July 7:30am to 4:30pm
At registration you will be able to collect their conference bags, programmes, tickets and names badges. Your registration entitles you to attendance at sessions, morning tea, and lunch. The volunteers will be able to offer information about room locations and programme changes and suggestions about restaurants and sightseeing options in and around Auckland City.
Name badges
We ask that you wear your name badge at all times. You may be refused entry into a room if you do not have your name badge!
Powhiri – official opening
Please be seated in the main meeting room before 6:00pm on Monday 12 July so that the powhiri – the formal welcome - can begin. We have a group of people who will represent the tangatawhenua (local people) and a group of our distinguished guests will represent the manuhiri (the visitors). Please ensure that all cell phones are switched off for this opening.
Author sessions
Congress attendees who have booked an author session will be able to collect their lunch and make their way to the designated room. You will need to present your ticket to secure your entry and your tickets will be in your registration envelopes. We ask that you are prompt so that the sessions can start and finish on time. The chairpeople will have to have the room evacuated in time for the afternoon sessions.
Room capacity
Presentation rooms are set up to accommodate the maximum number of participants that regulations permit. If a session is at full capacity, please be considerate of your colleagues and select another session.
Books for Oceania
Members of the IRA International Development in Oceania Committee are collecting books for distribution to schools in the Pacific. This year the committee will be sending books to schools in the Cook Islands and in Samoa. Scholastic NZ Ltd will have a stand of books near the registration desk and for every book purchased, Scholastic will donate dollar for dollar and will organise for the delivery of the books. The stand will be open from 10:00am to 2:00pm on Tuesday and Wednesday and from 10:00am to 12:00 noon on Thursday. Please give generously to support children in the Pacific.
Restaurants, cafes and bars
The Auckland Central Business District is well served with a variety of places for eating and gathering. The Sky City complex has over 10 restaurants, and the surrounding streets offer a wide range of food that represents the ethnic diversity of Auckland City. The Viaduct Basin is less than 10 blocks from Sky City and has a multitude of exciting eateries.
Local supermarket
For those participants who are staying in self catering accommodation there is an excellent supermarket (New World Victoria Park) about six blocks away. This supermarket is open from 7:00am to midnight each day and has an incredible selection of fresh fruit and produce, take away meals and an extensive range of wines and beer. New World Victoria Park also has a bus service for customers.
School visits
On the Monday following the congress, a selection of Auckland schools will be hosting visitors. This will be an opportunity to see New Zealand literacy programmes in action, and to experience New Zealand schools in operation. Visitors will leave from Sky City about 9:00am and return before 3:00pm. We ask that visitors supply their own lunches but schools will provide morning tea or coffee. The cost will cover transport and a koha (a token of appreciation) to the school. The cost can be paid at the registration desk, in New Zealand dollars, and there are plenty of ATM machines and banks around Sky City. Visitors can register and pay at the congress registration desk and select the school they'd like to visit from the profiles that will be on display. There will a limit of 10 visitors per school so that people will have a chance to talk more easily with school leaders, teachers and children.
website and learning management system.