Maxim Institute

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The Maxim Institute is a research and public policy think tank based in Auckland, New Zealand. The Institute's work is oriented toward a conservative perspective on its issues of primary concern.

Maxim Institute has a primary focus in the areas of education, family, justice and welfare issues. The Institute has been involved in public debate in a number of issues; including school choice, teacher pay, free speech, social justice, democracy and constitutional issues. The Institute produces research and publications, and advocates for socially conservative public policy. The Institute is known for its support of citizen participation in New Zealand politics. It organised a series of political forums and constructed a website related to the 2005 general election.

Maxim Institute's mission statement is "to foster ideas and leadership that enable freedom, justice and compassion to flourish in New Zealand."

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[edit] Work

Since its founding in 2001, Maxim Institute has supported a greater role for "civil society" and community in New Zealand life, notably in education, welfare and social service provision.

It has published a wide range of op-eds and analysis on these and other subjects in newspapers, and also produces research and submissions on law and policy (See publications). Since its inception, Maxim Institute has also run an essay competition for tertiary students and an annual summer internship programme for university students.

Maxim Institute first gained public recognition in 2003 when it opposed the Prostitution Reform Bill. The Institute stated that the Bill would legitimise and increase the exploitation of women in New Zealand. It also opposed the Civil Union and Relationships Statutory References Bills in the following year, making the point that such moves would make "marriage meaningless". It instead advocated for a more conservative and "useful alternative", a reciprocal beneficiary model.

It has also supported other measures which "empower parents" and devolve power from the state. Maxim Institute has also endorsed restorative justice, parental choice of schools, democratic involvement, performance related pay for teachers, strong communities, limited government, low taxes and personal responsibility.

The Institute holds bi-annual forums, the most recent of which was held at the Auckland Town Hall and centred on the theme of social justice. Speakers included Youth Court Judge Andrew Becroft, University of Canterbury Professor David Fergusson and Researcher Professor Peter Saunders.

[edit] History

Maxim Institute was founded on 12 November 2001 by Managing Director Greg Fleming (formerly general manager of Parenting with Confidence) and Director Bruce Logan a former Headmaster, and then Director of the New Zealand Education Development Foundation (NZEDF) in Christchurch. John Graham (then University of Auckland Chancellor, also played a role in the Institute's founding.

After serving four years as the Institute's Director, Bruce Logan was accused of plagiarism in some of his opinion articles, and retired in 2005. Maxim Institute's Christchurch office closed in early 2006. Currently, the Institute has fourteen staff based in their Auckland office, and their current CEO is Greg Fleming.

[edit] Publications

Maxim Institute has published various books and reports on issues including political correctness, curriculum, and marriage law[1]. These books include Pursuing Social Justice in New Zealand, a collection of essays from prominent New Zealanders looking at creating strong communities. From Innocents to Agents, which looks at the politicisation of children in New Zealand. Vying for our Children, which examines various education philosophies. It also formerly published a quarterly journal entitled Evidence. According to Maxim Institute Evidence "explore[d] the critical issues facing New Zealand society today, including education, family and welfare. Evidence provides well researched, thought-provoking commentaries and inspiration for building a free and just New Zealand." As of Issue 15 (Spring 2005), Evidence ceased publication. Bruce Logan was its former editor.

The Institute produces a weekly email called Real Issues, which focuses on "provoking analysis of developments in policy and culture in New Zealand and around the world".

As well as Real Issues, Maxim has also published an ongoing series of educational research reports based on research by Colmar Brunton, called The Parent Factor, related to parental choice in education access, government funding and opposition to centralisation.

The Institute also drafts submissions on a range of public policy issues. The issues have included seditious law reform, electoral finance, victims' rights, democratic reform, prostitution, civil unions, hate speech and section 59.

[edit] Awards

In 2005, Managing Director Greg Fleming was one of six New Zealanders to receive an Emerging Leader Award from the Sir Peter Blake (yachtsman) Trust.[1]

Maxim Institute has received several international think tank awards from the Atlas Economic Research Foundation. The Templeton Freedom Prizes were awarded for: Institute Excellence (first place), Social Entrepreneurship (second place) and Initiative in Public Relations (second place).[2][3]

In April 2006, Atlas Foundation awarded Maxim Institute's Parent Factor publications as the winner of the Innovative Projects category of the Sir Antony Fisher International Memorial Award. [4]

[edit] "NZ Votes"

In 2005 the Maxim Institute ran a project leading up to the New Zealand general election 2005 called "NZ Votes." The campaign featured a website and 30 debates between electorate candidates around the country. On its website, the NZ Votes project described itself as a "non profit and non partisan" [5] and as a "community service" designed to inform voters about MMP. However, Nicky Hager criticised the Institute's candidate database in his book The Hollow Men (2006), and also noted that there had been close ties between the New Zealand National Party and a series of educational policy booklets that attacked New Zealand Labour Party government stances on such issues. [6] Another book, The Baubles of Office, makes a point of highlighting the political neutrality of nzvotes.org.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Sir Peter Blake Trust. sirpeterblaketrust.org. Retrieved on April 19, 2006.
  2. ^ Templeton Freedom Prizes. atlasusa.org. Retrieved on April 19, 2006.
  3. ^ Templeton Freedom Prizes. atlasusa.org. Retrieved on April 19, 2006.
  4. ^ Sir Antony Fisher International Memorial Award. atlasusa.org. Retrieved on May 5, 2006.
  5. ^ NZvotes.org - connecting you with democracy
  6. ^ Nicky, Hager (2006). The Hollow Men : A study in the politics of deception. Craig Potton Publishing, pp 206-211. ISBN 1-877333-62-X. 

[edit] External links