Alex Penk
About Alex Penk
CEO
Alex leads the work and mission of Maxim Institute, representing our work in public, and speaking and writing about public leadership - a topic he studied during his time as a Visiting Fellow at the McDonald Centre at Oxford University in Trinity Term 2016. His previous study includes a Master of Laws from Cambridge University and degrees in law and science from the University of Auckland.
Most Recent Activity
Removing rage from our public debates
By Alex Penk
Rage against the machine. Stick it to the man. If you’re not for us, you’re against us. They’re familiar sayings,…
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Black Caps offer leadership lessons even in loss
By Alex Penk
Big moments reveal who we really are, and they don’t come much bigger than a World Cup final, especially when you’ve lost in controversial circumstances.
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Alex on Checkpoint RNZ speaking on the End Of Life Choice Bill
On June 27, Alex talked to Alex Perrottet on Checkpoint, RNZ about the results of the End of Life Choice Bill’s…
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Alex on the Newshub Nation panel talking End of Life Choice Bill
By Alex Penk
On Saturday, 22 June, Alex appeared on the Newshub Nation panel to respond to the visit of Dr Stefanie Green,…
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Referendums are not the pinnacle of democracy
By Alex Penk
If the most recent polls are right, the cannabis referendum won’t pass. Some will be pleased with this, others frustrated,…
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Alex’s op-ed on the End of Life Choice Bill featured on the Spinoff
By Alex Penk
Alex Penk’s op-ed highlighting flaws of David Seymour’s End of Life Choice Bill featured on the Spinoff. Read the article: …
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Government needs to give answers on “wellbeing”
By Alex Penk
This week the Government will unveil the first-ever Wellbeing Budget, somewhat breathlessly described by the New York Times as “New…
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Creating poverty-busting opportunites that work for people with disabilities
By Alex Penk
by Alex Penk and Danielle van Dalen This week there’s been a lot of coverage about employment opportunities for people…
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Dom Post feature Alex Penk’s op-ed on the End of Life Choice Bill
By Alex Penk
With the End of Life Choice Bill facing its second reading, Alex releases an op-ed printed by The Dominion Post…
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MEDIA RELEASE | End of Life Choice Bill report highlights multitude of “concerns and contradictions”
By Alex Penk
Released today, the Justice Select Committee’s report does not recommend passing the End of Life Choice Bill. Instead, it highlights…
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Hate-speech review risks being too hasty
By Alex Penk
The Justice Minister put the cart before the horse when he spoke about hate speech recently. In the shadow of…
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Countering our fear of dying
By Alex Penk
Last week, I was struck by the fear of dying. Not my own, mind you. I was chairing a panel…
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Think Big 2.0: The Provincial Growth Fund risks turning into a fiasco
By Alex Penk
This article was written by Alex Penk and Julian Wood, and first published on The Spinoff on 26 February, on…
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Media coverage of the launch of “A Risk Worth Taking” Policy Paper
By Alex Penk
On the morning of the release of our analysis of the Provincial Growth Fund, our report was featured on the…
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Dom Post and The Press feature Alex on Jordan Peterson
By Alex Penk
As conversation increased around noted academic Professor Jordan Peterson’s visit to New Zealand, Alex Penk’s op-ed was printed in The…
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Alex Penk responds to Maryan Street’s op-ed in Stuff newspapers
By Alex Penk
In response to Maryan Street’s op-ed that predicted the End of Life Choice Bill would pass this year, CEO Alex…
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Financial responsibility goes beyond mere “Rules”
By Alex Penk
Sometimes the most important ideas are the ones that aren’t being discussed. This came to mind with the release of…
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Alex on NZ Herald panel discussing the Living Wage
Alex Penk joined the NZ Herald Kiwi Workplace Lunchtime live streamed panel discussion on the Living Wage. You can watch…
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The little things that can change us
By Alex Penk
Last weekend, my daughter was shrieking in my ear with a mixture of delight and fear as we skimmed across…
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Two-and-a-half cheers for child poverty bill
By Alex Penk
I was born at the tail-end of Gen X, so I grew up with a pop culture saturated by “fear…
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