From Data to Dignity 2026: Health and wellbeing indicators for New Zealanders with intellectual disability
DECA Communications DECA Communications

From Data to Dignity 2026: Health and wellbeing indicators for New Zealanders with intellectual disability

The authors are also thankful for the valuable input of Shara Turner, Tania Thomas, David Corner and others from IHC New Zealand, as well as the thoughtful reviews from Dr Nic McKenzie and Anita Nicholls, committee members of the Aotearoa-New Zealand division of the Australasian Society for Intellectual Disability (ASID) and Craig Wright, Data Scientist at the Social Investment Agency and author of the 2011 Ministry of Health report for Health Indicators for New Zealanders with Intellectual Disability.

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Barriers to diversity in the Aotearoa tech sector
DECA Communications DECA Communications

Barriers to diversity in the Aotearoa tech sector

Tech is a fast-growing and high-value sector in Aotearoa. With increasing workforce demands and competitive salaries, tech has the potential to provide stable, high-paying jobs to an increasingly significant proportion of New Zealand workers if we can capitalise on strong global demand for tech products and services. We know that only 5% of the digital tech workforce is Māori and 4.4% is Pacific, while women make up just 29% of the digital technologies workforce. Workforce participation by tāngata whaikaha is less known; however, we know that limited digital accessibility is a major barrier for people living with disabilities. We know that Māori, Pacific peoples and women are active users of tech, but their low representation in the sector suggests they are largely absent from its development…

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Children want to shape their rights in the digital world
DECA Communications DECA Communications

Children want to shape their rights in the digital world

Children represent approximately one-third of all internet users globally, according to UNICEF, with many routinely accessing digital platforms and emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence, from increasingly young ages.

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Your rights in the digital world
DECA Communications DECA Communications

Your rights in the digital world

In 2021, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child wrote a very important guide to explain to everyone that children’s rights apply in the digital world.

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The World Internet Project in New Zealand (AUT)
DECA Communications DECA Communications

The World Internet Project in New Zealand (AUT)

This report presents the findings of the ninth iteration of the World Internet Project – New Zealand (WIP-NZ 2025), a nationally representative study that explores the evolving role of the internet and digital technologies in the lives of New Zealanders. The survey was conducted between March and May 2025 and collected responses from over 2,000 internet users. The report examines internet accessibility, artificial intelligence (AI) adoption, attitudes towards digital technologies, and awareness of their broader societal and environmental implications.

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Creating a Connected Future Through Information and Digital Literacy: Strategic Directions at The University of Queensland LibraryFootnote
DECA Communications DECA Communications

Creating a Connected Future Through Information and Digital Literacy: Strategic Directions at The University of Queensland LibraryFootnote

As knowledge-intensive institutions, universities face many challenges resulting from today’s highly dynamic technological environment. While the ways in which learners and researchers engage with digital information resources are complex and diverse, there is a keen awareness of the varying levels of information and digital literacy skills amongst students and academic staff. A university-wide approach to skills development, involving all stakeholders, has been recommended as a valid approach to addressing some of the issues. At the University of Queensland, the Library has led the way with the development of a future-focused strategic framework for information and digital literacy to help shape the University’s academic policies and practices. After reviewing the principles that underpin the strategic framework (collaboration, alignment, innovation, sustainability and evaluation), the paper presents some of the key strategies which have been introduced to encourage the development of digital skills in the contexts of undergraduate teaching and learning, digital scholarship and eResearch. It is argued that there is great potential for library staff to extend their reach and serve as digital facilitators, connectors and collaborators, making a significant contribution to successful outcomes in many areas of contemporary academic life.

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How digital are ‘digital natives’ actually? Developing an instrument to measure the degree of digitalisation of university students – the DDS-Index
DECA Communications DECA Communications

How digital are ‘digital natives’ actually? Developing an instrument to measure the degree of digitalisation of university students – the DDS-Index

Young People are still referred to as digital natives, although numerous studies have shown differences in their access to digital devices, Internet usage and attitude towards digitalisation. Such differences can lead to digital inequalities. In higher education digital inequalities among students are scarcely researched as it is assumed that university students possess crucial digital competencies which they have acquired at school and in everyday life through the use of digital devices and applications. However, research findings suggest that students cannot directly transfer their digital skills to their study situation. The presented study aims to measure the degree of digitalisation by means of an index, the DDS-Index, which was developed in the context of a large-scale survey among first-semester students in Austria (n=4,822). The DDS-Index maps the degree of digitalisation of students on a range of 0 to 100 points. This paper outlines the development and assessment of the DDS-Index and uses it to analyse differences in the degree of digitalisation of students in order to draw conclusions about a digital divide at universities.

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Youth Digital Wellbeing - Research Report 2024
Digital Waitaha, Canterbury DECA Communications Digital Waitaha, Canterbury DECA Communications

Youth Digital Wellbeing - Research Report 2024

As students become increasingly active online, it is essential to help them navigate both the benefits and challenges of digital technology. According to the New Zealand Teens’ Digital Profile: A Factsheet (2018), nearly one-third of teens spend four or more hours online daily, while 38% report two to four hours. Although this data is six years old, feedback from New Zealand primary and intermediate students during discussions with the report's authors suggests that online engagement has likely risen significantly since then.

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