NEWSROOM
Guiding New Zealand’s future innovators and entrepreneurs
7 February 2023
Peter Rachor made his way to Auckland in 2019 to take up the inaugural position of the Hynds Entrepreneurial Teaching Fellow in the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE).
His aim was to embed innovation and entrepreneurship into curricula across the University. Originally from Michigan in the US with 20 years of entrepreneurship and innovation education under his belt, Peter moved to New Zealand for this opportunity, generously funded by the Hynds Foundation.
Peter says “When a colleague told me about the Hynds Entrepreneurial Teaching Fellow opportunity and its focus on scaling curricular initiatives across many majors, based in beautiful New Zealand, I went for it!”
Peter works with colleagues to design and deliver many courses that are the starting point for creating a foundation for Transdisciplinary, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (TIE) – a key Curriculum Framework hallmark area.
For example, he teaches on CAREER 100G where students have to demonstrate problem-solving skills and use design-thinking to work on a provocative challenge from an outside business.
“The last few years have shown us that change is inevitable, and we’ll always be looking for new ways to do things,” he says.
“We hear every day in New Zealand about climate change, productivity challenges, social inequities, and technological shifts. Let’s be sure we give all students the tools to be part of that, no matter what their background or what they are studying.”
The benefits of TIE approaches are evident across the organisation.
Since Peter started, he has had a hand in training nearly 8000 students in some form of innovation or entrepreneurship in some way.
In the Faculty of Engineering, where Peter co-teaches two core courses of around 900 students from eight different engineering disciplines together to work on real-world issues using a ‘systems thinking’ approach.
For instance, in 2022, students worked in teams to consider the challenges of climate adaptation, using the framework created by the Ministry of Environment’s 2022 plan to respond to some of the recent severe weather events; bridging the gap to Aotearoa’s commitment to Paris 2050.
As well as shaping and supporting many courses across the University, he has also helped identify a variety of other programmes where innovation and entrepreneurship are inherent elements; working with the TIE working group.
Peter says these courses develop problem-solving and solution-seeking skills in everyone and demystify things that sound daunting.
“It shows students in everything from music to philosophy, pharmacy to biochemistry, how to be part of developing new things and how they can use their skills, knowledge, and passion to get good things done and navigate the uncertainty of developing something new.”
Learn more about the Hynds Entrepreneurial Fellows programme
7 February 2023
Peter Rachor made his way to Auckland in 2019 to take up the inaugural position of the Hynds Entrepreneurial Teaching Fellow in the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE).
His aim was to embed innovation and entrepreneurship into curricula across the University. Originally from Michigan in the US with 20 years of entrepreneurship and innovation education under his belt, Peter moved to New Zealand for this opportunity, generously funded by the Hynds Foundation.
Peter says “When a colleague told me about the Hynds Entrepreneurial Teaching Fellow opportunity and its focus on scaling curricular initiatives across many majors, based in beautiful New Zealand, I went for it!”
Peter works with colleagues to design and deliver many courses that are the starting point for creating a foundation for Transdisciplinary, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (TIE) – a key Curriculum Framework hallmark area.
For example, he teaches on CAREER 100G where students have to demonstrate problem-solving skills and use design-thinking to work on a provocative challenge from an outside business.
“The last few years have shown us that change is inevitable, and we’ll always be looking for new ways to do things,” he says.
“We hear every day in New Zealand about climate change, productivity challenges, social inequities, and technological shifts. Let’s be sure we give all students the tools to be part of that, no matter what their background or what they are studying.”
The benefits of TIE approaches are evident across the organisation.
Since Peter started, he has had a hand in training nearly 8000 students in some form of innovation or entrepreneurship in some way.
In the Faculty of Engineering, where Peter co-teaches two core courses of around 900 students from eight different engineering disciplines together to work on real-world issues using a ‘systems thinking’ approach.
For instance, in 2022, students worked in teams to consider the challenges of climate adaptation, using the framework created by the Ministry of Environment’s 2022 plan to respond to some of the recent severe weather events; bridging the gap to Aotearoa’s commitment to Paris 2050.
As well as shaping and supporting many courses across the University, he has also helped identify a variety of other programmes where innovation and entrepreneurship are inherent elements; working with the TIE working group.
Peter says these courses develop problem-solving and solution-seeking skills in everyone and demystify things that sound daunting.
“It shows students in everything from music to philosophy, pharmacy to biochemistry, how to be part of developing new things and how they can use their skills, knowledge, and passion to get good things done and navigate the uncertainty of developing something new.”
Learn more about the Hynds Entrepreneurial Fellows programme
EMAIL
CIE@AUCKLAND.AC.NZ
POSTAL ADDRESS
THE UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND BUSINESS SCHOOL
PRIVATE BAG 92019, AUCKLAND
