Equipping New Zealanders to excel in Asia
The Asia New Zealand Foundation Te Whītau Tūhono is New Zealand's leading provider of Asia insights and experiences that help equip New Zealanders to excel in Asia.
Latest Foundation stories
Read articles about our recent activities and the people we've supported to excel in Asia
More than skin deep — NZ entrepreneurs dive into Malaysia's health and beauty sector
Business, wherever you are, is about understanding the people you work with and your customers, writes Emma Michelsen, founder of Aggie, a health and supplement brand for expectant mothers. In September, Emma joined nine other New Zealand health and beauty entrepreneurs in Kuala Lumpur through the Asia New Zealand Foundation’s ASEAN Young Business Leaders Initiative, delivered in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The delegates met distributors and established local businesses and attended Cosmobeauté Malaysia, a regional beauty expo featuring around 400 exhibitors from 11 markets. Emma shares what she learned about building relationships, navigating regulations and gaining cultural insights that only come from being on the ground.
Visit strengthens NZ-India basketball ties
“What interested me most was how familiar India’s challenges felt once you looked beyond the scale,” writes New Zealand basketball’s Rob Smith. As general manager commercial for the NZ NBL and professional women’s basketball league Tauihi, Rob recently travelled to India to strengthen connections between the two countries’ basketball leagues. In this article, he reflects on the people he met, what he learned and the opportunities for future collaboration. Rob’s visit was supported by a grant from the Asia New Zealand Foundation’s Sports Leaders Fund.
Asia Insights
Expert analysis on Asia and New Zealand-Asia relations
New poll finds New Zealanders are increasingly wary of major powers amid global uncertainty
A new survey conducted by the Asia New Zealand Foundation Te Whītau Tūhono in September shows perceptions of China have shifted since the Foundation’s Perceptions of Asia 2026 survey, released in June 2026, when New Zealanders were more likely to see China as a friend than a threat.
A Century of Sporting Ties
As New Zealand and India celebrate 100 years of official sporting ties, a new Asia New Zealand Foundation report, authored by Stephen Hewson, traces the evolution of the relationship through hockey, cricket and mountaineering, as well as more recent sporting connections, such as squash, tennis and kabaddi.
Opportunities
Explore opportunities to deepen your understanding of Asia through grants, internships, residencies and more.
Sports Leaders Fund
The Asia New Zealand Foundation’s Sports Leaders Fund supports New Zealand sports leaders to build purposeful connections, regional insight and the cultural confidence to engage effectively across Asia’s sporting landscape.
Foundation Research Grants
The Foundation supports contemporary and forward-thinking postgraduate and academic research projects or programmes relating to Asia with grants of up to $5,000.
