Our 2010 Biennial Conference will be the forum in which to explore the ways and means to better sustain families and communities within New Zealand society. The conference will be held at St. Margaret's College, Dunedin within the heart of the University of Otago campus. This charming character-filled venue truly ticks every box to make for a fabulous event: it offers all state-of-the-art facilities while retaining a wonderfully old world ambiance.

NZCOSS and our hosts, COSS Dunedin came up with the idea for the theme of the conference in part from the beautiful clusters of flowers, the Rhododendron. Dunedin will be hosting their annual Rhododendron Festival shortly before our Conference. We thought the symmetry of these masses of blooms were most appropriate, symbolising all those individuals working together and supporting each other, within families and communities, within social service organisations and within the sector at large.

We are delighted to host Terry McDonald, Director of St. Vincent de Paul, Lane County, Oregon, U.S.A., as our keynote speaker.