Global Best Practices for CSO, NGO, and Other Nonprofit Boards

CHAPTER 4Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand

Alan Hough and Garth Nowland-Foreman

Alan Hough and Garth Nowland-Foreman highlight similarities and differences between the NGO sectors in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, including in the laws relevant to their governance and in the practice of governance in particular settings. In relation to the available data, the writers identify significant limitations in our understanding of NGO boards due to the limited research on governance, with the available research being systemically biased in favor of medium and large organizations. In part because of these limitations, and in part on conceptual grounds, the authors argue for caution in assertions about so-called best-practice NGO governance.

HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL CONTEXT FOR GOVERNANCE

Australia and New Zealand—or to use New Zealand's Māori name, Aotearoa—share much in common. Both countries were colonies of Britain, and their main languages, much of their law, significant elements of their political processes, and some social customs are derived from Britain. However, the cultures of both countries are diverse and enriched by the traditions of their first peoples and by waves of immigration. In both countries, the belief that government is responsible for providing health, welfare, and education services to its citizens is common, but there is an increasing trend towards government divesting these services (at least in the first two areas) in favor of both the not-for-profit ...