McGuinness Institute
The McGuinness Institute is a non-partisan think tank that applies "hindsight, insight, and foresight" to New Zealand's long-term governance challenges. Its distinctive contribution to the democracy landscape is a focus on institutional design and strategic foresight — not the mechanics of elections or the practice of deliberation, but the architecture of the governance systems themselves: how government departments set strategy, how political agreements are structured, how royal commissions and public inquiries function, and how civic education prepares citizens for democratic participation.
Project CivicsNZ is the Institute's flagship democratic-governance programme — documenting political agreements, tracking government department strategies (the Government Department Strategies Index), and publishing think pieces on institutional design. The Institute also runs Treaty of Waitangi-related governance work, foresight training, and publishes regular analysis. A newsletter was active as of August 2026.
The McGuinness Institute occupies a different space from the deliberative practitioners and civic-tech organisations in the Democracy Landscape. It is closer to the institutional-design tradition of organisations like newDemocracy (Australia) or Involve (UK) — focusing on the rules, structures, and long-term thinking that make democratic governance durable — but with a distinctive foresight methodology.
Links
- Website: mcguinnessinstitute.org
See also
Upcoming events
-
2026-09-30
Discussion paper launch: "After the Election" — conversation with Wendy McGuinness on the architecture of the 55th Government of New Zealand
Sourcing: High
which invites readers to consider a simple but important question: if you were Prime Minister and tasked with designing New Zealand’s machinery of government, what would it look like? Wendy will share her thoughts at the Institute’s Wellington office. Wednesday 30 September 12pm–1:30pm (starts at 12:15pm)
↗ View source
History
-
2004-01-01
Founded by Wendy McGuinness as the Sustainable Future Institute
Sourcing: High
When Wendy started the McGuinness Institute in 2004, we called it the Sustainable Future Institute.
↗ View source -
2010-01-01
CivicsNZ research project begins with a report on Māori representation in Parliament
Sourcing: High
CivicsNZ began in 2010 with the publication of Report 8: Effective Māori Representation in Parliament – Working towards a National Sustainable Development Strategy (2010).
↗ View source - 2012-01-01 Renamed the McGuinness Institute