ZONTA District 16
CONFERENCE Christchurch

Phillippa Jacobs-Lory
Governor 2022 – 2024, District 16
Zonta International

Our Zonta District 16 Conference will be held on Friday, September 22nd, Saturday, September 23rd, and Sunday, September 24th, 2023.

We are so excited to finally meet in person. Your 17th D16 Conference will take place in Christchurch. We know how fantastic the last Zonta Conference was, and despite being online, it was a big success, and we appreciate you for attending. With the globe adjusting to the “new normal,” we are glad to see you all again, especially with our President Ute wishing us all the Zonta Spirit of spending time together enjoying each other’s company while Building a Better globe for Women and Girls.

Seeing each other in person will undoubtedly be wonderful for all of us.

We would love to encourage you to visit Christchurch by Friday lunchtime so you can see our beautiful Garden City, with beautiful walkways along the Avon River, fun shopping experiences in town with the redeveloped City Mall and relatively new shopping in the city centre, The Crossing, through to dinning on the Terrace (along the river front) to Riverside Market and Little High, eating experiences. Botanical gardens, art galleries, and a leisurely boat ride, punting down the Avon River are all within walking distance of the Town Hall.

On Friday early evening, we will have a Cocktail Welcome Event at the Christchurch Town Hall, near the gorgeous and iconic Fountains. We urge you to bring your partners and Zonta friends for a fun hour before heading out to dinner at one of the nearby restaurants (we strongly recommend making a reservation).

While the official opening is at the start of Conference on Saturday morning, we know this will be a highlight of your weekend, so don’t miss out.

We have a fantastic Speaker lined up for you. We’re keeping this a secret because they’re a well-known speaker and we don’t want you Googling and listening to their talk. It is on brand to our Zonta Mission and Vision of Building a Better World for Women and Girls.

Saturday night will whet your appetite for a celebration of all that you do in Zonta, and we have planned a Celebration Gala Dinner for at our prestigious Art Gallery, which we intend to light up in beautiful colours. Having a wonderful evening celebrating you and all that you do for others! We appreciate everything you do in Zonta, including your time, money, and enthusiasm. We want this to be YOUR night to celebrate with your wonderful Zonta friends and our partners that help us throughout the year.

We are confident that you will have a night to remember.

Conference’s business side is crucial to the smooth operation of your Zonta year and clubs in accordance with Zonta International. If this is your first Zonta Conference, we invite you to join us; it is always an exciting time, and we will keep the programme moving and interesting for you.

We welcome you to our 17th Conference in Christchurch.