4th August 2026 By Contributor
Museums Aotearoa chief executive Jaenine Parkinson says local government amalgamation will provide a rare opportunity to reposition museums and galleries and build a stronger case for investment.
We see local government amalgamation as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create an elevated vision for the museum and gallery sector, to improve regional coordination, and build a more compelling case for central government investment in facilities that are currently funded primarily by ratepayers.
Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson recently reflected on Auckland’s experience of bringing a region together around a shared cultural vision. She noted that Auckland has not always worked together strongly enough as a unified cultural sector and challenged institutions to look beyond their individual organisations and contribute to a broader vision for the city.
As she put it, Auckland has “a massive opportunity to really advance our global city status and be an exciting, innovative and culturally rich place.” She called on cultural organisations to connect with transport, tourism, city branding, property development and economic growth, rather than operating in isolation.
Her message was clear: museums and galleries are not simply facilities to be maintained. They are strategic assets that help attract visitors, retain talent, strengthen identity, and support economic growth.
There is an important lesson in that for councils considering amalgamation.
This process should not be approached solely as a discussion about governance structures, efficiencies, and service delivery standardisation. It is also an opportunity to ask how museums and galleries can contribute to the long-term success and attractiveness of a region.
Museums and galleries are significant public assets, and they need to be part of the amalgamation conversation from the outset.
BERL research from 2021 estimated that New Zealand museums and galleries held assets worth $5.6bn, including $3.6bn in collections comprising more than 45 million objects and taonga, and $2bn in buildings and infrastructure.
Despite the impacts of Covid-19 in that year, the sector welcomed 17.5 million visitors, employed 3,365 full-time equivalent staff, engaged more than 11,000 volunteers, delivered educational benefits valued at $24.6m to almost one million students, and contributed an estimated $272m to GDP.
These institutions support tourism, education, regional identity, and economic development. Yet, the funding burden falls overwhelmingly on local government.
Research undertaken in 2024 found that local government remains the primary source of external funding for most museums and galleries, sometimes contributing up to 95% of external revenue.
In effect, ratepayers are funding services and outcomes that align closely with central government priorities. That is why having a clear vision for museums and galleries within any amalgamation process matters.
A larger council has greater strategic influence and a stronger platform from which to advocate for investment, it can make a more compelling case that museums and galleries are not simply local facilities, but regional assets that contribute directly to national priorities in tourism, education, and economic development.
From our perspective, the opportunity with amalgamation is not simply to achieve administrative efficiencies or overhead savings.
The opportunity is to reposition museums and galleries as strategic regional and national assets and seek a more balanced funding partnership between local and central government.
That does not mean every museum and gallery should be treated the same.
One of the risks of amalgamation is that it becomes an exercise in standardisation. That risk is even greater when consideration of museums and galleries is left until after major structural decisions have already been made.
Across the sector, our institutions serve different communities, different visitor markets, and different purposes. The objective should not be to level out services across a region. The objective should be to maximise the unique contribution of each institution within a coordinated regional network.
There are clear opportunities for collaboration through things like shared regional storage, aggregated procurement, marketing, education programmes, collection management systems, and destination promotion. These are the kinds of efficiencies that can strengthen services rather than dilute them and should be explored early and in partnership with sector leaders.
At the same time, distinctive local institutions remain critically important. Smaller museums and galleries, deeply embedded in their communities, play a vital role in preserving local histories, supporting tourism, fostering creative talent, and delivering experiences that are both relevant and unique to place.
However, there is a risk that the independent identity, brands and leadership of museums and galleries could be weakened through consolidation. Past civic restructures have shown that the amalgamation of council services can erode thedistinctiveness of a city’s cultural ecosystem. Local stories, priorities, and character can be deprioritised or diluted as larger bureaucratic organisations seek efficiencies, reduce costs, and standardise services across a broader geographic area.
Regional coordination should enhance and support smaller, distinctive institutions, not diminish them. The goal should be to strengthen local identity and cultural expression while gaining the benefits of collaboration, ensuring that the unique character of each community continues to thrive.
The key question for councils considering amalgamation should not where services can be levelled out. But where a coordinated approach can become a platform for growth, investment, and leveraging better outcomes and value for communities that harness the unique assets of a region.
At this moment what we ask is:
• Think about museums and galleries before structures are locked in, not afterwards.
• Engage with sector leaders early.
• Understand the cultural assets that already exist across your region.
• Identify opportunities for collaboration and shared services.
• Seek to enhance the impact of museums and galleries that are already performing well.
• Develop a regional cultural strategy at the same time you develop governance and service delivery models.
And most importantly, use the scale and influence that could be created through amalgamation to build a stronger case for central government investment in tourism, education, and regional economic development.
Auckland is still working through many of these challenges more than a decade after amalgamation. You have the advantage of learning from that experience.
Do not wait ten years to begin thinking strategically about your cultural infrastructure. Do it from the beginning.
Because the best outcome is not a sector that has been standardised or centralised. The best outcome is a stronger, more connected network of museums and galleries that attracts visitors, supports education, drives economic activity, strengthens community identity, and delivers better value for both ratepayers and taxpayers.
This is a rare opportunity to think beyond organisational structures and design a cultural system that supports the long-term success of your region.
We encourage you to be ambitious enough to seize it.
Ngā mihi nui kia koutou
This column is from a speech by Museums Aotearoa chief executive Jaenine Parkinson, delivered in Wellington on 29 July to mayors and councillors considering local government amalgamation.
