The Wellington Branch, based in the capital city, is the NZIIA’s largest branch and the largest international affairs focussed branch in New Zealand with over 750 members.

Each year, the Wellington Branch hosts a diverse range of speakers, from New Zealand and overseas, including diplomats, politicians, academics, military, business and non-government representatives. 

The Branch generally hosts two meetings a month at 5.30pm at Te Herenga Waka- Victoria University of Wellington's (VUW) Rutherford House located next to the Wellington Railway Station and New Zealand Parliament.  In addition, the Branch organises embassy roundtable events for members and a number of social gatherings throughout the year. Student-led events are held throughout the university year for both VUW and Massey University students and we welcome students from first-year undergraduate degree to PhD program to join.

Past speakers to the branch have included Professor Vinod Aggarwal from the University of California, Berkeley; HE Lawrence Meredith, current Ambassador of the European Union Delegation; HE Mr Thomas Udall, former United States Ambassador; Rt Hon Helen Clark, Former NZ Prime Minister; Professor Mazin Qumsiyeh from Bethlehem University, West Bank; HE Laurence Beau, current Ambassador of France; Dr Ram Madhav, President of India Foundation, New Delhi; and Councillor Ignazio Cassis, current Foreign Minister of Switzerland and former President of Switzerland. 

In 2024, NZIIA Wellington Branch hosted 34 events with over 2,000 people attending.  In March 2025, the Branch organised our flagship Environmental Diplomacy Symposium at Zealandia Ecosanctuary with 17 NZ and international speakers across panels on Conservation, Sustainability, and Climate Change in addition to a number of keynotes.

We welcome new members to join the Wellington NZIIA community and registration is done on a calendar year basis. Full time Wellington based students can join free when submitting valid student ID. Annual NZIIA membership includes a copy of the bi-monthly New Zealand International Review and attendance at member-only events. We also welcome expressions of interest for potential speakers to the Institute in Wellington to contact us.

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