Dr Renee Liang

Consultant Paediatrician, poet, short story writer and playwright,

Renee Liang, a second generation Chinese New Zealander, is a consultant paediatrician whose research looks at human development trajectories from early life to adolescence. She is also a widely published poet, short story writer, blogger and playwright – her plays Lantern, The First Asian AB and The Bone Feeder have played to sold-out audiences and toured to North Island venues. By drawing on her diverse talents in both medicine and the arts, Renee is helping to define the cultural landscape of New Zealand and supporting positive community development.

Renee has led the Asian Advisory Group for Growing Up in New Zealand – a longitudinal study designed to gather information to improve the lives of all New Zealand children.

Renee believes strongly that linking across communities strengthens society as a whole. She collaborated with Auckland Council to bring New Kiwi Women Write Their Stories, a writing programme for migrant women, to various communities in Auckland, resulting in the publication of three thought-provoking anthologies to date (New Beginnings).

She is a driving force of initiatives such as Metonymy- which aims to spark creative collaborations by ‘blind dating’ artists from different disciplines; Funky Oriental Beats- propelling Kiwi Asians into the burgeoning arts scene in Auckland; and the Guerilla Poets, who demystify literature by literally bringing poetry onto the streets.