Winston Peters says ‘diversity is disunity’ – what does the evidence tell us?
From business and government to sport and entire populations, research tends to show gender, ethnic and linguistic diversity improves performance.
Winston Peters, leader of New Zealand's New Zealand First party, sparked controversy when he claimed that "diversity is weakness and disunity". However, the evidence paints a different picture. Both corporate leaders and global studies suggest that diversity can be a performance advantage, leading to better financial returns and innovation.
In New Zealand, Treasury Secretary Gabriel Makhlouf and the Royal Commission on the Christchurch mosque attacks both argued that diversity aids social cohesion. In fact, several organizations, from sports teams to corporations, have embraced diversity and inclusion policies. Research has also shown that multilingualism, a result of diverse populations, can benefit countries, with Switzerland attributing about 10% of its GDP to its four official languages.
As New Zealand becomes increasingly diverse, with a significant Indigenous population and 30% of New Zealanders born overseas, the question arises of how to effectively manage this diversity to avoid potential social issues while reaping its benefits.
Written by urgent.news from The Conversation AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
