One in Four

With 450 IVF babies born in New Zealand every year and one in four couples in Aotearoa struggling with fertility, why do we find this kōrero so hard?

In this panel discussion, we explore the multitude of ways one can conceive a baby in the 21st century, new models of family-making, and the taboos around IVF, surrogacy and other assisted fertility options.

Fertility issues are more common than we realise and our panellists - recently retired fertility counsellor Sue Saunders (Maybe Baby), and actor and author, Michelle Langstone, who writes about her IVF journey in her outstanding novel Times Like These – bravely talk with Elisabeth Easther about their experiences, and about the grief, hope, science and the magic of making babies.

Sponsored By Kathryn Lellman Barrister

Elisabeth Easther is a writer, actor and broadcaster. Writing for magazines, newspapers and the stage she also works for a number of conservation organisations and is fixated on pest control, weeding, litter collection and marine protection. She also likes to ride her bike wherever possible in favour of using a car even if it means she looks relatively disheveled whenever she goes anywhere.

Michelle Langstone is a writer and actor from Auckland. Her debut collection of essays is Time Like These.

Sue Saunders worked for 20 years as a Fertility Counsellor. She has written 2 books on fertility, the most recent Maybe Baby is about the emotional and social impacts of infertility on a person, couple, their friends and family.

Sue has a BA in psychology from Otago University and a Masters in Guidance and Counselling from Massey University.

These days Sue has retired and lives on the Coromandel Peninsular, she is deeply involved in conservation and spends a lot of time in the hills looking after the birds and bush in her area.