Connected Education

16/10/2025

Adversity can find you or someone you love at any time. When it does it's not easy to know where to turn. It can be a lonely and confusing journey that in some cases can lead to a fall into darkness.

I'm no stranger to that darkness. My hope is that by sharing some of the lessons and tools I've learned, I can help you find a little more clarity on your own path forward.

To further my mission I'm now available online if you need someone to chat to. You can book this here:

https://stan.store/werisetogether

01/09/2025

Here's the latest update on the We Rise Together Mission - Ngā mihi
Duncan.

Thank you all so much for your support. To already have more than 200 followers here is incredibly humbling.

It's been a bit of a leap of faith to get started. Writing my book is proving to be quite the journey. It's been stirring up memories and emotions that I thought were long ago confined to history.

There's a sense of vulnerability that comes with putting this on paper and then sharing it. The fact that I've had nothing but support leaves me feeling so grateful and is inspiring me to do all I can to make this mission a success.

I've now completed Chapter 2 - Falling. This along with Chapter 1 or a bundle of the two is now available for you to read here:

https://stan.store/werisetogether

The second chapter details the initial hours and days after the crash. If you are interested and choose to take a look that would be awesome, thank you. If it's not your thing but you think it might appeal to others simply sharing this with them would be fantastic and incredibly appreciated.

Together, we RISE.

24/08/2025

"I felt so alone in my darkest moments. I suspect that this is true for anyone who finds themself wrapped in adversity and who is afraid to seek help. The isolation is a hard weight to bear and for many Men that weight is the burden of a devastating story that they face alone."

Read my latest blog at the link below:
https://www.werisetogether.org.nz/the-anchor

10/08/2025

https://www.werisetogether.org.nz/when-the-hammer-falls

06/08/2025

A Personal Note, and a New Beginning

To everyone who follows my work here at Connected Education, you know my passion has always been for helping people learn, grow, and navigate their challenges. Today, I want to share the personal story behind that 'why.'

Many of you know about the loss of my son, Nayan, in 2010. More recently, I have been on a profound journey battling cancer.

These experiences, while incredibly difficult, have reinforced my life's mission of resilience, empathy, and finding hope in the face of adversity.

This has led me to launch a new, mission-driven social enterprise: We Rise Together NZ.

While it is a separate entity from my work here, its heart is the same. It is a movement dedicated to providing real stories, meaningful resources, and a community for anyone facing life's darkest moments.

To launch this mission, I am writing my memoir, "WE RISE TOGETHER," one chapter at a time. The first chapter, which tells the story of the day my fall began and the unexpected moment that gave me a reason to rise, is now available.

If you are interested in the story behind the work I do, you can read the first chapter here:

https://stan.store/werisetogether

For ongoing updates specifically about this new mission, I have started a new page, which I would be honoured if you would follow: https://www.facebook.com/werisetogetherNZ

Thank you, as always, for your incredible support.

Ngā mihi nui
Duncan

08/06/2023

Awesome article in the ODT this morning. Great to see the positive ripples from TRT emerging!

A judge has been left "in awe of everyone involved" with a driving programme that has had a "profound and life-changing effect" on drink-drivers....

16/04/2023

https://givealittle.co.nz/donate/org/eduk8-canterbury-charitable-trust

14/03/2023

Last year more than one person lost their life on a NZ road every day. The impact on our community is immense. Latest data suggests that for each fatality the associated social cost is $5.3m. Of course this is nothing compared to the heartbreak of losing a loved one. The tragedy of it all is that almost every crash is preventable.

The Right Track is arguably the most effective programme in the world for rehabilitating driving offenders. As a cohort they are the ones who are most likely to cause injury or death on our roads. 80% of graduates from the programme do not reoffend.

The programme is not for profit and is administered by local charitable trusts. To support the delivery of the programme in Christchurch the Eduk8 Canterbury Charitable Trust have created a "give a little". If you think this is something you might be able to support we'd be incredibly grateful. Even just sharing the link helps.

For more information on the programme you can check out our website: https://therighttrack.org.nz/

There was an article on the programme in the Herald recently and we did a short interview with Newstalk ZB:

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/driving-programme-puts-offenders-on-the-right-track/UQRGBLRRSRAWZK6TPB46C547WI/

https://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/on-air/the-sunday-session/audio/duncan-woods-and-john-finch-the-right-track-experts-on-reducing-road-death-toll-this-waitangi-weekend/

The Right Track (Te are tutuki pai) is, arguably, the most effective driver rehabilitation programme in the world.

04/02/2023

Last year 380 people lost their life on NZ roads. I'm privileged and humbled to be part of Te ara tutuki pai - The Right Track.

I'm just a small part of the programme and grateful to John Finch for allowing me to be part of the team.

Programme putting dangerous drivers back on The Right Track is making a huge difference.

01/06/2022

So true...