Former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern revealed on Wednesday that she will attend Harvard University for fellowships later this year.
Ardern stunned New Zealanders in January when she announced her resignation as prime minister after five years in office. Citing a lack of “enough in the tank” to continue.
She will now spend a semester at the prestigious Massachusetts university.
“I’m incredibly humbled to have been invited to join Harvard University later this year as a 2023 Angelopoulos Global Public Leaders Fellow. And a Hauser Leader in the Kennedy School’s Centre for Public Leadership,” Ardern posted on Instagram.
She will also pursue a technological fellowship to “work on the challenges associated with the development of generative AI tools.”
Ardern’s appointment was characterised by Harvard scholar Jonathan Zittrain as a “rare and precious” opportunity for her and the university.
“Jacinda Ardern’s hard-won expertise — including her ability to bring diverse people and institutions together. And will be invaluable as we all search for workable solutions to some of the deepest online problems,” Zittrain added.
Jacinda Ardern did not provide precise dates for her visit to Harvard. But she did say she will be there “for a semester — fortunately, the one that falls during the NZ general election” on October 14.
“I’ll return at the end of the fellowships.” “After all, this is New Zealand,” Ardern continued.
After quitting parliament, she announced last month that she will take on two new roles: a volunteer post as special envoy for the Christchurch Call, a nonprofit combating violent extremism online, and trustee of Prince William’s Earthshot Prize.