Paralympic gold medallist, Chief Executive, Crown governance director, husband, and father of two beautiful kids, Dan Buckingham shares stories and insights as a leader, and of living life well with disability.
Raised in rural Southland—'a stunning part of the world'—Dan’s life took a different path than planned when he broke his neck playing rugby as a first-year Otago Uni student.
Since that moment, life has included a 16-year career representing New Zealand in wheelchair rugby with the Wheel Blacks, as well as playing in the USA, Canada, and Australia. Sport accelerated Dan's journey to living a full life, while getting to travel the world playing a game he loved with some of his best mates.
Time in sport coincided with building a career in the media and growing a governance portfolio, ahead of his most recent adventure - laying down roots and having a family.
Throughout life, Dan has always gravitated towards leadership positions. It is something he used to shy away from owning, in the overly humble way Kiwis tend to do, but he has learnt the value of leaning into strengths.
Dan speaks from a unique perspective with a down-to-earth approach. His take on disability is that people are curious, so he talks openly about his injury, what followed, and what life is like when you need to use a wheelchair to get around.
He engages listeners with substance and prompts reflection as he covers the highs and lows of high-performance sport, leadership, defining success, and building an enjoyable life. His experiences illustrate the rich and satisfying feeling of achievement that can come from seeking the right things for the right reasons and letting the rest take care of itself. Ultimately, his insights challenge people to think deeply about success and fulfilment.
Talking Points
High-performance sport
Reflecting on winning gold at the Athens 2004 Paralympic Games isn’t about a moment in time; it was an 18-month campaign where we did everything we possibly could with the resources we had available, including our mindset, for the result to take care of itself.
High-performance sport
Leadership
Maturing as a leader has been a great tapestry of achievement, quiet contentment, moments of realisation, and at times, a lot of heartache and regret. Leadership comes with responsibility, which can feel both grounding and heavy, and it comes with the greatest feelings of fulfilment.
Leadership
Disability
‘If you can see it, you can be it'. Dan seeks to leave his mark on the disability sector by simply having high expectations for his life and how he lives it; by doing so, he hopes to shift perceptions and the expectations of others for what a full life can look like.
Disability
Video
Dan Buckingham | New Zealand Herald Interview
August 14, 1999 - this was the last day Dan Buckingham could walk. He was 18 years old and a first year Otago Uni student when he put his head in the wrong place in a scrum during a game of club rugby, and broke his neck. One of Dan's passions is shifting perceptions of what it means to live a full life with a disability. He believes allowing people to be curious and intrigued about disability is a big part of this - as such, he speaks openly about breaking his neck, including what it was like for him and his family, and what it has meant since.Dan gave us a wonderful presentation, particularly as he had very little notice! His presentation fitted really well with our conference theme. His real life examples were relevant for our d ... keep reading NZ Federation of Disability Information Centres
