SADD Conference is the standout event of Term One - a three-day leadership camp where passionate teens from across Aotearoa come together to learn, lead, and make real change.
We’ve been around for over 40 years, so when you show up, you’re stepping into a legacy of young leaders who’ve been shifting road-safety culture for decades. Come connect with people who get you, learn skills that level up your future, and have an unforgettable time doing it.
Registrations will open soon for our 2 events.
Please see our terms and conditions or contact our team if you have any queries.
Here’s what you can expect if you register for Conference:
Across three high-energy days, you’ll learn everything you need to run Kaitiaki o Ara/SADD confidently at your school — in a way that’s fun, engaging, and makes real impact.
You won’t just hear about it either — you’ll put it into practice with interactive workshops and team activities that make the learning real.
Build future-ready skills like leadership, creativity, communication, teamwork, and problem-solving — the kind of skills that help you stand out wherever you go next.
You’ll also take home useful tools and resources to strengthen your SADD group and bring meaningful projects to life.
Along the way you’ll meet awesome people from across your island, collaborate on challenges, and create friendships that last well beyond conference.
The serious stuff:
Kaitiaki o Ara/SADD is all about empowering young Kiwis to work together and create the positive change our roads need. Through peer education and community action, our members:
Promote positive decision-making and strategies to handle peer pressure,
Encourage attitudes and behaviours that prioritise road safety, and
Inspire others to make safer choices behind the wheel.
For more than 40 years, the SADD programme has been powered by passionate student leaders and has been a vital force for safer communities. Our members are influencers, leaders, and change-makers. Conference is all about recognising that legacy and the progress made over decades, while equipping the next generation with the tools, knowledge, skills, and confidence to keep driving the mission forward.
Play your part in making our roads safer, grow personally, and gain valuable skills and experiences that will benefit you for life.
Follow the below links to get more information!
2024 Conference
Conference season 2024 was hugely successful with 3 events held in Dunedin, Wellington and Auckland. We saw some amazing outcomes from these events with students from across Aotearoa all bringing their A-game and contributing to the events with their creativity, innovation, teamwork and passion for road safety.
At each event, students were split into groups of 5-7 and tasked with designing a brand new digital resource to support SADD students all across Aotearoa to engage with a range of road safety issues. We saw some incredible ideas and results come out of this challenge and now have a range of new videos, social media campaigns and SADD activities, many of which have been shared on our website and social media pages this year.
2023 Conference
After a break in 2022 due to the pandemic, we were excited to bring back our highly anticipated conference season. Over the April school holidays we had over 130 students join us at 3 events held in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland. These students participated in a range of activities which gave them experience in teamwork, leadership skills, and designing road safety solutions.
Students were split into groups of 4-6 and were tasked with choosing a road safety issue and then planning, developing and presenting a solution to address their chosen issue. We saw some incredible ideas, plans and resources come out of this challenge.
Resources created included informative videos, merchandise items, info pamphlets, social media content, activity plans and slideshows. These addressed a wide range of issues including fatigue, seat belts, driver licensing, peer pressure, driving around trucks and pedestrian safety.
