Ray Avery: the Kiwi spirit

Help for the Third World

Ray Avery’s world is one where everyone should and can have access to medicine and quality healthcare. After becoming a successful pharmaceutical scientist he began Mondiale Medicine, which focuses on technologies and personnel projects that direct solutions where they are most needed: the Third World.

Mondiale Medicine’s breakthroughs range in scope from a nutritional drink that benefits both high performance athletes and malnourished children in developing countries, to new technologies for applying AIDS treatments and intravenous drips in Africa, and intraocular lens laboratories in Nepal and Eritrea.

Ray runs a virtual organisation of medicos, scientists and fanciers from Auckland. His connections range from heads of global offices to remote villages in India.

No real obstacles

“New Zealand is a can-do society, and I truly believe it is a land of opportunity,” Avery comments. “If I decided I wanted to run for parliament here, I could. Whereas in the UK there are still clubs I can’t belong to because I didn’t go to the right school.

“I would have always been limited in what I could achieve depending on my background and education. In New Zealand there isn’t the same glass ceiling. There are no real obstacles if you want to create and invest in your own future.

“New Zealanders are everywhere around the globe because this country develops skills in us that get us to multitask and problem-solve. If I had stayed in England I would not have been able to become the innovator I am. Because this country is small, you tend to learn a wider range of skills and become far more adaptable. It helps develop your creativity and ability to problem-solve.”

Making something out of nothing

“My work is all about solving Third World problems using technology that the Western world needs. Our key focus is solving the problem with few resources, and connecting with experts who can make it happen. New Zealanders are well-known for making something out of nothing. It drives us and we change the world because of it. I live by the thought that this life is our chance to step out of our security of self and into the unknown.”