More than half of New Zealanders think the country is going in the wrong direction. Trust in Parliament, the courts and the Reserve Bank has fallen sharply since 2021. What is broken? 

The answer lies in the foundations we rarely notice. Prosperity rests on an invisible architecture. We notice air only when it is hard to breathe. We see institutions only when they fail. 

Consider trust. When you deposit money in a bank, you assume it will be there tomorrow. When you sign a contract, you expect courts to enforce it. When you buy property, you believe the government will honour your ownership. These assumptions feel natural, but they are not. 

For most of history, such certainties did not exist. Strongmen seized land. Judges took bribes. Money became worthless overnight. 

Slowly, societies built better systems. Governments accepted limits on their power. Church and state were separated. Independent courts enforced rules. Each improvement took generations to stick. 

The secret was never just having good laws. People had to understand why they mattered. Judges, bankers, politicians and ordinary citizens all had to respect limits. This shared spirit is what makes civilisation work. 

Yet success breeds forgetfulness. We stop teaching why courts must be independent, or why central banks should focus only on money. 

Then comes mission creep. The Reserve Bank, once charged solely with price stability, turns to social and climate goals while inflation surges. Judges begin to make law rather than apply it, colliding with the role of Parliament. 

Other nations have gone down this path before us. Institutions decay. Citizens lose faith. Order unravels. What took centuries to build can collapse in years. Rebuilding trust is painfully hard. 

The lesson is clear. It is not enough to have formal institutions. They must be filled with life by citizens who understand their purpose, respect their limits and care enough to defend them. 

Institutions are empty shells unless animated by that spirit. Renewing it is our task. That renewal begins with education, debate and vigilance. Schools should teach the principles of constitutional order. Leaders should recommit to clear mandates and respect boundaries. Citizens should ask more of those who hold power. 

And the best place to begin is to relearn the principles on which our prosperity was built. 

Oliver reflects on these themes further in his essay ‘Leonardo’s Legacy’. You can also watch his Da Vinci Lecture and listen to his conversation with Leighton Smith on his Newstalk ZB podcast.