Jake was asked to give a 30 minute address on the State of the Nation to hundreds of delegates.

He spoke on the widening gap between rich and poor, the struggle for ordinary Kiwis to save for and own their own home, and the importance of education, as well as the importance of politicians retaining integrity.

A journalist from the Herald wondered if NZ First speech-writers had a hand in his speech. Winston Peters assured them he is a strong speaker in his own right.

While Jake is only 17 so cannot vote, he is loving the chance to have a say, and see how the MMP political process works. 

The Otago Daily Times published an article in August looking at Otago schools and their heating systems.  Logan Park decided to change to a less polluting  system in 2011.  Other schools are now investigating changing. 

''Half of Dunedin knows you could see Logan Park in the morning, chucking blue smoke down the valley towards town, and now people go past and you can't tell if anything is coming out of our chimney," says Deputy Principal Peter Hills. 
''It's a good outcome in terms of the emissions.''

The cost of a new boiler at the time of converting was about $500,000, whereas a conversion of the boiler to wood pellets was only about $100,000 over three or four years, and the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) funded half of the cost.

''So it was quite an attractive proposition to shift,'' Mr Hills said.
''Logan Park High School is green and environmentally friendly - [coal] was just not the right look for us.''

The school paid $120,000 for pellets in 2011, but the cost decreased to about $93,000 last year because the wood pellet market has become more competitive and lower prices could be negotiated, he said. The school had also found ways to maximise the boiler's efficiency.