Carlotta Brigid Dann () is a New Zealand journalist, author and addiction services advocate. In 2023 Dann was appointed a Member of the

New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant (document), royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Monarchy of New Zealand, Queen of New Zealand, "for th ...

for services to addiction advocacy.

Academic career

Dann grew up in

Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...

, and was the second of four girls. Her father is KC Chris McVeigh. Dann completed a media studies

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

titled ''Is that really me?: Power, Emotion & Knowledge in Reality TV'' at the

University of Auckland The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...

in 2013. She also has a postgraduate degree in counselling. Dann is married to political editor Corin Dann, and the couple have three children. When Dann found herself hiding wine bottles from her husband to disguise the amount she was drinking, she decided to get sober. In 2011 she began an anonymous blog, ''Mrs D is Going Without'', to detail her daily struggle with stopping drinking. She had been drinking since she was 15, and by that time says she had been a functioning alcoholic for twenty four years. After several years sober, Dann published a memoir, also named ''Mrs D is Going Without''. Dann partnered with agencies including the New Zealand Drug Foundation, Te Hiringa Hauora Health Promotion Agency and Matua Raki to create Living Sober, an online community to support New Zealanders living with alcohol addiction. An independent evaluation found that living sober reached 25,000 people in 2021, and 68% of members reporting becoming sober since joining the community. Dann has also published on the emotional recovery after becoming sober, (''Mrs D is Going Within'', 2017), and on the ways the alcohol industry targets women (''The Wine O'Clock Myth'', 2020).

Honours and awards

In the

2023 New Year Honours The 2023 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebratio ...

Dann was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to addiction advocacy.

Selected works

* * * *

References

External links

*
The power of story telling and Mutual aid - Lotta Dann
', speaking for Collaborative Aotearoa, 6 November 2023, via YouTube * Dann's Blog
Mrs D is Going Without
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Dann, Lotta Living people New Zealand journalists University of Auckland alumni New Zealand women writers Activists from Christchurch Mass media people from Christchurch Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit 1971 births