| Speakers and Facilitators |
| Abbie Jung Co-Founder Synergy Social Ventures, Nexus Asia Abbie Jung is the Nexus Asia Regional Advisor and Co-Founder of Synergy Social Ventures, a nonprofit that supports the development of social entrepreneurship and philanthropy in Asia. Last year, she convened the first Asian Nexus summit in China and the inaugural Philanthropy in Asia Summit in Singapore. Abbie’s background is in international development and philanthropic investment. She has a BA in Neurobiology from University of California, Berkeley and an MPH from Columbia University. | |
| Adrian Pyle Relationships Innovation Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Victoria and Tasmania Adrian Pyle is, chiefly amongst other things, a husband, father, innovation explorer for the Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Victoria and Tasmania, emeritus chair of a major Melbourne community service agency, founder of an awards program for young people sensitively tackling the challenge of poverty and an ecological sustainability advocate. He has a deep interest in community development, particularly as it relates to increasing neighbourly connections and the link between community and spiritual development. Twitter: @adrian_pyle2 | |
| Alan Crabbe Co-founder and Director Pozible Alan is the Co-founder and Director of Pozible, Australia's first and No. 1 crowdfunding platform and community-building tool for creative projects and ideas.The site has hosted thousands of creative projects and ideas in Australia alone and distributed over millions to creative individuals, groups and organisations since it launched in mid 2010. Twitter: @pozible | |
| Amanda Miller (Nexus Organising Committee) Director Kids in Philanthropy Amanda is passionate about growing giving and empathy as well as empowering and supporting young changemakers. Amanda currently oversees operations at the Australian Women Donors Network and is a founding Advisory Board Member of Kids in Philanthropy. Prior to this, she practised corporate law for a number of years at Allens. A social media enthusiast, Amanda is responsible for maintaining a social media presence for a number of community organisations. Twitter: @miller_amanda | |
| Andrew Brough (FYA Host) Head of Changemaking Foundation for Young Australians Andrew is FYA's Executive Director focused on Enterprise and Changemaking. Previously Andrew worked in the UK with the Young Foundation setting up social venture funds and developing ventures such as Studio Schools. In the USA & Europe he worked in venture capital developing ventures from University R&D and consulting on innovation to organisations such as the BBC, UCL and Philips. He has a Masters in Space Science and Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering. | |
| Dr Andrew Kuper President and Founder LeapFrog Investments Andy is an award-winning investor and entrepreneur in emerging markets. He founded LeapFrog in 2007, now the largest investor worldwide in insurance and related financial services to emerging consumers. LeapFrog’s high-growth companies serve 18 million people in Africa and Asia, most of whom are low-income and accessing financial safety nets for the first time. Andy is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, hailed by President Clinton for “opening up new frontiers for alternative investment”. Twitter: @AndrewKuper | |
| Andrew Martin Director - Fundraising & Business Development Gross National Happiness Centre (Bhutan) 13 years in a multi national textile company in and product development roles, culminated in a strategic global director position. 2001 established a Business Innovation, NPD and Sales Consultancy, proving hugely successful and profitable in the competitive international textile industry. 2012 completed with distinction the pioneering One Planet MBA, including winning the award for ‘Dissertation most likely to change thinking’ for his research on the emerging global Happiness debate and impacts for business. Twitter: @GNHCentreBhutan | |
| Anna Jenko NSW State Manager Whitelion and Open Family Australia Anna joined the Non Profit sector in 2007 after working in the corporate sector in communications, marketing and account management roles. She is experienced in senior roles largely in managing corporate partnerships and stakeholder relationships. Anna joined Whitelion as part of the establishment team in NSW in October 2010. She has overseen the merge of Whitelion and Open Family Australia in NSW and has contributed to the ongoing growth and sustainability of both organisations. | |
| Anna Spraggett (Facilitator) Partnerships Manager Think HQ Anna is a relationship builder with a passion for social cause initiatives that inspire communities to create positive change. Anna has been a philanthropist since17 and is now a co vice president of her family’s foundation. Anna’s early exposure to philanthropy drew her to a career in the third sector. She has had experience working for a number of charitable, philanthropic and social enterprise organisations, both as an employee and Board member. | |
| Anthony Owen (Facilitator) Managing Partner DOM Capital Group Tony Owen is Founder and President of DOM Capital Group, a family services and investment office for a Chicago-based family formerly in the retail/food industry. He has many years of experience in evaluating and executing investments in public and private companies though his experience in family offices, in management consulting, and in the executive offices of the leading global automaker. As an investor and partner in Frontera Ventures, Tony currently leads business development activities for the Frontera group, a chef-driven packaged food and hospitality business. Tony also led the development of another restaurant concept in the fast casual space, Freshii, as an early investor and board member. Prior to founding DOM Capital Group, Mr. Owen worked for Toyota Motor Sales, USA; the sales and marketing organization responsible for selling all Toyota, Lexus, and Scion vehicles in the United States. At Toyota, Mr. Owen specialized in product development and marketing for Lexus brand vehicles in the United States. He was responsible for the launch strategy of the company’s flagship model. He also collaborated extensively with manufacturing, distributors, and dealers in Japan, China, Australia, and Europe to expand the Lexus brand globally and grow the brand in new markets. A native of Chicago, Illinois and raised in South Florida, Mr. Owen holds a Bachelor of Arts degree, with honors, in Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences (MMSS) and Economics from Northwestern University. He also holds a Masters of Business Administration from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. | |
| 0 | Bessi Graham CEO The Difference Incubator - TDi Bessi Graham is CEO and co-founder of The Difference Incubator. Bessi is Chair of the Social Impact Measurement Network Australia (SIMNA). Bessi serves on a number of Advisory Boards and panels and is passionate about building the capacity of organisations aiming to generate blended value. Bessi has a background in management consulting, holds a BA (politics) a MA (International Relations) and completed the Harvard Kennedy School, Executive Education course “Creating Collaborative Solutions: Innovations in Governance”. Twitter: @difincubator |
| Calum Scott Program Impact Director Opportunity International Australia Calum Scott has worked for Opportunity International Australia for 6 years, and is an expert in the field of Social Performance Management (SPM). Calum leads a team developing a new approach to measuring outreach and social impact within the microfinance sector. Prior to joining Opportunity, Calum worked for 10 years as an economist for the UK Government and the National Health Service in Scotland. Calum holds a BAcc in Accounting and Political Economy. | |
| Catherine Brown (Facilitator) CEO Lord Mayor's Charitable Foundation Catherine is CEO of the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation. She worked within the human services not-for-profit sector in legal and CEO roles for 11 years and then spent more than ten years on government boards and advising philanthropic foundations and not for profits on governance and strategy, as well as related legal issues. She is the author of Great Foundations a 360° guide to building resilient and effective not for profit organisations (ACER Press, 2010). | |
| Dr Catriona Wallace CEO Fifth Quadrant Dr Catriona Wallace is a Customer Experience Futurist and Chief Executive of four Sydney-based businesses, Fifth Quadrant, ACA Research, Avoclean and Flamingo Pty Ltd. Catriona has a PhD in Organisational Behaviour, is Adjunct Faculty at the AGSM and is a well published author and academic. Fifth Quadrant is a Customer Experience Strategy, Design & Research firm. Flamingo is a Vendor Relationship Management (VRM) and Customer Experience platform. Catriona is also the founder of three not-for-profit businesses: Indigo Express; Kids In Philanthropy; and Out and Up, an employment program for women prisoners, asylum seekers and refugees. Catriona led Fifth Quadrant to being awarded the 2013 NSW Medium Sized Business of the Year and the overall NSW Business of the Year in the Telstra Business Awards and is a Finalist in the 2013 Telstra Business Women’s Awards. Catriona also recently hosted the Julia Gillard in Conversation with Anne Summers sell out events. | |
| Clyde McConaghy Managing Director Optima Boards Clyde is the founder of Optima Boards, providing independent advisory services to public, private, family and charitable entities. He was Group Managing Director of a family office of publicly listed, private, philanthropic and venture capital investments, and has had an international career in publishing, media, online and technology. He is a director of the Institute for Economics & Peace in the USA and Australia, andof Neuroscience Research Institute of Australia. | |
| Danny Almagor Managing Director Small Giants Daniel Almagor is MD of Small Giants, an impact investment firm. He was the founder and CEO of Engineers Without Borders Australia and the inaugural Social Entrepreneur in Residence at RMIT. He loves to read, talk about philosophy, garden, travel and jump on the trampoline with his kids. Twitter: @atanajurat | |
| Dorjee Sun Director WhoGives Dorjee Sun is a serial social entrepreneur who has started 8 companies with 3 exits in areas ranging from technology, education, social media, sustainability and agriculture. Dorjee has been named a Future Leader by The Australian, an Asia Society 21 Fellow, Asialink Young Leader, a TIME Magazine Hero of the Environment as well as won the Earth Day Species Award with the kinyongia dorjeesuni chameleon species named after him for his work in conservation. | |
| Dougal Edwards CEO B Lab Australia & NZ Dougal is the CEO of B Lab ANZ, establishing the "B Corporation" as a new type of corporation that uses the power of business to drive societal and environmental change. Passionate about driving change from the heart of business, Dougal's career ranges from startup to enterprise, specializing in growth strategy and innovation. He earned his stripes in Media (BSkyB), Finance (Barclays) and Tech (Infosys); embraced entrepreneurship turning around small businesses and building startups. Twitter: @dougaled | |
| Dr Alberto Furlan (Facilitator) Senior Program Manager The Ian Potter Foundation Alberto has a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Sydney. He lived and worked in Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory, Australia for over five years researching traditional and popular Aboriginal music and working on the management and protection of sacred sites. Now based in Melbourne, he is employed as Senior Program Manager at The Ian Potter Foundation administering the grant making of several areas of funding. | |
| Dr Aron D'Souza (Nexus Organising Committee) Executive Chairman Good Super Doctor Aron Ping D'Souza is the Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Good Super, Australia’s only social impact superannuation fund. He is also the Chair of organising committee for Nexus Australia, Honorary Consul of the Republic of Moldova in Australia and a director of a property development consortium. He read law at the University of Oxford and earned his Ph.D. in legal philosophy from the University of Melbourne. | |
| Elliot Costello (Facilitator) CEO and founder YGAP Elliot Costello is a social entrepreneur. In 2008, Elliot initiated YGAP, a not-for-profit organisation aimed to inspire social entrepreneurs to end poverty. For the past five years, YGAP has inspired tens of thousands of social entrepreneurs through youth education and youth leadership programs in some of the world’s most disadvantaged communities. While running YGAP as a volunteer, Elliot worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers and PPB Advisory building strong skills and networks in the corporate sector. | |
| Farah Mohamed President & CEO G(irls)20 A social entrepreneur, Farah Mohamed created the G(irls)20 Summit and now serves as its President & CEO (Chief Empowerment Officer). Farah has spent her career brokering deals between government, social profit entities and the private sector. Having worked for several high profile Canadians, Farah is well versed in effective philanthropy and places a premium on the power of partnerships. Twitter: @Girls20Summit | |
| Holly Ransom (Nexus Organising Committee) WA Partnerships Manager Foundation for Young Australians Challenge strategist Holly Ransom has worked for eight years in the not-for-profit, business, mining and community sectors. In August 2010 she formed Holly Ransom Enterprises to focus on speaking, consulting and coaching. Holly represented Australia at the G20 in Russia, was the youngest ever participant at the Australian American Leadership Dialogue, established an esteemed microfinance course in Kenya as a teenager and was named as one of Australia’s 100 most influential women in 2012. Twitter: @hollyransom | |
| Hunter Johnson Partnerships Coordinator Foundation for Young Australians & UN Youth Victoria Hunter Johnson is a highly innovative and motivated individual, currently focused on developing his skills and competencies in the business and philanthropic sector. At present, he is studying an Undergraduate Degree of Business and Psychology and is actively involved in Kids in Philanthropy which supports programs for children at risk in the western suburbs of Sydney and Melbourne and Indigo Express Foundation which funds Indigenous Literacy. Hunter is also involved with Philanthropy Australia's New Gen program; a national membership program to equip young philanthropists to become more strategic and professional givers and the School for Social Entrepreneur's incubator program where he is developing his own socially purposed initiative that focuses on harnessing the social skills that sport offers and using these skills to provide a structured transition for boys into manhood. Twitter: @hunts_96 | |
| Dr Ian Williamson Associate Dean Melbourne Business School Dr Ian O. Williamson is the Helen Macpherson Smith Chair of Leadership for Social Impact at the Melbourne Business School where he serves as Associate Dean of International Relations. He also serves as Director of the Asia Pacific Social Impact Leadership Centre, where his focus is on developing effective partnerships between business schools, not-for-profit, for profit, philanthropic and government entities to address intractable social issues. His research examines how “talent pipelines” influences organizational and community outcomes. | |
| Jack Delosa (Facilitator) Managing Director Entourage Jack Delosa is the Founder of the Entourage Education. He runs Australias number one business school for enterpreneurials. From business start ups to exit strategies. He has also consulted to organisations such as Microsoft, Virgin and the NSW State Government on business growth and performance. Jack was named in Australia's top 10 entrepreneurs under 30 in Dynamic Business Magazines Young Gun Publication. | |
| Jan Owen AM (Nexus Advisory Board) Chief Executive Officer Foundation for Young Australians In 2012, Jan was named the inaugural Australian Financial Review & Westpac Group ‘Woman of Influence 2012’. In 2000 she was awarded membership of the Order of Australia for services to children and young people and in 1999 received a fellowship for leadership and innovation to the Peter Drucker Foundation in the US. Jan is the author of Every Childhood Lasts a Lifetime (1996). Twitter: @JanOwenAM | |
| Jane Hunt CEO Fitted for Work Jane Hunt is an internationally recognised social entrepreneur who has more than 15 years’ experience in advancing social innovation in Australia through her establishment and management of social enterprises and not for profit organisations. Jane is currently the inaugural CEO of Fitted for Work, a not-for-profit that has assisted over 12,500 women experiencing disadvantage to get and keep work since first opening its doors in Melbourne in 2005. | |
| Jane Martino Co-founder Smiling Mind & Shout for Good Jane Martino founded Undertow Media in 2005. Most recently Jane has joined forces with James Tutton to create Smiling Mind - a not for profit mindfulness meditation program delivered free of charge to individual users and the Australian education system. She is also co-founder of Shout, a micro donation platform which Jane hopes will be part of the new wave of philanthropy occurring in Australia. | |
| Jane Vadiveloo Founding CEO Children's Ground Jane Vadiveloo is Children’s Ground founding CEO. Jane has a Masters in Forensic Psychology and a 20 year history working with communities experiencing deep disadvantage and trauma. With local traditional custodians she founded Akeyulerre in Alice Springs, an organisation that celebrates and supports First Nations knowledge systems. Children’s Ground is aimed at whole scale systemic change to redress extreme inequity and deliver long term social, cultural and economic opportunity and well-being. Jane will be presenting with Janisa Ryder & Patricia Drover (Arrernte women from Alice Springs). | |
| 0 | Janisa Ryder Trainee Bush Products Officer Akeyulerre Inc - The Healing Centre Janisa Ryder is 34 years old and comes from a strong Eastern Arrernte family, in Central Australia. She has been part of building a social enterprise called "Interrentye Traditional Healing Products" with the Arrernte families that allows people to hold onto cultural knowledge. This has been an empowering experience, for Janisa, and she hopes to keep learning and helping other young women. |
| Jason Kimberley CEO and founder Cool Australia Jason Kimberley is a modern day adventurer with a passion for educating our next generations about the challenges we face to protect our natural world and ultimately preserve our way of life. Jason has spoken to more than 50,000 students and engaged more than 500,000 online via the Cool Australia education program and the Enviroweek call to action. Jason was named the VAEE Environmental Educator of the year for 2012. | |
| Jonni Pollard Meditation Teacher 1 Giant Mind Jonni is a meditation master and the Co-Founder and Executive Director of 1 Giant Mind, a multi national not for profit established to reduce and prevent stress-related mental illness and lifestyle disease by empowering people worldwide with learn-to-meditate programs, resources, and research. Jonni is a personal consultant and mentor to business leaders and professionals around the world. | |
| Jono Nicholas (Facilitator) CEO Inspire Foundation In 1997 jono joined Inspire Foundation and helped launch the world's first online mental health service - ReachOut.com. Over the past 17 years he has been a pioneer in the e-mental health and instrumental in the international rollout of ReachOut.com to Ireland and the US. Jonathan is passionate about Children’s rights and has previously consulted to Aus Aid and UNICEF in Indonesia and Cambodia on promoting the convention on the rights of the child. Twitter: @jononicholas | |
| Julie Reilly (Facilitator) CEO Australian Women Donors Network As CEO of Women Donors Julie combines a diverse work history in government, major events management, television production and media advocacy with her personal passion for advancing women and girls. She has coordinated OECD conferences, won an Excellence Award for her work with the National Centre for Gender and Cultural Diversity at Swinburne University and co-produces the Myer Spirit of Christmas CD whichhas raised more than $7m for charity.Julie has studied Philanthropy and Social Investment and is a Director the Australian Childhood Foundation. | |
| Karen Mahlab (Facilitator) Founder and CEO Pro Bono Australia Karen Mahlab is a leader and innovator in opening the channels of connection between communities, not-for-profit organisations, volunteers, philanthropy and business. She established Pro Bono Australia in 1999 as social purpose business. As the major Australian "hub for Good", one million Australians will use Pro Bono Australias services in 2013 - to volunteer, give, and engage with News and information about Australias Social Economy. | |
| Kristi Mansfield (Facilitator) Executive Director Sydney Community Foundation Kristi Mansfield is the Chief Executive of the Sydney Community Foundation, the Fund Director of the Sydney Women's Fund and the founder of impact investment firm Greenstone Group. Through philanthropy, Kristi facilitates funding to projects to improve the lives of marginalized communities, often by investing in women and girls, in western Sydney. Twitter: @kristimansfield | |
| Laura Lindsay Schools Chaplaincy Consultant Uniting Church Is currently enrolled as a student with the School of Social entrepreneurs in Melbourne (incubator program) and on the journey to developing a social enterprise idea about at risk teenagers. Has a Social Science Degree (Welfare studies major) in 2000 (University of Newcastle) and a Master of Arts in Theology in 2010. Spent years working with disadvantage children, young people and families and have a passion to see the marginalised empowered. Twitter: @lauralindsay3 | |
| Laura McKenzie (Nexus Organising Committee) CEO Scale Investors Ltd Laura is the inaugural CEO of Scale, a female focused angel investor network. She has 15 years experience in corporate finance, microfinance and venture capital across three continents in her roles at PwC, Opportunity International and Starfish Ventures. Her expertise includes identifying, valuing and managing portfolios of innovative companies. She is passionate about unlocking the potential of early stage businesses and connecting female entrepreneurs with capital. Laura is a Williamson Fellow. | |
| Leonard Vary (Facilitator) Chief Executive Officer The Myer Foundation and Sidney Myer Fund Leonard Vary is Chief Executive Officer of The Myer Foundation and Sidney Myer Fund. Prior to his appointment Leonard was an Executive Director of the Fox Private Group and a Director of Fox Group Holdings and of Linfox Airports Group Pty Ltd. Leonard holds Bachelor of Laws, Bachelor of Commerce and Master of Laws degrees from the University of Melbourne and is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. | |
| Mele-Ane Havea (Facilitator) Director of Portfolio Small Giants Mele-Ane works at impact investment house Small Giants in a job that she loves with people that she loves even more. SG is built on the idea that business can be a powerful vehicle for social change, and their she is able to combine her commercial legal background, her passion for social justice and her love of early stage start ups. | |
| Michael Gonski President Sydney Story Factory; Chair Advisory Board, Give Easy Michael is a senior associate at Herbert Smith Freehills specialising in employment law. He is passionate about philanthropy and as a result, chairs Philanthropy Australia's Young Generation of Giving program and is the president of the Sydney Story Factory (a not for profit creative writing centre in Redfern). Michael also chairs the advisory board of a start-up giving platform called 'GiveEasy'. | |
| Michael Sheldrick Manager of Global Policy and Advocacy Global Poverty Project An accomplished campaigner, commentator and speaker, Michael Sheldrick has been advocating on issues of extreme poverty since high school. He previously worked on high impact campaigns in Australia with Make Poverty History and The Oaktree Foundation, helping to secure the largest ever increase in Australian aid. Michael has worked closely with the UN, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, UNICEF, WHO, the World Bank and many other multilateral organizations. At 25 years of age Michael currently serves as Global Policy and Advocacy Manager with the Global Poverty Project in New York, where he coordinates a number of campaign initiatives including The End of Polio campaign, which has helped mobilize more than $800 million in support of polio eradication efforts. For his efforts in helping to secure polio eradication as a key agenda item at 2011 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, Michael was announced in June as the Western Australian of the Year (Youth). Last year he was a finalist for Young Australian of the Year. Twitter: @micksheldrick | |
| Michael Traill Chief Executive Officer Social Ventures Australia Michael joined SVA as founding CEO in 2002 after 15 years as a co-founder and Executive Director of Macquarie Group’s private equity arm, Macquarie Direct Investment. Michael is Vice Chair of GoodStart Childcare Ltd, Chairman of the Opera Australia Capital Fund, Assetic Pty Ltd, and a Director of M H Carnegie & Co. He holds a BA (Hons) from the University of Melbourne and an MBA from Harvard University. | |
| Neil Pharaoh (Nexus Organising Committee) Head of Partnerships Foundation for Young Australians Neil Pharaoh has a personal and professional interest in where marketing, government relations and public policy intersect. Neil is currently Head of Partnerships for the Foundation for Young Australians, where his role is the driver of FYA’s “partner powered” agenda. Prior to FYA, Neil worked in a variety of roles in social purpose organisations, within political communications and the private sector. Neil holds a Bachelor of Commerce, and a Bachelor of Law Degree. Twitter: @neilphar | |
| Nick Moraitis Executive Director Centre for Australian Progress Nick currently leads Centre for Australian Progress, a national organisation investing in the people and projects driving Australian civic engagement. At 30, Nick has spent a decade leading innovative projects in New York, Toronto, London and Sydney, working in senior roles for Amnesty International, Greenpeace, and as the founding online director at GetUp.org.au - which The Monthly has described as Australia's "most important civil society actor”. He was a co-founder of pioneering social network TakingITGlobal.org, and more recently of consultancy Make Believe (purchased in 2013 by Agency), and serves on the board of several non-profits and think-tanks. | |
| Nkandu Beltz CEO YEPA Nkandu is a young social Pioneer with FYA. She has been an active social change maker long before moving to Australia. Nkandu was actively involved in advocating for girl child rights through drama and poetry in Zambia from age 10. She later joined her parents in Botswana and was trained as a peer educator by the Botswana National Youth Council as a peer councillor in maters that related to HIV/AIDS and Youth Empowerment. Twitter: @nakndubeltz | |
| 0 | Patricia Drover Bush Products Officer Akeyulerre Inc - The Healing Centre Patricia Drover comes from Alice Springs in Central Australia, the heart of the Arrernte Nation. She is 25 years old, mother of three and working at Akeyulerre is her first job. She started by learning about bush medicines from her grandmothers and then, along with other young women, started the social enterprise "Interrentye Traditional Healing Products", which sells bush products to the wider community. |
| Paul Higgins Futurist and Uncertainty Navigator Emergent Futures Paul Higgins was a dairy cattle veterinarian before moving steadily towards a career in foresight and uncertainty. Paul has a Masters Degree in Strategic Foresight, is a graduate of the Leadership Victoria Program, a tech Editor on Tumblr and a guest lecturer at Victoria University. Paul works across a range of corporate, not for profit and government clients advising and challenging on what the future might bring. Twitter: @futuristpaul | |
| Paul Smith (Facilitator) General Manager, Strategy & Communications Australian Ethical Investment Paul works and lives at the intersection of knowledge, consciousness and personal responsibility. He has over 15 years experience in financial services, carbon consulting and the non-profit sector across small and large organisations. He now works at Australian Ethical helping clients connect their personal values with their money. He is a founding member of the Conscious Capitalism Australia movement and recently joined the board of the Jane Goodall Institute Australia. Twitter: @tallpaulmsmith | |
| Peter Winneke (Facilitator) Head of Philanthropic Services The Myer Family Company After 16 years in the corporate sector (insolvency/media acquisitions) Peter joined The Myer Foundation in 2003 as Finance Manager. Motivated by a desire to drive the growth of the philanthropic sector, in 2004 he founded the Philanthropic Services division of The Myer Family Company. In recent years he has established 80 foundations and assisted with the implementation of their strategic giving programs. He is Secretary of the Sidney Myer Fund and The Myer Foundation and other foundations. | |
| Phil Kingston Executive Chairman Kingston Equities Phil is a serial entrepreneur, having founded, grown and exited companies. He is an experienced multidisciplinary executive that has executed capital transactions on all sides (buy/sell, raised and invested capital). He is a highly technical strategic thinker, leveraging concepts across many diverse fields including science, economics, psychology, politics, finance and mathematics. | |
| Prashan Paramanathan (Facilitator) CEO Chuffed Prashan is the CEO of Chuffed - a new crowdfunding platform for Australian non-profits and social enterprises (www.chuffed.org). Prior to starting Chuffed, he spent 4 years as a strategic advisor to Australian non-profits, foundations and corporates at Social Ventures Australia Consulting. Prashan has also had roles in the IFC, World Bank Group in Western China, supporting the development of emerging microfinance banks and new financial services regulation as well as with Port Jackson Partners. Twitter: @ChuffedAU | |
| Rachel Cohen Gerrol Co-Founder & Curator Nexus Global Youth Summit Co-Founder & Curator of the Nexus Global Youth Summit on Innovative Philanthropy & Social Entrepreneurship, a network of young influencers from over 60 countries. Rachel Cohen Gerrol is also Executive Director of PVBLIC Foundation, which aggregates and donates millions of dollars in unused advertising space to non-profits to amplify their message and drive social change. Rachel is recognized internationally for her work on millenial philanthropy and her projects have been featured in Forbes, Vanity Fair, Barron's, Inc. and the Huffington Post. In 2012-13 Rachel Co-Chaired the G8 Young Summit in London, curated the Social Impact Film program for The Collective at Sundance and was named one of "99 Foreign Policy Leaders Under 33" by the Diplomatic Courier. | |
| Rachel English Student English Family Foundation Rachel is currently completing a dual degree at the University of Queensland in economics and psychology. When she graduates in November she is looking to start work through the Immerse program at the Foundation for Young Australians to get the first taste of the philanthropic and charitable sectors which is very exciting to her. | |
| Ryan Trainor Director Crosby & Prince Ventures Ryan Trainor is Entrepreneur who launched his first company, a Retail Security labour force firm in 1997 at the age of 23. After three years he was servicing most major retailers in Australia including the Coles Myer Group and Woolworth's Limited, contracting hundreds of staff per week. In 2000, the company was sold to a large Multi National. Ryan's has predominantly focussed on education ventures co-founding a workforce education company in 1998 later selling to an ASX listed company five years later and again founding Franklyn Scholar in 2008, expanding quickly to become Australia's largest private VET Workplace Education company with more than 25,000 participants commencing training per year. Franklyn Scholar was sold to Kaplan (part of the Washington Post) in May 2011. | |
| Dr Sam Prince Founder and Director One Disease at a Time A humanitarian, philanthropist, businessman and medical doctor, Dr Sam Prince's success in both business and aid work derives from a rare ability to clearly visualize gaps and practical solutions to seemingly vast problems. By sheer force of determination and willpower, he is able to drive his vision through to reality and inspire others to commit. He is the founder and director of the Not-for-profit Organization, One Disease at a Time, and fresh Mexican restaurant franchise, Zambrero, with 30 stores in Australia and plans to expand to Asia by the end of 2013. He is also the founder and director of Mejico Restaurant in Sydney, an upmarket Mexican Restaurant location in Sydney CBD. | |
| Sarah Easson (Nexus Organising Committee) TLC for kids Sarah Easson specialises in brand management achieved through marketing and public relations. Having worked for the world’s most prestigious brands, such as marie cliare, Richemont Group and Sotheby’s Australia, she demonstrates an impressive track record. Sarah currently consults to TLC for kids as the Partnerships Manager at TLC for kids. Past NFP work includes launching Pink magazine for the National Breast Cancer Foundation and Chairperson for the Global Illumination Gala Dinner Victoria. | |
| Sebastian Roberston (Facilitator) CEO Batyr Australia Limited Sebastian is the founder and CEO of Batyr which aims to engage, educate and empower young people through our programs to reduce the stigma on mental health and increase help-seeking behaviours. Sebastian graduated with a double degree in Economics and Commerce (ANU). In 2010 he was an Australian Youth Representative for Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. In 2011 he was Sydney's Social Entrepreneur of the Year and awarded Young Alumnus of Year 2013 for the Australian National University. Twitter: @sebrobertson | |
| Seri Renkin CEO ten20 Foundation Seri is CEO of the ten20 Foundation, a venture philanthropy organization focused on transforming the lives of vulnerable children and young people, by supporting community led, collective impact initiatives in 20 of the most challenged Australian communities, over the next ten years. She has over twenty years’ experience spanning the corporate, non-profit, philanthropic and government sectors including 9 years at Social Ventures Australia and 8 years in Management Consulting. | |
| Simon Griffiths (Facilitator) Director Who Gives a Crap Simon is an engineer and economist turned entrepreneur. He is the CEO of Who Gives A Crap, an environmentally friendly toilet paper company that uses 50% of its profits to builds toilets in the developing world, and a Director of Shebeen, a non-profit bar in Melbourne's CBD. | |
| Simon Lewis (Facilitator) Head of Philanthropy & Community The Trust Company Simon Lewis leads the Philanthropy portfolio and proposition for The Trust Company, one of the region’s largest independent corporate trustee companies. He has a strong sense of social justice having grown up in Zimbabwe and been instrumental in establishing a Foundation in 2009 to commemorate World Food Day on 16th October each year. He was previously a consultant with KPMG in London and Sydney after a stint at Oxford University as a Zimbabwean Rhodes Scholar. | |
| Stacey Thomas (Nexus Organising Committee) Client & Research Manager Myer Family Company Stacey has a passion for creating positive change with strong personal and professional experience in the Australian philanthropic sector. Currently the Client and Research Manager with the Myer Family Company she has also worked in national roles with the Telstra Foundation and The Trust Company. Stacey and her husband have established a sub-fund with the Australian Communities Foundation and are always looking for ways to engage their two young children in social justice issues. | |
| Stephanie Lorenzo CEO PROJECT FUTURES Stephanie Lorenzo is a marketing specialist with 7 years experience in stakeholder engagement and brand management. She is the Founder and CEO of Project Futures Ltd, a non profit organisation which aims to empower and engage young Australians in raising awareness and funding to combat human trafficking globally. From a standing start the first four years raised A$1.5 million for anti-trafficking projects in Australia and Cambodia. Twitter: @steph_lorenzo | |
| Stephen Penny (Facilitator) Principal Good Foundations Stephen is a Chartered Accountant and worked with PwC, nab and Westpac for 16 years before joining a not-for-profit organisation, Opportunity International Australia in 2006. Stephen was the CFO and partnership director at Opportunity and since 2012 has run a consulting business, Good Foundations, which is focused solely on the not-for-profit and social enterprise sectors. | |
| Steve Hawkins GM Business Development The Benevolent Society Steve is General Manager Business Development at The Benevolent Society. Prior to joining TBS Steve was a Managing Director at UBS in the Capital Markets Division. Steve is the founder of a Private Ancillary Fund and Chairman of the Stanford Australia Foundation. | |
| Steven Salsberg (Facilitator) Chairman Global Access Advisors Steven P. Salsberg is the Chairman of Global Access Advisors, a strategic advisory, investor, and capital access consulting firm with offices in NYC, Washington DC, Melbourne and Tel Aviv. He is the Vice Chairman of GrowNYC, formerly the Council on the Environment of New York City, appointed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Steven is an attorney and member of the Bars of New York and New Jersey. | |
| Suzi Carp Director River Capital Suzi is a Director, and co-founder, of River Capital, a boutique investment management business she began with her husband, Barry. Throughout her career which started at her family’s business, Smorgon Consolidated Industries, Suzi has been involved with many charities, community groups and gatherings with a passion and focus on youth and mental health. Suzi is the very proud mother of Alyssa, Jade and Harry, the loves of her life. | |
| Teresa Zolnierkiewicz Head of Philanthropy ANZ Trustees Teresa Zolnierkiewicz is a senior leader on the management board of ANZ Trustees, part of ANZ Global Wealth and Private Banking. As Head of Philanthropy, she is responsible for strategic direction and operational oversight across a full range of traditional and innovative trustee and investment services, and for inspiring and growing philanthropy. Teresa has responsibility for the approach to philanthropic giving and oversight of the quality of grant making and programs for 255 charitable foundations at ANZ Trustees, with an annual distribution pool of $75 million from charitable assets of around $1.3billion. She is well placed to comment on current and emerging trends in philanthropy and giving - both domestic and international. Teresa has extensive experience advising philanthropists on the establishment of charitable foundations and designing strategic giving programs. She has a particular interest and expertise in helping design time-limited capacity building grants, that assist charitable organisations achieve the next level of performance. With a background in journalism, education and higher education administration, Teresa holds a Master of Management, Bachelor of Arts and Diploma of Education. She is an experienced representative on a number of charitable foundation boards, and has also served as director and/or advisor to not-for-profit organisations. | |
| Tom Dawkins Co-founder/CEO StartSomeGood Tom Dawkins is Co-Founder and CEO of StartSomeGood.com, a crowdfunding platform for social good projects, and Director of the Australian Changemakers Festival. He was previously founder and CEO of Australian youth non-profit Vibewire. He was the first Social Media Director at Ashoka: Innovators for the Public and consulted with numerous nonprofits, associations and government on how to better engage their communities using social technologies. Twitter: @tomjd | |
