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Message from Peter Shergold
A key role of CSI is to contribute to the making of public policy. We do so in a number of ways.
I am presently appointed to the Western Australia Economic Audit Committee. My particular responsibility is to examine ways of enhancing the delivery of services to meet citizens’ needs. The Audit reports to the WA government in October. It has provided a wonderful chance to meet with a range of influential community organisations (including WACOSS, Centrecare, UnitingCare West, the Richmond Fellowship and National Disability Services WA). We’ve discussed how to improve their relationships with government and opportunities to put citizens in control of self-directed budgets. I wrote recently on this in The Weekend Australian. Meanwhile Cheryl Kernot has just been appointed to the National Assessment Panel for the Commonwealth’s Teaching and Learning Capital Fund. She’s contributing to the Panel on Investing in Community Education and Training.
Cheryl, along with Jan Corcoran, Debbie Haski-Leventhal, Mark Lyons and Gianni Zappala, have also co- operated on preparing a series of four policy papers for the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. They cover issues of social enterprise, corporate responsibility, social investment and volunteering. Meanwhile, I’m engaged with the Australian Public Service Commissioner on a discussion paper on ‘Co-production of Government Services’ and designing a training program for public servants on ‘Working with Community Partners’. I’ve also recently talked to public service conferences on these issues in Perth, Wellington and the Gold Coast.
CSI has been fortunate to work with partners. The NSW Community Relations Commission collaborated on the recently-released Common Cause. Arts Queensland have been an engaged joint partner on the Arts Plus investigation on how best to support greater innovation, resilience and diversity among creative artists. The project is now nearing completion.
A key role for CSI is to facilitate the opportunity for others to participate in the framing of public policy. We’ve now hosted two thought- provoking workshops for the Productivity Commission, one which brought together those engaged in social enterprise and, more recently, one which gathered business executives to discuss corporate responsibility. I think both seminars will prove influential on the Commission’s current review of the contribution of the not-for-profit sector.
Of course, sometimes my old life comes back to haunt me! In Adelaide last week for the Festival of Ideas I gave a presentation on whether corporate responsibility has reached its limit. It was also an opportunity to have an on-air discussion of the complex relationship between governments, parliaments, public servants and community advocates with Geoff Gallop, Natasha Stott-Despoja and Alex Wodak (President of the Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation). It was broadcast by Peter Mares on the ABC’s National Interest.
In these various ways I hope that CSI can meet its ambition to have social impact.
Peter Shergold,
Macquarie Group Foundation Professor
www.csi.edu.au
Speader events
Why not warm up your brain with a stimulating talk from an international speaker of renown? There’ll be the opportunity in August to hear third sector leader Les Hems of GuideStar Data Services on his cutting edge quest in the UK to develop a basis for measurement of third sector performance. We’ll also welcome Alex Nicholls in August. He is Oxford University’s first lecturer in social entrepreneurship and the first staff member of Oxford’s Skoll Centre and will talk about his pioneering work in the field. Our first John B Reid Visiting Fellow is New York-based non-profit management consultant Jon Huggett who worked at Bridgespan for some years. He will deliver a public address when he’s here in October. Contact us to register your interest.
Common cause
The joint CSI-United Way report on Sydney’s social problems, Common Cause, written by NAB research fellow Dr Debbie Haski-Leventhal was launched in Sydney last week. You can download the full report or the summary report Sydney, In Your Hands. They are intended to kick off a wide-ranging discussion and collaboration with the Sydney community on the best ways of addressing the city’s most pressing social needs. The outcomes will form the basis for United Way’s future Community Impact strategy. We urge you to get involved.
Strategy over breakfast
We invite you to come along to breakfast with John Casey, an expert in government-nonprofit relations at Baruch College, City University, New York. He will speak on “Strategic Planning in a Tough Economy” at UNSW’s CBD Campus on 22 July.
Latest Yakety Yak
ABC broadcast presenter Peter Thompson’s conversation with Kylie Charlton on the topic of “Can For-Profit be For Good” was great food for thought to launch our “Yakety Yak” dinner series last month. Kylie’s spoke vividly about her work through Unitus Capital channeling profit-seeking investment into social and environmental projects and arranging capital for microfinance institutions. View the video.
Job opportunity
CSI is looking for a communications and marketing coordinator. The key focus of this role is to be responsible for media management and communication activities such as publications and maintaining the website as well as event management. Find out more about the position. Please spread the word about this excellent opportunity and email us for more information.
New Chair at Swinburne
The establishment of the Truby and Florence Williams Chair of Social Investment and Philanthropy at Swinburne University of Technology will be celebrated early next month. CSI is contributing to the funding of the chair along with ANZ Trustees, and it will be a conjoint appointment with CSI.
Scholarship to India
We received an excellent pool of applications for the CSI scholarship to attend the PRIA International Internship Program in Delhi. The winner will spend eight weeks in India from August to October with the Indian participatory democracy organisation, PRIA. The field of applicants for this scholarship now into its second year, looks particularly strong, presenting a tough challenge for the judges.
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