ADVANCE
CONNECTING
AUSTRALIANS
GLOBALLY

The Advance 100 Global Australians Summit

With one million Australians overseas at any given time, and many Australians holding influential positions in corporations and institutions around the world, the summit provided Australia with an opportunity to engage this important national asset and formalise the relationship between the country and the leading members of the Australian diaspora.

An invitation only event, the Advance 100 Global Australians Summit was held in Sydney December 18th and 19th, 2006. A Summit whitepaper and outcome statement will be produced as a record of the event. 

Monday December 18, 2006 – Prime Minister’s Reception

WELCOME RECEPTION: 
Prime Minister the Hon John Howard MP addresses the Advance 100 Global Australians Summit at Kirribilli House

Ladies and gentlemen, Janette and I would really like to thank all of you for taking the trouble to join us tonight to celebrate Australia regaining The Ashes. I hope you all have a drink on that and you all enjoy that immensely, but there is another reason as well and that is to welcome you all to this worldwide gathering of Advance and I am particularly delighted to welcome Ken Allen in many ways is the inspiration for this wonderful thing, to Brad Orgill and to Elena Douglas and to everybody else who has come back to Sydney for the conference. 

The concept of Advance is really quite superb. What it does is to challenge in the most emphatic way, that rather silly notion that in some way Australia is diminished by some of the brightest and the best of our country going overseas and making an enormous contribution to the societies and the economies of other parts of the world. And your coming here and the breadth of talent and achievement and success that is represented by the group that’s gathered here is I think something that sends a very strong message to our fellow country men and women that in the globalised world in which we now live forever, it is enormously to Australia’s advantage that we have a talented, energetic, achieving, highly successful diaspora.

That’s an enormous global investment made by this country, it’s an enormous asset because it brings with it an understanding of the countries with which we interact, and it brings with it a sophisticated involvement of Australia in the modern world and it’s also a reminder that Australia, proud though it is to be known around the world by sports men and women, by its entertainers, by people who are part of popular culture, it is also a country that is also a high performer in business, a high performer in science, a high performer in areas of research and this gathering to say to the nation, and particularly to those who occasionally lament the so-called ‘brain drain’ to say to them that this is a country of all the talents in all parts of the world. And that’s something that as Prime Minister I am very proud of and I know that Australians are very proud of it indeed. 

Ken it’s great to have you and the other members of the board here. I know how hard you worked when you were in New York as Consul-General doing wonderful things representing our country in that fantastic city, what wonderful things you did to get Advance going and the fruits of that endeavour is here on the lawns of Kirribilli House to get this extraordinary number of people here, although Sydney is not a bad place at this time of the year – Kirribilli House is not a bad place at this time of the year either I have to confess and it is particularly tonight.

Anyway it’s great to have you all here, Janette and I welcome you, we wish you well and I will invite Ken Allen to say a few words. Thank you very much.

Tuesday December 18, 2006 – Summit at the Sydney Opera House

Session 1 – Welcome

Welcome: Ken Allen, Chairman Emeritus, Advance Global Australian Professionals
Introduction of the Treasurer: Brad Orgill Chairman and CEO, UBS
Opening Key Note address: The Hon. Peter Costello MP, Treasurer of Australia

Session 2 – Global Challenges: Australian Responses

Global challenges arise from the war on terrorism, uncertainty about US foreign policy, the rise of and a new consciousness about global warming. This session analyses these challenges and examines the Australian responses.

The Hon. Gareth Evans AO, President, International Crisis Group
HE the Hon. Robert Hill, Australian Permanent Representative to the UN
Alan Gyngell, The Lowy Institute
Moderated by Paul Kelly, Editor-at-Large, The Australian

Session 3 – The Role of Diasporas: International Perspectives and Prospects for Innovation

Introduction: Barry Jones, Invest Australia

Overview of the emerging power of diasporas in world affairs: Michael Fullilove, Program Director, Global Issues, The Lowy Institute.

Panel discussion: How does the diaspora aid Australian innovation. What can we do to strengthen this?

Professor Peter Doherty, Nobel Laureate Medicine
David Anstice, President Merck Human Health
Mitch Davis, CEO Massive Incorporated
Greg Clark, International Board Member, ANZ Bank
Moderated by Christopher Aitken – Global Australian Professionals. Sponsored by Invest Lunch Time Address & Roundtables

Session 4 – Luncheon Presentation & Roundtable Discussions

Introduction: John Eales, Director of the Mettle Group
“Not even the sky is the limit. My journeys in space.”
Dr Andy Thomas, Australian NASA Astronaut.
 

Building the Bridges: Global Industry Networking

Delegates were be seated at tables with a facilitator and a scribe for each group. Material produced will be part of the record of the event and recommendations will be included in a whitepaper, one of the outcomes of the summit.

Luncheon groupings:

  • Universities and higher learning
  • The arts
  • Life sciences
  • Financial services
  • Media, communications and technology
  • Global corporates
  • The Humanitarian sector

Session 5 – Capital In: Capital Out and the New World Order
How does Australia use its one trillion in funds under management, and its large diaspora of talented financial services professionals, to enhance the country’s role as an important centre in global financial markets?

John Fraser, Global Chairman and CEO, UBS Global Asset Management
David Murray, Chair of the Future Fund Board of Guardians
Phil Green, Managing Director & Chief Executive, Babcock & Brown
Moderated by Bob Joss, Dean, Giving Back: Philanthropy for a New Age

Michael Hintze, CEO CQS LLP and global philanthropist. Address followed by question and answer moderated by Adele Ferguson, Business Review Weekly.

Session 6 – A Global Australian Community for the 21st Century

What is the role of a global Australian community in the 21st Century?

Dr Peter Shergold AM, Secretary Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet
Jeremy Philips, Executive Vice President, Office of the Chairman, News Corporation
Professor Rodney Brooks, Director MIT Computer Science and Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab
Andrew Banks, Executive Director, Talent 2
Elena Douglas, CEO Advance – Global Australian Professionals
Moderator: Alan Jones, Presenter, Radio 2GB
 

Gala Dinner

Master of Ceremonies: Geoffrey Robertson QC 

Welcome: John Watkins MP, Deputy Premier NSW,  Minister for Transport and Minister for Police 

After dinner speaker: Clive James

Entertainment: Australian Chamber Orchestra and Qantas Choir
 

Media Coverage: 

Dec 20, 2006 – Gallery of Great Expats (The Australian)
Dec 19, 2006 – Expats Focus on Asia: Costello (The Sydney Morning Herald)
Dec 19, 2006 – Speak of us well while you’re gone, PM tells Expats (The Australian)
Dec 19, 2006 – Aussie Exodus is Brain Gain: Costello (The Age)Dec 19, 2006 – Evans States his Slant on Australian Foreign Policy (7:30 Report)
Dec 17, 2006 – PM Welcomes Successful Expats (The Australian)

With Thanks to our Sponsors:

Presenting:

UBS

Gold:

NSW Government

Silver:

Invest Australia
Tourism Australia
News Corporation
Penfolds

Bronze:

Qantas
Omnilab
Business Council of Australia

Partners:

Lowy Institute
ADC Leadership Forum

Media:

The Australian

SUMMIT ADVISORY BOARD

Mr Ken Allen AM
Former Australian Consul General to New York and Chairman Emeritus of Advance 

H. E. the Hon. Richard Alston
High Commissioner to the United Kingdom

Mr David Anstice
President, Asia Pacific Human Health, Merck & Co., Inc. 

Sir Rod Eddington
Non Executive Chairman, Australia and New Zealand, JP Morgan 

Mr Doug Elix AO
Senior Vice President & Group Executive, IBM Sales and Distribution

Mr Bob Joss
Dean, Stanford Business School

Mrs Josephine Linden
Managing Director, Goldman Sachs

Mr Peter Lowy
Managing Director, the Westfield Group

Ms Jennifer Nason
Managing Director, JP Morgan

Mr Brad Orgill
Chairman and CEO, UBS Investment Bank Australasia

Mr Jeremy Philips
Executive Vice President, Office of the Chairman, News Corporation