Preview: Join us for the important conversations

23 October 2023

Hello from Brisbane where we are preparing for our 10th-anniversary Taste of Australia Dinner and Honour Roll this Wednesday night and our Leaders’ Summit the following day. Over two days, we will welcome hundreds of managers and directors from our leading co-ops and mutuals, and we thank the members for supporting this important cross-sectoral gathering.

Today, I will also drop into see the Minister responsible for co-operatives in Queensland, the Hon Yvette D’Ath MP, Attorney-General and Minister for Justice. Co-ops here encounter barriers co-ops in other states don’t, such as the decision to discontinue co-op loans many years ago.

While Australia grapples with the aftermath of the referendum, our international keynote speaker, Mary Nirlungayuk, Vice President of Corporate Services, Arctic Co-operatives Ltd (Canada), will bring one of the most affirming examples of modern Indigenous empowerment – which happens to have come about through the co-operative business model.

I last saw Mary 12 years ago, before the UN International Year of Cooperatives kicked off. I’ve followed the progress of Arctic Co-operatives, watching their social and economic achievements using a business model that aligns with First Nations communities.

Our morning session also contains five concurrent leader dialogues that will deep-dive into industry trends and case studies.

In Avoiding Greenwash, we ask: What are the common ways greenwashing can work its way into sustainability and ESG reports, and how can you prevent it? Moderator Peter Watts has given a taster of the session in a recently published blog on our website.

In The Future of Insurance, we examine: As people look to move away from traditional insurance programs, how do you determine if discretionary risk mutuals are the right solution for you? In Working on Wellbeing, we look at: What happened after the NSW Flood Disaster kicked off a unique worker wellbeing and employee program also offered to the members?

Our provocative international speaker, Assistant Professor Nathan Schneider, online from the University of Colorado Boulder, will examine how our members can balance their expectations for member engagement with real-world practicalities. He has important considerations for mutual banks and other consumer-owned co-operatives and mutuals.

Business Leaders in Conversation follows, with Peter Ryan, Senior Business Correspondent, ABC, sitting down with economist Saul Eslake and Peter Lock, CEO, Heritage and People’s Choice, for a robust conversation about the economy and business trends. Expect some provocative comments on the aftermath of the banking royal commission!

We are excited to bring two fresh international perspectives to the Vision for Growth panel. Ang Hin Kee, CEO of the apex body for co-operatives in Singapore and Nina Schindler, CEO of the European Association of Co-operative Banks (online from Brussels) reveal some reasons why co-ops and mutuals play a bigger role in the market overseas.

If you missed our international banker interview with Monique Leroux last year, here’s a taster of the calibre of conversations in store for our summit.

Link

See you in a couple of days!