Invited Speakers
Maggie Beer
2010 Senior Australian of the Year
Maggie Beer is an Australian culinary
icon whose passion for food brings joy
to many Australians. Maggie’s focus
is on using seasonal ingredients and
educating people to make informed food choices. To this
end she opened the famed Pheasant Farm Restaurant in
1979. Maggie and her husband ran it for just short of
15 years, winning a host of prestigious awards, before
moving on to focus on producing gourmet foods.
In 1996, Maggie opened an export kitchen for the
production of preservative-free gourmet foods for the
national and international market, and in 1999 she
returned to the original site of the Pheasant Farm and,
having come full circle, re-opened Maggie Beer’s Farm
Shop. She has written seven books, with Maggie’s
Harvest winning the Australian Publishers Association’s
Illustrated Book of the Year.
She also co-hosted the ABC cooking program, ‘The Cook
and the Chef,’ and works with 
Stephanie Alexander
to promote the Kitchen Garden
Foundation. Maggie Beer hopes that
through sharing her love of food she will
inspire Australians to reconnect with food
and appreciate what we eat.
David Hunt
In 1996, David Hunt and Associates
was founded in the US to serve as
an institution dedicated to citizen
empowerment and community
development. David trained in many
small and large group facilitation methods which serve
him well as an internationally sought-after speaker,
facilitator, trainer, planner, thinker, community and
organisation builder. Much of his research, training and
methodology development were born during his three year,
1995 – 1997, W.K. Kellogg Foundation National
Leadership Fellowship.
David’s energetic, charismatic and fun-loving spirit creates opportunities for audiences to reflect, enjoy, learn and grow together as they resolve conflict, plan strategically and organise powerfully. David uses a wide variety of techniques and tools including storytelling to create sacred space where the voices and visions of all that are gathered can be shared and heard. David Hunt and Associates has a diverse and eclectic client list ranging from national and local foundations such as: S.H. Cowell; W. K. Kellogg; Philadelphia Bread and Roses community fund; Echoing Green; to national, state-wide and local housing and community development organisations like Neighborhood Works America; Housing California, Center for Community Change; Food and Water Watch; Center for Progressive Leadership; Philadelphia’s Women’s Community Redevelopment Project; Food Research And Action Center (FRAC) in DC; Liberty Resource Inc; Midwest Academy; The Philadelphia Affordable Housing Coalition; Sacramento Mutual Housing Association; and to Aspen Institute, Food and Water Watch, Campus Green Vote, Partransit in Sacramento, Impact Silver Spring, Marygrove College in Detroit, Holy Names College in Oakland, Mercy Housing and Bethel New Life, and many, many more.
David will use his experience in community and organisation building in an aged care context articulating how we can engage with our wider communities, build alliances and capacity to achieve better aged care and meaningful change. David will also share his use of storytelling in building and sustaining communities including applying this tool to the communities surrounding our services but also to ourselves and our journey’s as key players in the aged care community itself.
PLENARY KEYNOTE
Building the power to bring about social change
Winning meaningful social change requires the strategic building and demonstration of collective power. Building and projecting the power of the ageing community to bring about meaningful and empowering social change is long over due. This session examines the basic principles of organizing and developing powerful coalitions. Join us as we analyze the important issues facing the ageing community and how their collective power can be built and projected upon those who have the power to give them what they want.
WORKSHOP
The role and power storytelling in building and maintaining community
Storytelling is one of the most powerful yet misunderstood and underutilized elements of community building. This session explores the ancient power and central role story and storytelling plays in building and sustaining the ageing community.
Learn the importance of creating and honing the sacred space for the aged to share their healing and unifying stories as a tool for building and healing communities.
Tim Harcourt
Tim Harcourt is the chief economist
of the Australian Trade Commission
(Austrade). A prolific author and
globetrotter, Tim has visited over 45
countries in the past four years alone.
Tim is an active commentator in the Australian and
international media on economic issues. He appears
regularly on TV and radio shows such as Business
Lateline, Lateline, Business Today, Sunrise, Bloomberg,
CCTV and CNBC Asia. Tim also writes for a number of
newspapers, magazines, websites and blogs.
Before joining the Austrade, he worked for the ACTU,
the RBA and in the private sector in the UK, the USA
and Israel.
Tim was educated at the University of Adelaide, the
University of Minnesota and Harvard University.
Craig Rispin
Craig Rispin is a business futurist, trends
tracker and technology guru.
With an innate ability to spot trends
and to create new markets, Craig has
designed and launched hundreds of
products for major companies in the computer, consumer
electronics, multimedia, internet and broadcast industries.
Clients say they hire Craig so they can ‘Know First’ – so
they are not surprised by the next big thing. So they can
‘Be First’ – and get that first to market advantage. So
they can ‘Profit First’ – and create new opportunities they
might never have considered.
Craig has worked with Apple Computer, Philips
Consumer Electronics and served leading blue-chip
companies worldwide including: Disney, Fairfax, Canon,
General Motors, Mercedes Benz, GE, Sony, American
Express and the ABC.
He has addressed audiences ranging from 30 to 3,000 on
four continents and has been featured on TV and radio.
Now a professional keynote speaker and business coach,
Craig helps his customers understand and prepare for the
future.
Russel Howcroft
Walking the streets of London as a freshfaced 23 year old in search of work during the late eighties proved to be Russel Howcroft’s biggest career break. And just like many other Australian expatriates who have made London their temporary home before and since then, beer was to play a major role for Howcroft during his extended stay in the city, albeit in a more productive way than most.
With just 18 months advertising experience under his belt
after a stint with McCann Erickson in Melbourne, Howcroft
talked his way into a job with Lowe Howard-Spink, (one of
the UK’s premium agencies) where he was promptly handed
the prestigious Heinekin account.
Remaining with Lowe for the next five years, Howcroft
worked on icon brands such as Vauxhall (part of GM
motors), Stella Artois and Reebok, producing entertainment based
advertisements of a style quite different to what was
then being produced back in Australia.
Returning to Melbourne in 1995, Howcroft co-founded
Leonardi Brandhouse, a creative hotspot in its day, which
was sold to Havas in 1999.
Lured from Furnace agency to head up the 73-year
old Melbourne office of George Patterson late last year,
Howcroft is enjoying the leadership challenge
of “ensuring that the George Patterson star continues
to shine”.
Bernard Salt
Bernard Salt is a compelling and
entertaining speaker engaged by both
the private and public sectors to present
a perspective of how social, cultural and
demographic change might shape the future business
environment.
His speaking topics consider key issues viewed from
a demographic perspective and include the impact of
the Global Financial Crisis; the Rise of Big Australia;
Workforce Trends; Consumer, Social & Generational
Trends; and Urban & Regional Development.
Bernard is a best-selling author of three popular books
on demographic change. He is a columnist with The
Australian and Melbourne Herald 
Sun newspapers. He is
a Partner with KPMG and heads a group of researchers
providing demographic advice to business.
Bernard is also one of Australia’s most quoted social
commentators. He is a regular on many radio and
television programs including Sunrise,
Today Tonight, A Current Affair and many
others. He manages to combine an astute
observation of human behaviour and
change with hard data.
Fi Bendall
Fi hails from the UK as a leading Interactive and digital specialist. Her experience spans over 20 years, working on ground- breaking campaigns in London and New York with clients such as, Virgin and the BBC.
In Australia, Fi has run the digital strategic lead for clients such as Microsoft, News Interactive and Tourism Tasmania. She has developed Bendalls Group consultancy as a conceptualisation of a digital services consortium, and is founder of getSocialAdvice leading as a digital strategic guardian, servicing both clients directly, such as, ANZ, RAMS Home Loans, Coles, Origin Energy, Sydney IVF, Swinburne University, E*Trade, Earth Hour, Amnesty International, WaterAid and working in partnership with leading International advertising agencies, consulting firms and technology companies. Fi worked on the ACSA / Kevin87 campaign as social media provider. Fi is also a regular speaker and contributor to the Business & Marketing industry in Australia.
Dr Stephen Judd
Dr Stephen Judd is CEO of HammondCare, an independent Christian charity that seeks to improve quality of life of people in need. Since his appointment in 1995, HammondCare has grown at 20% p.a compound, now serving more than 2,500 patients, residents and clients and with revenues of $120m. Acknowledged as one of Australia’s leading providers of dementia-specific services, HammondCare provides residential and community care, palliative care, rehabilitation and psycho-geriatric care. In addition, it has a strong reputation in piloting leading edge programs, all backed by an energetic research program.
Dr Judd combines extensive management experience with a vision and passion to make a difference in the lives of those in need. He holds a strong interest in designing environments for people with dementia and the appropriate use of technology in aged care in both residential and community care.
His ability to analyse and synthesise aged care issues in 21st century Australia’s complex political and social climate has made him sought after on Government Ministerial committees and industry peak bodies, and he serves as a member on the Design Review Committee of the International Association of Homes and Services for the Ageing.
Kim Skildum-Reid
Power Sponsorship is the brainchild of
Kim Skildum-Reid, one of the world’s
top corporate sponsorship consultants,
trainers, speakers, and authors, with 24
years’ experience across the US, Europe,
Asia, the Middle East, and Australasia.
Kim was born and raised in Minnesota. She has worked
for numerous Fortune 500 companies in the US on their
sponsorships of blue chip properties as diverse as the
Superbowl, US Open Golf, and the International Chili
Society Cook-Offs, as well as dozens of major professional
sporting organisations and national concert tours.
Kim moved to Australia in September 1992, and
in January 1994 she started her own consultancy,
Skildum-Reid Consulting, specialising in corporate-side
sponsorship strategy. Her clients include many of the
top sponsors in Australasia and around the world, such
as Target Stores, Singapore Government, Qantas, QBE,
ANZ Bank, Ergon Energy, General Motors, Lion Nathan
Brewing, Mazda, Telstra, and the Dubai Government.
Kim is recognised around the world as a dynamic and
insightful speaker. Her enthusiastic style and practical
approach have made her highly sought-after, with
consistently rave reviews. She also writes, with many
dozens of articles and columns to her credit, and provides
expert commentary on sponsorship to organisations such
as CNN, CNBC Asia, the Harvard Business Review, ABC,
and the Canadian Broadcast Corporation, among others.
Professor Lynne Cobiac
Professor Cobiac is Associate Dean, Flinders Clinical and Molecular Medicine in the School of Medicine, Flinders University and is the Foundation Chair of Nutrition and Dietetics at Flinders University (2007 – now). Her current research interests include the role of nutrition and healthy aging, nutrigenomics and colon cancer risk, dietary intake assessment, role of omega-3s and health, and childhood nutrition. Prior to commencing at Flinders, Lynne held a senior position in research, business and business development management in CSIRO.
Professor Cobiac is currently an investigator on research projects investigating the role of omega-3s in reducing geriatric cachexia (NHMRC funded), obesity and baby-boomers and the role of work-life balance (ARC Linkage), the Australian Longitudinal study of Ageing (ARC Discovery) and several projects for the Australian Seafood CRC. She was the lead investigator responsible for collecting nutrition data in the Australian 2007 National Children’s Nutrition and Physical Activity and is currently also the lead investigator for the Department of Health and Ageing funded National Healthy Schools Canteen Project, and a chief investigator undertaking the development of the new Core Food Groups which will inform the development of the proposed new national 
food selection guide.
Professor Cobiac was invited to become a FSANZ fellow for 3 years commencing November 2007 and is a member of the FSANZ Food Composition Advisory Group.
Klaus Zimmermann
Klaus Zimmermann has over 30 years extensive experience in senior executive, CEO positions and non executive board membership with a management/finance background.
His experience covers Australian manufacturers including one large international company exporting goods all over the world. For 10 years Klaus was the Senior Executive, Accounting and Company Secretary for the Australian manufacturer where he gained extensive experience in export, Research & Development as well as being a Trustee on the company’s Superannuation Fund.
Klaus has worked in the aged care sector since 1991.
Klaus presently hold the position of CEO of Eldercare Incorporated (since 2001 - $72+million turnover p.a., 1000+ staff), which is a S.A. based not for profit aged care organisation specialising in Residential Facilities and Retirement Villages for the elderly.
In 2003 was appointed by the Federal Treasurer of the Australian Federal Government to the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) as a part time member, a position he still holds. The Council is responsible for the broad oversight of the accounting and auditing standard setting process for the private, public and not for profit sectors within Australia. He is also Chair of the nominations committee for the FRC. He is currently the National President of ACSA since September 2007 which is the major lobby organisation for the aged care sector.
In the 1980’s Klaus was also involved in the Credit Union Industry for nearly 10 years serving as a Director and Chairman of an Adelaide based Credit Union as well as sitting on a number of Industry Boards.
Greg Mundy
Chief Executive Officer, Aged & Community Services Australia
Greg Mundy is the Chief Executive of Aged and Community Services Australia (ACSA) the national peak body for providers of residential care, community care and housing for older people. Greg has an extensive background in the aged and community care sector and in the broader health and human services field.
Greg has a strong commitment to the development of the aged care sector and its capacity to provide high quality services that meet the diverse needs of its clients. Greg has a background in policy making in Government and holds a Master’s degree in Sociology from the Australian National University. He was born in England and educated in England, New Zealand and Australia.
Gerard Castles
Master of Ceremonies
Gerard Castles is a Strategic Communication Specialist. Prior to establishing his own consultancy in 1994 he was a leader of McKinsey & Company’s change communication practice.
Gerard has helped leaders engage their people in transformation across a wide range of sectors. In this role Gerard has served blue chip clients in Australia, Asia, Europe and the US. He also helps people and organisations bring stakeholders together to find common ground around strategy and strategic priorities. He is a long term Board member of Headway Rebuilding Lives and a passionate Tasmanian.