DisCon24
Mittagong RSL
25-27 October 2024
DISTRICT GOVERNOR
ROB UHL
Thank you to all who attended this wonderful conference
Meet the Keynote Speakers
Rotary International President's Representative (RIPR)
Ken Robertshaw
Ken Robertshaw is a member of the Rotary Club of Halifax, Yorkshire and a native of that town. After an unremarkable school career, he joined the Police Service and rose to the rank of Inspector before his retirement. On leaving the Police he vowed never to have anything to do with uniforms, shifts or legal work. So far, so good.
Ken was the director of the District 1040 RYLA for 17 years and has served on the RI RYLA committee, as well as several national committees in the UK. Ken served as District Governor for 1040 in 2007-08 and the Host Area Co-ordinator for the Rotary Foundation Peace Fellows at Bradford University from 2015-18.
A major donor to the Rotary Foundation he has received several Club and District awards and was proud to be awarded Rotary International’s highest accolade, The “Service Above Self’ award in 2018.
A trustee for the Theodora Children’s Charity he has undertaken expeditions to raise funds for them. In 2012 he crossed Arctic regions of northern Europe by dog sled and in 2014 he travelled the entire length of the Mississippi River by kayak without a support crew. He writes books about his travels and gives illustrated lectures.
Ken refuses to be unhappy and sees no reason to change!
Master of Ceremonies
Jason Browne
Passionate about storytelling, Jason Browne expertly merges radio, marketing, and public speaking to engage global audiences. Collaborating with giants like Facebook, Microsoft, and Rotary International, and drawing from his MBA, Jason has spoken on over 100 stages, addressing leadership, privilege, and diversity. Committed to crafting a better world for his nieces and nephews, he champions positive change. Offstage, he enjoys basketball, music, kayaking, and winning over his young niece. From deep dives into DEI to discussions on space travel, Jason's approach intertwines seriousness with fun. His guiding principle: "Use what you love to fight what you hate.”
Australian Human Rights Commissioner
Lorraine Finlay
is the Human Rights Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission, commencing in this position in November 2021. In this role Lorraine has particular responsibility for protecting and promoting fundamental rights and freedoms, including freedom of speech, religion, movement and association. She also leads the work of the Commission in areas including business & human rights, modern slavery, asylum seekers and refugees, and technology & human rights.
Prior to joining the Commission, Lorraine has worked as a lawyer and academic specializing in human rights and public law. Her past roles have included working as the Senior Human Trafficking Specialist with the Australian Mission to ASEAN, an academic at Murdoch University, and a State Prosecutor with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (WA). Lorraine holds a dual Masters in Law from New York University and the National University of Singapore, where she studied as a Singapura Scholar. She has also been actively involved in a variety of community organisations, including past Board roles with the Ishar Multicultural Women’s Health Service and National Council of Women (WA).
Paediatric Specialist Team Honiara
Professor David Croaker & Liz Hearn
David Croaker
Originally a country boy from Scone, A/Prof David Croaker has been involved with paediatric surgery since 1985. He went to high school and university in Sydney, and started specialty training in the field in 1988 (also in Sydney). He completed a Ph.D. in the genetics and physiology of Hirschsprung's disease in 2001. By that time he was in full time consultant practice in the NHS, having moved to Britain at the end of 1998.
In 2003 he returned to Australia to take up his current post as a consultant specialist paediatric surgeon at the Canberra hospital and the Australian National University. He has also had honorary appointments at the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network hospitals at various times, and has had a conjoint appointment at the University of NSW.
His practice encompasses all areas of paediatric surgery, with a particular interest in gastroenterology, and a research interest in both Hirschsprung's disease and constipation.
He has been involved with third world (or, as we now say, “low and middle income countries”) surgical practice beginning with a student elective in Nepal in 1977; visits to the United Mission Hospital, Tansen in Nepal since 1987; to Al Awda Hospital in Gaza from 2006 to 2017; to the National Referral Hospital in Honiara since 2015; and to several other places (from Zambia to Ulaan Bataar) on a one off basis. These make a total experience of around 50 visits. Since about 2005 he has been involved with ROMAC.
At other times he enjoys (and desperately wishes to preserve) the natural environment through a variety of outdoor activities from (inter alia) gardening, skiing, cycling and walking, to flying sailplanes.
Liz Hearn
Trained at the Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne, before wandering off into the outback to work in Katherine District Hospital.
From there I worked at the Adelaide Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Pediatric ICU, before returning to the Northern Territory.
Royal Darwin Hospital; attached to Royal Darwin Hospital, part of a group of volunteers, I was flown into Alice Spring's Hospital during Rotavirus outbreaks again returning to Katherine Hospital.
I love working with the Indigenous peoples of Australia and the Solomon Islands.
Since retirement, I have maintained my registration with my volunteer work in the Solomon Islands.
Radio Personality
Luke Grant
Luke Grant, 30 years a radio broadcaster, political commentator, current affairs junkie, humourist, professional voice artist, and event host. Born, raised and schooled in Sydney, Luke's media career has seen him work and live in Australia's three eastern states, in place like Longreach, Inverell, Newcastle and of course, Melbourne and Sydney. He was also the voice of the Sydney Roosters for 15 seasons. He loves his footy! While Luke's on-air work focuses on news and opinions, his quirky sense of humour has endeared him to his listeners for many years. For an entertaining weekend you can listen to Luke on air, Saturday and Sunday, from 9 am to 1 pm on radio 2GB 673.
Opera Singer & Entertainment Friday Night
Michael Lapina
Tenor Michael Lapiña began his professional career in 1988 performing in musicals and touring extensively in Australia and Asia. Since 2008, Michael has been engaged with many of Australia’s leading opera houses to perform some of the most coveted tenor roles in the operatic repertoire.
A versatile tenor, Michael is regularly engaged as soloist on the concert, corporate, chamber and oratorio stages including performances of the tenor soloist in Verdi’s Requiem, Puccini’s Messa Di Gloria, Handel’s Messiah and Samson, and Rossini and Dvorak’s Stabat Mater. He is also a great supporter of the community, performing and directing several fundraising concerts for Rotary International and the Archdiocese of Melbourne.
He is currently DGE for the Melbourne District.
Foundation Breakfast Speaker
Dr Prashanti Machikanti
Since returning from her time as a Rotary Global Grant Scholar at University College London to Australia at the end of 2022, Prashanti is now working in the Aboriginal Health Division in the Victorian Department of Health. She is balancing this work whilst retaining a clinical load in remote NT. Her work to transition from clinical work to public health and policy follows a commitment to address the upstream determinants of health and wellbeing, for populations experiencing socially-determined health inequities.
Entertainment Friday Night
Stephen O'Connel OAM
Stephen is committed to advancing the notion that all art forms are vital for the ongoing health of communities. Stephen has been a committed professional saxophonist and composer for over 40 years and is highly active as a touring musician and recording artist and has written many pieces of music in response to the amazing environment of the Central Australian Outback. He has released three CDs, performed on over 50 CDs for other musicians and has performed with well known singers and instrumentalists. Two of his works have been published in major anthologies, including Tempe Downs (The Old Station), which was published in the Australian Saxophone Anthology, and The Afghans, in the Australian Piano Anthology.
In 2020, he wrote the music for, and recorded All Shoulders to the Wheel to help Rotary celebrate its Centenary in Australia.
Stephen’s work was recognised in the Australia Day Honours List of 2017 when he was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for services to the performing arts.
Stephen is a committed Rotarian who has served in 2 clubs since 2010. He is Past President of the Rotary Club of Albury Hume and a former member of Albury North. He is currently District Governor for District 9790.
Special VIP Rotarian from RI (TBC)
TBC
Throughout its history, Rotary’s success has always depended on the calibre of its people - from the expertise and commitment of individuals right through to the leadership and culture of each club and district. As such, the development of Rotary people is an ongoing theme.
But what is the ultimate purpose of having all these brilliant individuals? Rotary International believes that, in line with our motto of ‘Service above Self’ our purpose is to make the world a better place. Which is why the theme of this presentation is ‘Growing better leaders to grow a better world’.
Strap yourself in for an inspiring session that will challenge our current thinking, kick-start the process of innovation, and help us explore a new way forward. Visiting RI VIP to be named closer to the Conference.