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Dates and Times

31 May 2019
15:00 - 17:00

Location

On-Campus
Building: Building 1 Theatrette
Room: 1A21

Organiser

The Mill House

Enquiry

Indigenous Social Entrepreneurship

Social Enterprise offers an exciting model for harnessing the power of business as a force for good. Hybrid ventures such as Grameen Bank, KIVA, Thank You, STREAT and TOMS Shoes, for example, have fundamentally changed how we think about the purpose of business.

Indigenous social ventures appear to be much less likely to seek commercial revenues, relying principally on Government grants and Philanthropy. In today’s contested funding environment, this places many small organisations that provide essential support to Indigenous communities at risk. Furthermore, Indigenous social ventures founders face many of the same barriers to mainstream economic participation as Indigenous entrepreneurs more generally

Discussion to focus not just on barriers, but opportunities and examples of businesses (both for-profit and not-for-profit) that are trading successfully while having a measurable impact in the lives of Indigenous Australians and preservation of their enduring languages and culture.

 

 

Additional Information

Guests Speakers

 

Susan Moylan Coombs

The Gaimaragal Group’s founding director is Susan Moylan-Coombs. The company was established to create a new story of connection and wellbeing for all Australians. Our aim is to facilitate the voice for our Elders in the contemporary social space, empower our youth to realise their full potential and provide two-way cultural translation to bring individuals and communities together

Susan’s ancestry is Woolwonga and Gurindji from the Northern Territory. She has extensive experience working with First Australian communities nationally and internationally, with specific expertise in community consultation, empowerment and the facilitation of voice and storytelling. Susan previously held the positions of Executive Producer ABC’s Indigenous Programs Unit and Head of Production, NITV a division of SBS.

 

Adrian Appo OAM

A Gureng Gureng man, Adrian served with distinction in the Royal Australian Air Force. An electrician by trade, he went on to specialise in the Department of Defence Telecommunications Technology, he holds a Bachelor of Teaching and taught for several years after leaving the RAAF. He then moved into the professional recruitment industry working as a consultant with both the private and public sectors before joining Ganbina. Adrian was awarded an OAM in 2011 for service to Indigenous youth through career planning, employment and training programs. As CEO of Ganbina, Adrian was instrumental in motivating thousands of Indigenous people in the Goulburn Valley to improve their circumstances. A graduate of Fairley Leadership’s Community Leadership Program and the Williamson Community Leadership Program, Adrian has also studied at the Harvard Business School. As Executive Chair Adrian leads the team at First Australians Capital with humility as a trusted advisor.

 

Professor Dennis Foley

Professor Dennis Foley recently joined Business Government and Law at the University of Canberra in January 2018. His main research focus is towards the emerging discipline of Indigenous enterprise and entrepreneurship. Dennis’ career within the tertiary education sector began researching an Indigenous Career and Employment strategy at Griffith University followed by the establishment of the first Australian Indigenous Degree program in Contemporary Australian Indigenous Art. Several teaching appointments followed including teaching MBA, Indigenous Land-Use Management Practice at the University of Queensland, Business and Management courses at the Australian Catholic University, and teaching Humanities, Education and the Arts at the Universities of Queensland, Sydney, Queensland University of Technology and the University of Hawaii, as well as Financial and Strategic Management at Swinburne University.

Dennis identifies as Koori. His matrilineal connection is Gai-mariagal of northern Sydney, and his patrilineal connection is to the Wiradjuri people of the Turon River region. He is active within the Indigenous community and Indigenous business associations that includes the NSW Indigenous Chamber of Commerce. He has also received several ministerial appointments to state and federal Advisory Committees and currently researches in Canada, Ireland and across Aboriginal Australia.

 

Ms Cindy Mitchell

Cindy is the Founding Chief Executive Officer of the Mill House Ventures, the Canberra region's first dedicated social enterprise business development consultancy. She previously worked as a venture capital investment manager and in senior management roles at large corporate organisations in Australia and the United States. She has also worked as a Policy Advisor and Senior Analyst in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and Assistant Director in the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. Cindy was also the Founder and CEO of No Sweat Fashions, a not for profit social enterprise designed to create training, employment and work experience opportunities for migrant and refugees settling in Canberra. 

She is a passionate advocate for civil society and the social enterprise and social impact investment movements globally. When Cindy is not crusading on behalf of social enterprise and teaching for-purpose professionals the ‘dark arts’ of capitalism, she is probably writing. She has recently received first class honours for her thesis: #BlackMoneyMatters: Conceptualising African-American Entrepreneurship at a Resistance to Racial Hegemony in America. She plans further study on the impact of race and gender in the development of hybrid businesses.

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