Over 150 people filled the National Press Club in Canberra to hear Assistant Minister for Charities, Dr Andrew Leigh MP and Shadow Assistant Minister for Charities, Senator Dean Smith outline their vision and commitments for the charities and not-for-profit sector.

They addressed questions like: What level of support are the major parties offering charities and NFPs in the lead up to the election?  Why has reform of the charities and NFP sector proved so difficult?

Both Dr Leigh and Senator Smith made their support for our sector very clear both through their involvement in the event and the presentations they made.

Charities, community groups and volunteers were there representing the community-building, life-changing work and contribution of Australia’s 60,000+ charities, thousands upon thousands of community groups, 3.5 million volunteer and the more than 1.4 million staff that power our work.

The Australia we want, Third Report

A highlight of the day was  the release by CCA with the support of the AMP Foundation of the Third Report of the Australia we want.  Launched by CEO of the AMP Foundation, Nicola Stokes with a vision and hope ‘to spark discussion and debate in Australia regarding our future path, the values we deem most important, and the methods we use to gauge our success.’

Nicola invited all to join a movement for change:

‘Persisting with the same approaches to the same issues often results in limited effectiveness of our interventions. The central message of this report is that the kind of country we live in depends on all of us.  By strategically utilising our resources, we can transform our nation to better embody our values and make a positive impact’.

Excellent coverage of the day also in the Community Advocate: The Great Debate | Community Directors