This January (Vocational Service Month), Rotary Melbourne hosted an international business study group from the University of Houston-Downtown with a series of vocational workshops and presentations from our members about business, logistics and commercial challenges in Australia.
The sessions were held at the Batman Hill on Collins Hotel with Past President Adrian Nelson as MC. President Dr Chris Sotiropoulos welcomed the 20 students and faculty to Melbourne and also spoke of the business of supporting start-ups in the Asia Pacific region with business development, commercialisation, international distribution, strategic management, and risk management.
Chris was followed by Past President Quin Scalzo, founder of Scalzo Foods, who discussed his journey creating his business from scratch, and the sourcing, manufacture and distribution of food ingredients ranging from nuts, dried fruits, seeds, and grains to vegetables, herb & spices & more. Quin touched on the impact of alternate regulatory regimes for food across the globe, including his experience in US, Europe and Australia.
Following a short break, President Elect Catherine Baxter, Chief Operation Officer of Team Global Express discussed the challenges of running one of Australia's largest pickup and delivery logistics operations, including the introduction of new technology into the business such as AI and a new electric vehicle fleet.
Past Presidents Robert Fisher and Chris Wang concluded the morning session with a presentation on the Rotary Give Every Child a Future Centenary Project which has delivered life-saving vaccination to 100,000 children in Pacific Island to prevent several potentially fatal childhood diseases – with an emphasis on service using vocational capability & interclub effort, and the logistics of providing vaccinations to remote locations.
Prof Dietrich von Biedenfeld of the University of Houston-Downtown is a Rotarian with the West Columbia Texas Rotary Club and reached out to us in mid-December about providing some vocational guidance to his visiting faculty and students. Past Presidents Reg Smith and Adrian Nelson helped organise the event with Dietrich. We received a generous gift of Texan Rye Whiskey, which may make itself available at our Rotary office later in January for members to taste.
In the evening, a tour of Queen Victoria Market was conducted by 2025-26 District 9800 Governor Peter Shepheard, a Precinct Manager at the market. We then enjoyed the Summer Night Market with wonderful food and entertainment, and were joined by members and friends of the club. The Texans loved Melbourne's diversity and liveliness.
The students all live in Texas, but were a diverse and multicultural group, many of whom were born in other countries, including Mexico, Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Chile. They are all pursuing careers in international business.
