From: Wednesday February 21, 2024, 12:45 pm
To: Wednesday February 21, 2024, 2:00 pm
The 2024 Angus Mitchell Oration will be delivered by the Hon Arthur Sinodinos AO on Wednesday 21st February 2024.
Discounts available for Tables of 10.
About the Guest Speaker
The Hon. Arthur Sinodinos AO is Partner and Chair of The Asia Group’s (TAG) Australia Practice and a leading expert on Australian public policy and politics.
Ambassador Sinodinos most recently served as Australian Ambassador to the United States, where he was closely involved in Australia’s negotiations related to AUKUS, the Quad, and the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. Ambassador Sinodinos previously worked as Australia’s Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science and was a Senator for New South Wales in the Australian Parliament from 2011 to 2019. During his parliamentary career, he also held other key roles in and outside Cabinet, including Cabinet Secretary and Assistant Treasurer.
Over a career spanning four decades, Ambassador Sinodinos has held a number of influential positions in public service. On the election of the Hon. John Howard AC as Prime Minister of Australia in 1996, Ambassador Sinodinos was appointed the Prime Minister’s Senior Economic Adviser and in 1997, the Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff, a position he held for nine years. Between 1987-1989 and 1995-1996 Ambassador Sinodinos also served as Senior Economic Adviser to Mr Howard while in opposition. He started his Australian Public Service career in 1979, rising to the Senior Executive Service in the Department of the Treasury.
In 2006, Ambassador Sinodinos left government to work with Goldman Sachs JBWere, followed by the National Australia Bank and various corporate appointments.
In 2008, Ambassador Sinodinos was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for his service to politics through the executive function of government, to the development of economic policy and reform, and to the Greek community. In 2019, he was made a Distinguished Fellow of the Australia & New Zealand School of Government in recognition of his promotion of public sector leadership.
Ambassador Sinodinos lives in Washington with his wife Elizabeth, and their three children.
About the Angus Mitchell Oration
Angus Mitchell was inducted into the Rotary Club of Melbourne in December 1927. He was President of the Club in 1931-32 and was elected District Governor in 1934-35 and again in 1937-38. In 1948-49 he became the first Australian to be elected to the office of President of Rotary International. He was created a Knight Bachelor by Her Majesty the Queen in 1956. Two years later he was the first member of the Rotary Club of Melbourne to be named a Paul Harris Fellow. Sir Angus Mitchell died on 18 August 1961.
In his honour and as part of the Club's fiftieth birthday celebrations in 1971, the Board of Directors initiated the Angus Mitchell Oration. The Oration has been delivered at the nearest meeting to the birthday of Rotary which was established by Paul Harris on the 23 February 1905 in Chicago USA. The inaugural Oration was delivered by the Rev. I. B. M. Parsons and has been delivered since by many eminent Australians.
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