Events

At our July event Robbie Gaspar and Chris Ciriello, two sportsmen who have been involved in sports at elite levels in Indonesia, Malaysia and India, will share their views on Australian sports diplomacy Australia's recognition as a sporting nation has delivered soft power dividends over many years. But few of these dividends have been delivered in Asia.  Arguably, because Australia is focussed on particular sports which, with the exception of cricket in South Asia, do not have a large spectator base in Asia.  Chris and Robbie will discuss  the prospects for Australia’s sporting brand to be better utilised to build relations in these key countries and the region more broadly. This event will run with a live audience and as a webinar.   About the speakers Robbie Gaspar was the first Australian footballer to play professionally in Indonesia. He played in Indonesia for almost 8 years, including playing for Indonesia’s most prestigious football club, Persib Bandung. His professional football career spanned many countries in Asia and Europe over his 14-year professional career.  During his time in Indonesia, Robbie became an executive committee member of the Players Association in 2011, where he remained in the role until 2014. In late 2014, Robbie was awarded Life Membership of the Professional Footballers Australia for his outstanding contribution to supporting professional football players across Southeast Asia, especially throughout Indonesia and Malaysia.  He is fluent in Indonesian and is currently the President of the Indonesia Institute, the peak body for independent insight and engagement into Indonesian - Australian bilateral relations. In 2017 Robbie was the recipient of the Australia Indonesia Award for the Sports Category and is passionate about utilising the soft power of sport to improve Australia’s relations throughout the region.   Chris Ciriello started playing hockey at 4 years of age, following in his father and grandfather’s footsteps. He has had an impressive career with 199 caps and 116 goals for the Kookaburras. Chris is a dual Olympian, World Cup Champion, dual Commonwealth Games Gold medallist and 6 times Champions Trophy medallist. He was the first and only player to score 3 goals in a World Cup final. He was nominated as one of the top 5 players in the world. At the club and state level he twice captained the Victorian team to national championships; won both Perth and Melbourne Premier league divisions; won the European Hockey League; and won the HIL Hockey India League. Chris has also become a renowned coach and has developed specialised coaching programs for the Ciriello Coaching Academy where he coached for many years. He has coached a wide variety of team in Australia, ranging from the under 21 Australian national team; domestic men’s and women’s elite teams; and school and regional teams. Internationally he has coached the Indian women's, Under 21’s men's and women's and a selection of under 16-19 junior teams for the Khel India program. He was a USA Women's Super-Division Premiership Coach. He was the analytical assistant coach and manager of the Indian Men's national team for three years. Chris was recently appointed Head of Asian Engagement for Hockey WA.

Join us for a presentation by Ireland's Ambassador to Australia, His Excellency Mr Tim Mawe, on Ireland's place in Europe. 2022 marks the 50th anniversary of Ireland’s decision to join the European Union: an event which accelerated the transformation of Ireland into a modern progressive European state.  During his presentation, Ambassador Mawe will highlight developments in Ireland from an economic, social, and political perspective.  Ireland has deep historical connections to Western Australia and offers a familiar entry point for anyone looking to connect with the European Union. Ambassador Mawe's presentation will be followed by a moderated Q&A discussion with the audience.   About the speaker: HE Mr Tim Mawe currently holds the position of the Ambassador of Ireland to Australia. He has previously served as Regional Director for Asia Pacific in Ireland's Department ofForeign Affairs, as Ireland's Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York, as Ambassador to Latvia and as Head of Finance and Head of Planning for Ireland's last EU Presidency.

We are delighted to announce that Denmark's Ambassador to Australia, Ms Pernille Dahler Kardel, will address AIIA WA members and guests on Tuesday 28 June, while in Perth on her first official visit to Western Australia. With the war in Ukraine, there is a significant change in the security architecture of Europe and an impending energy crisis. Ambassador Kardel will outline how this shift is seen from Danish eyes.  She will also outline what Denmark is doing to step up its ambitious energy goals to accelerate the green transition for its own needs and those of its European neighbours. This event is presented in partnership with the Political Science and International Relations Department at the University of Western Australia.   About the speaker Ms. Pernille Dahler Kardel has been the Danish ambassador to Australia and New Zealand since September 2020. She has been active in international diplomacy for more than 30 years, having held senior positions with the United Nations and the Danish Foreign Ministry. Her diplomatic expertise includes posts in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and North America, and covers political affairs, peace facilitation, international cooperation, and economic development, as well as a focus in the area of women, peace and security. Ambassador Kardel comes to Australia after she served as Ambassador, Peace, Stabilization and SCR 1325 (Women Peace and Security) in the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Before that, she served as UN Under Secretary General and Acting UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon from November 2017 through February 2019. She came to that post after a tour as Assistant Secretary General and Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in 2016-17. Previously, she held the post of Ambassador of Denmark to Egypt (2012-16) and to Ethiopia accredited also to Sudan, South Sudan and Djibouti (2007-2012). In Ethiopia, she served as Denmark’s Permanent Representative to the African Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Earlier, she was posted to the Permanent Mission of Denmark to the United Nations in New York, including during Denmark’s membership of the Security Council. She has also served in Moscow and New Delhi. She is a member of the Nordic Women Mediators Network, Denmark. Ms. Kardel holds master’s degrees in international public policy from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in the United States and in interdisciplinary planning from Roskilde University in Denmark. She studied environmental studies for a year (1988) at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. She has been awarded Knight First Class of the Order of Dannebrog by Her Majesty, Queen Margrethe the Second of Denmark. She is married to Peter Heinlein and has two children

More than a decade ago, Michael Sheldrick helped co-found an Australian initiative known as Global Citizen after being one of the first recipients of the AIIA WA Bursary for Studies in Asia Program.  In March 2020, at the request of the World Health Organisation, Global Citizen turned its attention to supporting Covid-19 relief efforts worldwide. Within weeks, the organisation produced its biggest show ever reaching 150 countries, with over 100 musicians.  It raised $127 million for Covid-19 relief.  In the 2 years since, Global Citizen has raised billions of dollars to address problems ranging from voter registration, vaccine inequity, climate change and, most recently, Ukrainian refugee efforts. From vaccine nationalism to the war in Ukraine, it is clear that our current approaches to global cooperation are failing.  In this presentation, Michael will propose new approaches for addressing the key challenges of our time. He will draw on insights from the last decade working alongside the UN, governments including that of President Zelenskyy, and grassroots organizations from Poland to Nigeria. This event will run with a live audience and as a webinar.   About the speaker Michael oversees the policy and impact direction of the Global Citizen movement and has worked on campaigns in North America, Europe, India, South Africa and Australia. He has worked with many artists, heads of government and philanthropists including Rihanna, Beyoncé, Usher, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, Prime Minister Erna Solberg of Norway, President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa, President Akufo-Addo of Ghana, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, and former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard. He has been instrumental in mobilizing political and public support for the Sustainable Development Goals.  Michael's writing on these topics has been published by the Guardian, Huffington Post, The Diplomatic Courier, The Diplomat Magazine, The South China Morning Post, The West Australian, Fairfax Media and he has been interviewed by Sky News, Forbes Magazine, VICE Impact, The New Yorker, ABC and the BBC, among others. He holds degrees in law and political science from the University of Western Australia, was 2013 Young Western Australian of the Year, and has previously been listed by The Sunday Times as one of WA's 50 Best and Brightest. In 2017, Michael was named by the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth as a finalist for Young Commonwealth Person of the Year. Michael’s efforts, and those of the team he leads, was recently profiled in the Activate series, which aired on National Geographic in the fall of 2019. He is also a board member for the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens.

At our May Event, AIIA WA will host a panel discussion to mark the 20th anniversary of the independence of Timor-Leste. Less than 600km from Australia’s North, Timor-Leste has featured prominently in Australia’s foreign policy for many decades: from its annexation by Indonesia in 1975, its struggle for independence, and its development since.  Two of AIIA WA’s past presidents, Sue Boyd and John Goodlad, and our current president, Brendan Augustin, have all had significant involvement in Australia’s relationship with Timor-Leste from the mid 70’s through to the present. Sue, John, and Brendan will discuss their personal experiences in this relationship and their views on the key issues pertaining to it. This event will run with a live audience and as a webinar.   About the speakers Dr Sue Boyd is widely respected and admired in the international relations community and is a past President of the AIIA for WA. Born in India to British parents, Boyd lived and was educated in Germany, Egypt, Cyprus, Ireland and the UK. Her family emigrated to Perth, Western Australia in 1966 where she was the first woman President of the Student Guild of Undergraduates at UWA. In 1970 she joined the Australia Department of External Affairs, the beginning of a 34 year career in the Australian Foreign Service, including postings as Ambassador in Vietnam, High Commissioner in Bangladesh and Fiji, Consul-General in Hong Kong and postings in Portugal, The UN in New York and the German Democratic Republic. Since returning to WA in 2003, she has invested considerable energy into revitalising the AIIA for WA. She now works as a Senior Executive Business Coach in Perth and is interested in international affairs and in the arts, including theatre, and opera.   John is our Immediate Past President and was a Member of the National Committee of the AIIA for 9 years. He has represented the Institute on various occasions including a lecture at NATO Headquarters, leading a delegation to the Republic of Korea and participation in the second track Australia-New Zealand/ASEAN talks in Kuala Lumpur in 2019. He is a former Australian diplomat who served in Thailand and Indonesia and he has a keen interest in the immediate region and Australia’s place in the world. John is the Honorary Consul for Colombia in Western Australia and is on the Committee of the Consular Corps of WA Inc. John is also a Master of International Law from the Australian National University. He speaks fluent Thai and Indonesian, and some Mandarin, French and Spanish.   Brendan Augustin is our current President.  He spent almost fifteen years in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). During this time he undertook diplomatic assignments in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, and France. After leaving DFAT, he worked in senior roles in Oil and Gas and Mining, including international assignments in Mauritania and Timor Leste with Woodside Energy and in Cameroon with Sundance Resources. Brendan returned to Perth in 2013 to work with Woodside where he assumed several roles including General Manager, Government and International Relations. He left Woodside recently and is now the Managing Director of Bina Group, which is focused on supporting companies grow internationally. In July 2021 he was elected President of the Australian Institute of International Affairs of Western Australia.            

This event will run with a live audience and as a webinar.   On 2 April 2022, Australia and India signed the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (AI ECTA), after more than ten years of negotiations. Despite strong historical and cultural ties, India has long underperformed as an economic partner for Australia. This has been due to a lack of complementarities between the two economies; differing economic strategies, and the legacy of past business experience. The Australian Government’s goal is to make India a top three export market by 2035, and third largest destination in Asia for outbound investment. A key driver for this ambition is the risk posed by Australia’s strong reliance on trade with China during an era of geopolitical uncertainty. India provides an opportunity to diversify our trade as the “world’s fastest growing major economy”. But how can this agenda be realised given past experience, and how can we leverage the free trade agreement for developing new economic ties? Dr Jeffrey Wilson, one of Australia’s pre-eminent trade and investment policy experts, will provide his analysis on the prospects for the new agreement to move the dial in the economic relationship, following which we will have a longer format Q and A session on the broader Australia – India relationship.   About the speaker Dr Jeffrey Wilson is the Australian Industry (Ai) Group's Director of Research and Economics. He leads the economics team and provides strategic direction in developing the research program to support its advocacy, service delivery and policy activities. Jeffrey specialises in international economic policy, with a focus on how trade and investment shape the Australian industrial and business environments.