Australia 2020 Summit: Did the “1000 Best and Brightest” get it right ?
Now that the summit is over – do you think we're headed in the right direction?
PR stunt, or revolutionary approach to policy development? Lively debate or rubber stamp? Whether or not you agree with the process, it's clear that the outcomes of the Australia 2020 will affect all of us in the coming years.
So don't miss out on your chance to read through the result of the Summit and comment on long-term challenges Australia faces.
While the Summit is over, Open Forum still provides you with the opportunity to influence government policy by participating in our online debates and forums.
With the results in, the Federal Government's Australia 2020 Summit is still causing a stir as we figure out how to go about implementing the ten big ideas.
While 1000 ‘best and brightest' actually attended the event, Open Forum members participated by logging on and debating how we might deal with the different areas identified as fundamental to Australia's future.
Now that we have the results – are we on the right track, and how are we going to turn high-level brainstorming into real policy outcomes that affect the lives of all Australians?
There's still a chance to log on and have your say about whether or not we got it right, and what measures need to be put in place in order to turn theory into reality.
While the official Australia 2020 Summit is over, Open Forum also offers an ongoing platform for further discussions and public consultation for Government in the long term, so don't miss out on your chance to have your say.
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Australia 2020 Summit 10 Critical Areas (to participate, just follow the link!)
THE PRODUCTIVITY AGENDA: Education, skills, training, science and innovation
SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE: Population, sustainability, climate change and water
RURAL AUSTRALIA: Future directions for rural industries and rural communities
COMMUNITIES AND FAMILIES: Strengthening communities, supporting families and social inclusion
INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIA: Options for the future of indigenous Australia
CREATIVE AUSTRALIA: Towards a creative Australia: the future of the arts, film and design
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"1000 Best and Brightest" initiative and its challenges
19 MARCH 2008, SYDNEY – The announcement by the Federal Government that it will be holding the Australia 2020 Summit at Parliament House on 19 and 20 April 2008 has sparked a great deal of debate leading up to the event.
For the 1000 ‘best and brightest' chosen, it will be a great opportunity to make a contribution to setting the direction of some major initiatives in the subject areas to be debated. The Summit is likely to be successful for the Government merely for the fact it has thought of the idea and the subsequent media attention it will attract.
Two potential challenges arise from the initiative. Firstly, while 1,000 people will be pleased that they are judged ‘best and brightest' and honoured to participate, some of the other 20 million Australians deemed not in the top 1,000 may feel somewhat miffed with missing out, may argue about the selection criteria and view the whole event negatively. There is a feeling that the experts chosen to participate are already contributing to social policy discussions of this nature in any case through academia and conferences, while new voices are being excluded.
Secondly, a test of the Summit will be whether there is any long term progress on any of the ideas, which, if there is not, is likely to trivialise the event as simply a colourful milestone in the new Government.
There is a way to both cast the wider net to garner more ideas and ownership of the process, as well as provide a mechanism for the long term progression and refinement of the ideas that the Summit will be a catalyst for. By combining the 2020 event with the power of the Internet and inviting mass contribution to the subject areas of the debate, the reach, longevity and openness of the process will be greatly enhanced.
Open Forum "Australia 2020" Online Summit
As the 2020 Summit is concerned with Australia's future, all Australians should be able to participate in the debate, including those living overseas. In this way the broader community can have a say and help shape the ongoing direction of the dialogue.
Open Forum offers the people of Australia the opportunity to contribute to the discussions by writing on their thoughts and experiences of each topic area. Delegates of the Australia 2020 Summit will be able to draw on this feedback and gain an insight into the issues and concerns of a broad range of Australians.
This parallel virtual event will provide the Summit with a means to be inclusive of stakeholders who otherwise would not have a chance to participate. Thought leaders from the Australia 2020 Summit will be able to engage in conversations and respond to any queries or questions which are raised through the forum.
Open Forum also offers an ongoing platform for further discussions and public consultation for Government in the long term.
Open Forum is an interactive policy discussion website hosted and moderated by Global Access Partners (GAP).
yellowsunmagnetic
October 15, 2008 at 8:12 pm
2020 Summit is not closed
Many may be surprised, but the 2020 Summit is not closed. Prime Minster Kevin Rudd extended the period of time for which the People of Australia may continue to submit ideas onto the 2020 Summit web site. People like Maxine McKew, one of the co-chairs of the "governance" stream along with John Hartigan during the Summit launch, said that she didn't think that anyone in her stream offered any "Big Ideas" – and that is important, she said, because the subtitle of the 2020 Summit was "Thinking Big."
Unfortunately, only the 1000 attendees of the 2020 Summit launch in Canberra ever seem to be mentioned. However, thousands of Australians offered many more ideas on the 2020 Summit web site. I offered what I consider to be a Big Idea in the governance stream: submission number 2000113.
On another positive note, it's good to see the Open Forum up and running as a parallel forum for the benefit of the Australian People.
Sheryle Moon, author of the Open Forum article entitled Collaborate or Collapse, has brought up the issue of the "malaise in the global economy." All of us, collectively, need to get a grip on the economy and what makes it run: money. I must say that I am tremendously impressed with the advancement in the technological presentation of the Money Issue. From when I started learning about this issue 30 years ago it is now much easier to quickly get a handle on how money works. The best presentation I have seen recently is ZeitgeistII – just check it out somewhere on the net (It's about two hours long – but very much worth it.
Now for the Focus of Collaboration during the 2020 Summit and beyond: Collaboration of the People – not the current corporate elite who have built their "Globalisation" empire upon a fraudulent money foundation.
Therefore, the main challenge for collaboration is to get a significant number of People on Earth to focus on what can be called the starting point for the restoration of Mankind – getting onto the same frequency so-to-speak.
The focus consists of four steps:
1. Recognize that each of us is a Sovereign individual, and when we unite we are the Collective Sovereignty.
2. We must have a structure on which we can and will unite – and that's the United People System on (site administration has removed this link)- with forums such as Open Forum being a complementary part of this process.
3. Once united, on which every sphere of Sovereignty (local to global), the Collective Sovereignty must create the Law – for the Law can come from only one source: The Sovereign.
4. Once the Law is created, a government (the servant of the Collective Sovereignty) may be created by the Collective Sovereignty – on whichever sphere of Sovereignty applicable (local to global).
But how can people be inspired to be part of this same frequency and desire to participate in exercising these four steps? It's been suggested by some that the best way to become attuned to this frequency, and become highly motivated to help activate this process, is to watch the highly inspirational Swedish film, with English subtitles, "As it is in Heaven" – visit your local video store and rent it today.
Once the People are on this common frequency, it will become obvious that the servant (government) makes no Law – just policies for the purpose of self management within the framework imposed by its Master: The Collective Sovereignty.
Once the People are awakened and able to take the reins of destiny back into their own hands, their only question will be: "How was it that we have been enslaved for so many years before waking up?"
Well, just as I heard an Aborignal Elder say recently in Uki NSW, "when in public, speak from your heart," this is what I have done.
I look forward to us all co-creating our new honest and transparent money system of the People – the new Law. After we establish the Law togethter, I look forward to working with everyone to truly create a new Australia. Thank you Kevin Rudd for this great opportunity.
Sincerely,
Ricardo Johansson
vincent2010
June 17, 2010 at 10:14 am
Wake up Australia