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Find out what's happening in the Australian Network of the UN Global Compact!  Keep connected by subscribing to the newsletter. 

JUNE 2011

National Roll-Out Of UN Global Compact Training Commences - held in both Melbourne and Sydney and lead by Rosemary Sainty, GCNA Secretariat,   together with a briefing on the UNGC week in Copenhagen held in May. 

 Read more here

 

  

APRIL 2011

The Global Compact Network Australia (GCNA), has held the second meeting of its Human Rights Working Group for Business.  Attorney-General Robert McClelland welcomed this excellent initiative:
"The protection of human rights is the responsibility of all Australians, including those in the business community. Ongoing discussions about how best to meet human rights obligations in the business sphere are an important part of advancing respect for human rights generally"

Read the media release

 

FEBRUARY 2011

WA Welcomes the UN Global Compact Network Australia (GCNA)

On Wednesday 23 February, 2011 an outstanding turn-out and successful evening for the Global Compact Network Australia hosted by Western Power was held in Perth. Read more here.


 

JANUARY 2011

HALF YEARLY REPORT

Download the GCNA Stakeholder Half Yearly Report (June - Dec 2010), documenting an overview of the six months of the Global Compact Network Australia following the Inaugural Annual Meeting held on 4 June 2010 in Sydney.

This has been a period of significant activity for Network members and Signatories, invigorating leadership engagement and furthering momentum already underway in the Network with the enactment of the resolutions adopted at the Inaugural Annual Meeting, including those relating to governance, membership fees and benefits. 

GCNA Stakeholder Half Yearly Report

 

DECEMBER 2010

The Global Compact Network Australia, together with the support of the Australian Human Rights Commission, the Reverend Tim Costello of World Vision Australia, the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, the investment community and some of Australia’s most prominent corporations, launched Australia’s first Human Rights Working Group for Business in Melbourne on Human Rights Day, December 10.   The event was kindly hosted by Allens Arthur Robinson, a founding member of the Global Compact Network Australia (GCNA).

Read more here.

 

 

NOVEMBER 2010

Former Global Chair of Shell and Anglo-American, and Current Chair UN Global Compact Foundation addresses Australian business leaders on corporate sustainability leadership.

At an event hosted by ANZ  for the Australian Network of the United Nations Global Compact, Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, the former global Chair of Shell and Anglo-American and current Chair of the Foundation for the Global Compact, claimed that corporate sustainability leadership today calls for a sophisticated and comprehensive approach to integrating human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption into business strategy and operations.

Read more here

 

 

 

OCTOBER 2010

The United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) Network Australia together with the Global Reporting Initiative’s (GRI) Focal Point Australia held their first joint event this month

- a provocative conversation with sustainability thought leader John Elkington. According to Elkington key trends and themes include notions of a “transparent economy” and a movement towards an “integrated reporting agenda” - the integration of financial and non-financial (environmental and social) strategies, communicated through real-time downloadable reporting. 

Download Podcast of the Conversation here

Download the Media Release


 John Elkington in Conversation with Andrea Spencer-Cooker, One Stone Advisers.

 

SEPTEMBER 2010

SUMMARY BRIEFING: Australian Delegates - UN Global Compact Leaders Summit 2010
Feedback and reflections from Australian Delegates.  

Chaired by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the UN Global Compact Leaders Summit 2010 provided the platform for organizations to convene, collaborate and commit to BUILDING A NEW ERA OF SUSTAINABILITY

The Summit included plenary sessions, round-table discussions and important side events.
The following document  provides feedback and reflections across a range of these experiences from Australian delegates and signatories in attendance.
   


JUNE 2010

Read the Media Release:  UNGCNA Inaugural Annual Meeting

The Inaugural Annual Meeting of the UN Global Compact
Network Australia

Thanks to a dedicated working group consisting of ten signatories and lead by Rosemary Sainty, UN Global Compact Focal Point for Australia and Head of the Responsible Business Practice Project, the Australian Network held its first annual meeting on 4 June 2010.

The Inaugural Annual Meeting of the UN Global Compact Network Australia was a critical step to establish and formalise the structure of and commitment to the Network. To mark this important occasion, the Network was joined by Bob McMullan MP, Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance and a high level panel of business leaders including David Atkins, CEO Cbus, Michael Luscombe, CEO Woolworths and Jack Percy, Managing Director Accenture Australia.

The official proceedings of the Inaugural Annual Meeting followed a high level panel discussion, the outcomes of which will enable the Australian Network to move on to next steps.

 

DECEMBER 2009 

Read the December 2009 enews

Working Group

The Working Group is making progress in developing proposals for governance, activity and mission statements. Next steps will be to formalise the structure of the Network and commence formal activities and projects.
 

NOVEMBER 2009

Webinars

The Australian Network recently held a number of successful ‘webinars’. These webinars provided basic information on the UN Global Compact. This will form the basis for future training sessions to help educate other businesses and interested parties in what a commitment to the UN Global Compact entails. 

Asia Pacific Trade and Investment Conference

From 2-6 November the 1st Asia Pacific Trade and Investment Conference will be held in Bangkok. This will involve a Regional Conference on Corporate Sustainability as well as a meeting of Local Networks to discuss further collaboration. The focal point for the Australian Network, Ms. Rosemary Sainty, will be joined by representatives of Lincoln Crowne and CPA Australia.
 

OCTOBER 2009

Read the October 2009 enews

The UN Global Compact Australia Network in Print

The Ethical Investor Magazine has published an article on the UN Global Compact, and specifically the Australian Network, for a feature in October’s issue on human rights in business. 
 

SEPTEMBER 2009

Read the September 2009 enews

Global Compact and Small Business

A new guidance publication focusing on the implementation of the Global Compact principles by small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) form the UNDP Nordic Office and the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been released: Small and Medium Sized Enterprises on Their Way Towards Global Responsibility and showcases the efforts of ten Danish businesses in addressing common human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption challenges, with practical recommendations for SMEs seeking to find the right approach to the implementation of the Global Compact principles in their strategy and operations.

Australian Small Business was represented at the UN Leadership Forum on Climate Change on September 22. Bill Jones, Managing Director of Sustainable Living Fabrics accepted an invitation to attend the forum: “Given small companies, collectively, are an important part of most economies, and are often leading the charge in addressing climate change, this is encouraging.” 
 

AUGUST 2009

Read the September 2009 enews

COP Training

The Australian Network has decided to hold a series of Communication on Progress (COP) training sessions themed to the four areas of the Compact’s principles in the November/December period. This is in order to assist both new and existing Signatories to complete the COP annual reporting requirement. I look forward to emailing further details shortly.  
 

JULY 2009

Read the July 2009 enews

The Working Group

Volunteers have formed a Working Group from which to build our new Australian Network. A second meeting will be held shortly. The Working Group is considering options for governance and activities for the GC Australian Network as part of this process. 

PRI Conference

The Australian Network was represented on a UN Global Compact panel at the recent Principles for Responsible Investment International Conference held here in Sydney. We look forward to involving the UNEP FI and the PRI Australian secretariats and signatories in further collaborative efforts as part of our Global Compact Australian Network. 
 

JUNE 2009

Read the June 2009 enews

Launch of the Australian Network 

Read the first newsletter for the new UNGC Focal Point in Australia


Senator Nick Sherry (left) and Mr Georg Kell

The Australian Network for the Global Compact was formally launched at the National BusinessLeaders Forum on Sustainable Development (NBLFSD), Parliament House Canberra on Thursday May 28 by Senator The Hon Nick Sherry, Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law, and Mr Georg Kell, Executive Director of the UN Global Compact. The launch was followed by high level meetings with Georg, Minister Sherry and senior advisers to both the Minister and Prime Minister.                                                               

 

In Georg’s keynote speech he  spoke of the ‘dawn of a new crossroad’ in how businesses come to terms with the environment, and accordingly how we consume resources, produce goods and services, and emit in environmental terms. Georg spoke of the need to “re-tool” and of the importance of environmental stewardship in the lead up to the inter-governmental Climate Change talks in Copenhagen at the end of the year. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 UN Global Compact signatories meet with Georg Kell at the NBLF in Canberra in May 2009.

 

The 2009 UN Global Compact Annual Local Network Conference

The UN Global Compact Annual Local Network Conference was held in Istanbul which highlighted best practices from Networks around the world.  The focal point Ms. Rosemary Sainty was joined by 2 other Australians- Matthew Tukaki (Drake International) and Caroline Bayliss from the UN Global Cities program. These Focal Points represent most of our country’s trading partners.


A gathering of Local Network focal points

 

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