Today at Australian Parliament House, some of Australia’s brightest minds have converged on the nation’s capital for this year’s annual Churchill Policy Room to explore some of the great challenges facing the country.
The 2nd Annual Churchill Policy Room, launched by Senator the Hon. Malarndirri McCarthy Assistant Minister for Indigenous Australians, sees Churchill Fellows gather to share views on closing the gap, health, aged care and wellbeing, human rights, and water, brought together in Policy Futures: A reform agenda Issue 2.
CEO of Trust, Adam Davey, created the Churchill Policy Room in 2021, in partnership with The University of Queensland, based on the concept of the Churchill War Rooms during the Second World War.
“With new and more severe problems emerging at such a pace, state and federal governments are being forced to make high stakes decisions with little ability to draw on the kind of critical thinking for which our Fellows are renowned,” Mr Davey said.
“Our Churchill Fellows have the industry and academic experience, insight, and empirical evidence to support our public policy decision makers,” Mr Davey said.
“The Winston Churchill Trust was created more than 55 years ago with the specific purpose of enriching Australia. Never before has this mission been more critical.”
The Trust provides Churchill Fellows with resources to travel overseas and investigate their industry’s international best practices.
“Over the past five decades we’ve sent almost 5,000 Australians abroad to investigate the best ways of doing things and to bring that knowledge back home,” Mr Davey said.
“By bringing our Fellows together in a forum such as the Churchill Policy Room, they are able to exchange ideas across industries and sectors to provide novel solutions to critical issues.”
The Churchill Fellows showcasing their work at the Churchill Policy Room include:
– Clement Ng (NT 2016): It’s Time to Treat Sick Kids, Not Punish Them
– Belinda Cook (WA 2016): First Nations First: Targeted investment to grow a dynamic and sustainable First Nations fashion sector
– Niroshini Kennedy (VIC 2018): Safe, Healthy & Thriving: How culturally safe health care can close the gap for Aboriginal children in care
– Maida Stewart (NT 2018): Healthy Housing Programs: For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities with high rates of acute rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease
– Julie Dunbabin (TAS 2018): Feeding Children Well: The importance of school lunches to education, health, and social outcomes, and impact on local food economies
– Steven Caruana (NSW 2017): Shining a Light in Dark Places: A once-in-a-generation opportunity to safeguard people in detention and care settings.
– Angela Rintoul (VIC 2018): Universal Registration is Key to Preventing Gambling Harm
– Jeremy Wiggins (VIC 2016): The Critical Role of Family Support in Accessing Transgender Health care: A pathway to better outcomes for transgender youth.
– Rebecca Lyons (TAS 2018): Reimagine Deathcare for Our Ageing Population
– Declan Page(SA 2010): Waterbanking for Drought Resilience
To request a copy of Policy Futures: A Reform Agenda or a policy presentation from any of the PIP Fellows please contact Kirsty Guster via email [email protected] or phone (02) 6190 6143.
Find out more about the Policy Impact Program
View more from the Churchill Policy Room
Thinking about applying for a Churchill Fellowship? Applications open again 1 March 2023.