Events

TOPIC: Unity and Goodwill: A Woodfordian Invitation

Amanda Jackes shares how Woodfordia and the Woodford Folk Festival embody the spirit of unity and goodwill—values aligned with Rotary’s own ethos of service and community. More than just a festival, Woodfordia is a 500-acre cultural parkland regenerated through decades of collaboration, creativity, and volunteer dedication.

The upcoming 38th Woodford Folk Festival (27 Dec 2025 – 1 Jan 2026) welcomes over 1,800 artists and thousands of participants in a temporary village built on kindness, storytelling, and shared imagination. Amanda introduces the Forest of Goodwill—a campaign to secure Woodfordia’s land in trust for future generations—inviting Rotary members to be part of a legacy of cultural and environmental stewardship.

The talk is a call to connection: an invitation to visit, support, or collaborate, and a reminder that goodwill is a powerful force for shaping the future—together.

Amanda Jackes Bio: Amanda Jackes is the Managing Director and Co-founder of Woodfordia Inc, producers of the iconic Woodford Folk Festival, the innovative festival of The Planting, the national regional touring programme Festival of Small Halls and the holiday camping escape Lake Gkula Camping.  Woodfordia Inc also established the 500 acre venue Woodfordia, a cultural parkland dedicated to the arts and humanities which is underpinned by strong environmental leadership. Woodfordia Inc is a creative and ambitious organisation whose ideology is uniquely expressed in its 500 year plan. Amanda is an enthusiastic leader who achieves through combining creative, practical, optimistic and measurable approaches to community, cultural and environmental engagement.

The Woodford Folk Festival is a vibrant celebration of Australia's rich cultural diversity, featuring over 2,000 local, national, and international artists and musicians across a wide array of genres and art forms. During its six-day run, the festival transforms the rural site of Woodfordia into a bustling hub, effectively becoming the 67th largest town in Australia with an aggregate attendance of around 100,000 people. This significant gathering contributes an estimated $32 million annually to Queensland's economy, underscoring its vital role in the state's cultural and economic landscape. Recognised as the largest assembly of artists and musicians in the country, the festival offers a diverse program that includes music, dance, cabaret, circus, comedy, workshops, debates, street theatre, films, and visual arts, reflecting its commitment to inclusivity and creative expression.

Philanthropy: Love or Money

Philanthropy is a word that can be hard to pronounce and even more difficult to explain. The definition is simple - love of people. But often we conflate philanthropy with money, wealth or power. Alternatively, giving or generosity are words associated with philanthropy. So what is philanthropy? Is it about love, money, or something else?

 

Nigel Harris will explore these and other related questions, in discussing philanthropy, philanthropic psychology, the roles of fundraising, volunteering and advocacy, as well as how and why philanthropy plays a critical role in servicing social purpose.

 

He will also explore the landscape of philanthropy, the not for profit sector, and the role of charities in Australia and internationally.

 

And Nigel will answer the question of whether philanthropy is about love or money.

BIO:

Nigel Harris is an established and highly regarded non-profit sector leader specialising in philanthropy and fundraising. With an outstanding track record in organisational growth and development, Nigel has crafted a unique range of experiences and insights in governance, executive leadership and applied fundraising practice. He is also Australia’s leading professional advisor in healthcare philanthropy.

He is Managing Director of Nigel Harris & Associates, an advisory and consulting practice specialising in philanthropy and fundraising leadership. He also has affiliations with other agencies in the non-profit sector where he provides specialist advisory services.

Nigel has held executive leadership roles including as:

• Chief Executive Officer of Mater Foundation (Queensland) for 24 years. Under Nigel’s leadership, revunue gre from $2m to $73m, raising over $750m over that period and establishing the Foundation as one of Australia’s largest health charities and a major funder of medical research and clinical services.
• Board Chair twice with the Fundraising Institute of Australia (FIA)
• Currently Chair of Act for Kids\
• Serving on boards of Leukaemia Foundation Australia; Institute for Sustainable Philanthropy (UK) and Braille House
• Past President of the Rotary Club of Albany Creek

Clare Blake would love to update you on some amazing new clinical trials happening right now in Brisbane at QIMR Berghofer.

• How we started in a broken down old Army supply Hut after the war and now we have 66 labs.
• Do you have Irish or English heritage? - The Story of “The Celtic Curse.” Is it really a curse?
• I’ll show you our mini brains and mini hearts made to safely test new treatments.
• A game changing new hope for treating Dementia
• Streamlining treatment for Melanoma
• Ways to participate in trials
• Can we outsmart cancer?

Clare Blake is a broadcast media specialist with over 25 years’ experience in both radio and television including Channel Ten QLD and hosting the afternoon show on 4BC. Clare studied sports science at Canberra University and holds accreditation with Medicines Australia from The University of Queensland. At QIMR Berghofer, Clare finds the perfect combination of science and communication.

Wendy Mulcahy BBus, LLB(Hons), GradDipLP, LLM

Director

The founder of Domestic Violence Education Relationship Training (DVERT), Wendy Mulcahy has worked in the criminal justice system for nearly 20 years. She has extensive experience working as a criminal defence lawyer in the area of domestic violence and has represented many defendants charged with offences of violence against women. Wendy is a trained and qualified National Mediator and Family Dispute Resolution Mediator, who has highly developed communication and negotiation skills.

Wendy was appointed to the Queensland Parole Board in 2020 for 18 months. While working as a Professional Board Member, she was part of a team responsible for assessing parole applications for parolees. Concerningly, many applications involve a history of serious violence against women and domestic violence. This role, although limited to 18 months, provided an appreciation of the consequences of domestic violence outside of her defence role as a criminal lawyer.

Through her extensive legal career, Wendy has gained valuable insight and a unique understanding of the complexity of domestic violence, patterns of perpetration and key drivers and motivators of violence against women.

Wendy has an impressive educational background and is an accomplished and well-respected legal practitioner. Her career background enables her to bring a wealth of experience and real perspectives to domestic violence training and education.

Wendy is passionate and dedicated to educating men and young men to understand the insidious nature of domestic violence and working towards eradicating violence against women.

Discussion Topic – Addressing Gaps In Social Inclusion – The Little King’s Effort_Disconnect between NDIS and Broader Social/Community Supports

Emeritus Professor Roland Sussex MA, PhD, OAM, FQA, Chevalier des Palmes Académiques

BIOGRAPHY:

Roland (Roly) Sussex (M.A. Hons Canterbury; PhD London) is a specialist in language, communication and culture, and health communication. He was Professor of Applied Language Studies at the University of Queensland from 1989 until 2010. Before that he taught Linguistics and Russian at the University of Reading (UK) and Monash University in Melbourne, and was the foundation professor of Russian at the University of Melbourne from 1977 to 1989.

He is currently Research Professor in the Institute for Teaching and Learning Innovation, and in the School of Languages and Cultures, at the University of Queensland. Since "retiring" he has become involved in social issues as a public intellectual.

He was chair of the Library Board of Queensland from 2009 to 2014, and then Deputy Chair (2014-2016). He was President of the Alliance Française of Brisbane (2010-2017), and is currently President of the English Speaking Union of Queensland (2018-).

In 2012 he was made Patron of the Institute of Professional Editors. He is co-editor of the international journal Intercultural Communication Studies, and is a member of the editorial boards of a number of academic journals.

His current research is focused on language, culture and society, technology, and, more recently, pain and health. He is a member of the PainLang Research Group at the University of Queensland, which is investigating the use of language in the diagnosis, treatment and management of pain (http://www.uq.edu.au/painlang/).

His most recent major publications are The Slavic languages with Paul Cubberley, Cambridge University Press, 2006); Andy Kirkpatrick and Roland Sussex (eds), English as an international language in Asia: Implications for language education. Berlin and London: Springer-Verlag, 2012); and Andy Curtis and Roland Sussex (Eds). (2018). Intercultural communication in Asia: Education, language and values. Berlin and London: Springer Verlag. And of course Word for today (University of Queensland Press, 2021).

Roly Sussex wrote a weekly column on language for the Brisbane Courier-Mail from 2006 to 2021. His talkback radio program A Word in Your Ear has been broadcast every week to Queensland on ABC radio since 1997, and for the last 20 years to South Australia. His Queensland broadcasts are podcast by the ABC:

         https://www.abc.net.au/radio/brisbane/programs/saturdaymorning/a-word-in-your-ear/

         https://www.abc.net.au/radio/brisbane/programs/saturdaymorning/woofties/

When he is not engaged in researching and writing about language, communication, culture and health, he works on his garden and acreage, rides road bikes and mountain bikes, and indulges his passion for classical music.

He was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2012, and was a made a Chevalier des Palmes Académiques by the French Government in 2017, and a member of the Queensland Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2020.