Victor was born and raised in the Ryde district.
Victor studied law and in 1991 was admitted as a practitioner of the Supreme Court of New South Wales and the High Court of Australia after taking the Solicitor’s Admission Board Examinations.
Victor enjoyed an extensive legal career including appearing in a number of cases in the High Court of Australia. In 2000, Victor became a partner of Etheringtons Solicitors.
In 1995, at the age of 28, Victor was elected as a Councillor of Ryde City Council. He was re-elected in 1999 and remained on Council until 2004.
Whilst on Council, Victor was Chair of a number of committees, including the Development Committee, and had significant involvement in the establishment of the Ryde Aquatic Leisure Centre and the development of Macquarie Business Park.
In September 2008, Victor was pre-selected by the Liberal Party to be its candidate for the NSW seat of Ryde in the October 2008 by-election. Victor won the seat of Ryde with a swing of 23.1 per cent, which was then one of the largest swings in NSW history.
Victor was sworn into the NSW Parliament on 28 October 2008 and gave his inaugural speech on 26 November 2008, reflecting on his longstanding connection and dedication to the Ryde electorate and his commitment to ensuring the NSW Government provides for those most in need.
Victor has served as a member of the Public Accounts Committee, the Independent Commission Against Corruption Committee and represented the now Premier, Mr Barry O’Farrell MP as a Trustee of the Anzac Memorial. In 2011 Victor contested the general election and recorded a further swing of 12.6 per cent.
On 3 April 2011 Victor was sworn in as the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and the Minister for Citizenship and Communities, which includes the Veterans’ Affairs, Volunteering and Youth portfolios and covers the Community Relations Commission.
Prior to his parliamentary career, Victor was fortunate to travel to many places around the world including India, Central and South America, Europe, the United States and Asia. He is also a passionate supporter of the West Tigers Rugby League Team.
Speaking On:
Keynote: Advancing the wellbeing of the Aboriginal people
Dr Calma is an Aboriginal elder from the Kungarakan tribal group and a member of the Iwaidja tribal group whose traditional lands are south west of Darwin and on the Coburg Peninsula in the Northern Territory of Australia, respectively. He has been involved in Indigenous affairs at a local, community, state, national and international level and worked in the public sector for 40 years and is currently on a number of boards and committees focussing on rural and remote Australia, health and education.
Dr Calma was appointed National Coordinator, Tackling Indigenous Smoking in March 2010 to lead the fight against tobacco use in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
Dr Calma’s most recent previous position was that of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission from 2004 to 2010. He also served as Race Discrimination Commissioner from 2004 until 2009.
Through his 2005 Social Justice Report, Dr Calma called for the life expectancy gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people to be closed within a generation and laid the groundwork for the Close the Gap campaign. He chaired the Close the Gap Steering Committee for Indigenous Health Equality since its inception in March 2006 and has recently retired as Co-Chair of the steering committee. The Close the Gap campaign has effectively brought national attention to achieving health equality for Indigenous people by 2030. National Close the Gap Day is celebrated on 24 or 25 March each year.
Speaking On:
Keynote: The national anti-smoking intervention progress & priorities
Of Aranda and Loritja descent, Brian Butler was born and lived in Bagot compound in Darwin and was then sent to St Francis House in Adelaide. Brian has been advocating for the rights of his people since 1952 mainly in the areas of health, children and families.
He was a founding member of several Aboriginal organisations including the Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care (SNAICC) and the Aboriginal and Islander Stolen Generations Alliance (SGA) and he was the ATSIC South Australian Zone Commissioner for 3
years.
Now, nearly 60 years later, Brian continues to advocate for his people ranging from infants right through to elders, constantly pushing for justice and encouraging Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander peoples to stand on their own feet and take charge of their own lives.
Speaking On:
Addressing lateral violence & priorities for NCAFP
Rhonda Parker is the CEO of the Australian Employment Covenant (AEC), a national industry-led initiative aimed at securing sustainable jobs for 50,000 Indigenous Australians. Respected widely for her leadership, drive and professionalism, she has been a leading contributor to community development in policy, program and practice in Australia for almost 20 years. She is a proactive, engaging and insightful contributor to any project.
Rhonda has had responsibility in the not-for-profit, commercial, government and academic environments. She is a former Minister in the Western Australian Government, where she had responsibility for community development portfolios, among others. Prior to her role at the AEC, Rhonda held the statutory appointment of federal Aged Care Commissioner.
Speaking On:
Australian Employment Covenant – 50,000 Jobs Campaign
Integrating holistic services for generational change
Improving the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is a long standing challenge for governments and communities. The estimated 10-17 year gap in life expectancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians signifies distinct social inequalities.
Strengthening Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander health lies at the heart of the Closing the Gap reform.
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How to implement culturally appropriate tools for improved social, emotional & mental wellbeing
Pre-Conference Workshop
Tuesday 27th March, 2012
9:00am – 4:00pm
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Building organisational capacity for sustainable service delivery
Post-Conference Workshop
Friday 30th March, 2012
9:00am – 4:00pm
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