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Australian, regional business leaders gather to tackle water, food as national security issues
BUSINESS leaders from Australia and the Asia-Pacific region will gather in Canberra on Thursday (June 27) to focus on the future Australian and global security agenda -- especially water and food security.
The forum is concerned that, with Prime Minister Julia Gillard's impending visit to Indonesia in two weeks, Australian foreign relations spends more effort on transient issues than long-term 'game changers' that raise security risks, such as the water issues affecting the region.
Molly Harriss Olson, convener of the National Business Leaders Forum on Sustainable Development (NBLF) said the 2012 US Intelligence Assessment on Global Water Security, initiated by former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, concluded that several regions of the world such as the Indonesian archipelago, will face major challenges coping with water problems.
The report predicts that, during the next 10 years, many countries, including Indonesia, will experience water problems that will increase the risk of instability and state failure and exacerbate regional tensions significantly. Current trends to avoid water problems are further undermining national security, according to the report.
Ms Harriss Olson was the founding executive director of US President Bill Clinton's Council on Sustainable Development.
"The Federal Government has become very good at sticking plasters over problems, the Indonesian asylum situation is an example," Ms Harriss Olson said.
"What needs to be addressed is the situation in the country and one of the major concerns at this time is water security.
"Food and water security is a central global challenge that needs to be addressed urgently," Ms Harriss Olson warned.
She said since its beginning in 1998, the National Business Leaders Forum on Sustainable Development has pioneered leadership in sustainable business in Australia. The forum is set up as a not for profit organisation and its stated aim is to be the pre-eminent event on the Australian corporate calendar on these issues.
Ms Harriss Olson said NBLF provides a vibrant platform to profile exceptional business leadership and has created a network of excellence and innovation for sustainable development in business. The forum provides corporate executives with the opportunity to engage with leaders from business, government, science and academia, about important emerging sustainability opportunities and how their companies can benefit from these innovative business practices.
Ms Harriss Olson said NBLF has often been the first to break through old paradigms by engaging with influential thinkers including former US Vice President Al Gore (2003); Ray Anderson, CEO of Interface (1998); Paul Hawken, author of The Ecology of Commerce (2000) and Kevin Rudd during his term as Prime Minister (2008).
In 2009, the executive director of the United Nations Global Compact, Georg Kell, said of the forum, “It is the most senior group of business and civic leaders reflecting more deeply on the critical issues of our time.”
The NBLF steering committee is: Forum chair, Rod Leaver of Asia Lend Lease; forum convenor Molly Harriss Olson of EcoFutures; Mara Bun, Green Cross Australia; Peter Carre, Water Resources Group; Simon Corbell, ACT Minister; Michael Costello, ActewAGL; Tim Costello, World Vision Australia; John Hewson, Global DC; Andrew Johnson, CSIRO; Simon Longstaff, St James Ethics Centre; Kim McKay, Momentum2; Sam Mostyn, Virgin Australia; forum chair emeritus, Martyn Myer; Michael Smith, Australian National University; John Thwaites, ClimateWorks Australia; Phillip Toyne, EcoFutures; Tim Williams, Westpac; Les Williamson, CISCO Systems.
The forum will be held at Parliament House, Canberra.
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