Migrant advocate heads up the latest Not-for-profit Agenda

The Not-for-profit Agenda, next airing at 12.30pm AEDT on Thursday, October 29, is the free one-hour lunchtime show for not-for-profit leaders broadcast online via Zoom.

Hosted by Community Directors journalist Matthew Schulz, the next episode will feature Violet Roumeliotis, the chief executive of Settlement Services International (SSI), a powerhouse organisation that supports more than 56,000 people a year. 

SSI began as a Sydney-based refugee support organisation, but over the past 25 years it has expanded to become a national not-for-profit with the purpose of creating a more inclusive society through a range of services.

Roumeliotis is an astute operator who has grown SSI from a mid-sized organisation into a large operation with many program areas, a strong revenue base and more than 1200 workers. Roumeliotis is also a vocal sector advocate, recently calling on the government to stop treating the not-for-profit sector as “second-class citizens” and to convene a national migration summit. She’s the vice-president of the sector’s service peak body, the Australian Council of Social Service, holds a long list of other appointments and is the recipient of many awards, including Telstra Australian Business Woman of the Year in 2017.

Alongside a live Q&A with Roumeliotis, the October episode will feature video reports from:

• Maree Sidey of Philanthropy Australia on how community organisations can adjust their fundraising strategies to take advantage of generosity
• Andrew Leigh, Charities Minister, on strengthening community in an “age of outrage”
• Dylan Smith from Community Foundations Australia on the billion-dollar community-driven funding reboot for the not-for-profit sector
• Jess Scully of the RadicalXchange Foundation about the opportunities for not-for-profits to take charge of the AI revolution
• Melissa Smith, chief executive of She Gives, on the growing power of women in giving
• Nathaniel Diong, chief executive of Future Minds Network, on how the new generation of philanthropists thinks
• David Michell from the Tough Guy Book Club on the club’s mission to put “real decent conversations” for men back into pubs
• Rachel Power, Deloitte economist, on research that shows social enterprises how to prove they’re helping people to get jobs.