The Dinner Commemorates and Celebrates the 168th Anniversary of the 1854 Eureka Events with the presentation of the Eureka Democracy Award. The 2022 Eureka Democracy Award will be presented during the evening to Steve Bracks, AC 
THE 2022 EUREKA DEMOCRACY AWARDEE: STEVE BRACKSThe Hon. Steve Bracks AC was the 44th Premier of Victoria and represented the seat of Williamstown in the Victorian Parliament from 1994 to 2007. He led Labor in Victoria from Opposition to a minority government in the 1999 State election. He became one of Victoria’s most successful and longest-serving Premiers, winning three consecutive elections, achieving record majorities in the 2002 and 2006 elections, introducing substantial reforms in infrastructure and services, investing heavily in education and skills, lifting Victoria’s retention rate to Year 12 education to one of the highest in Australia, while maintaining strong budgets and a growing economy. With the support of all other Australian governments, Steve led a National Reform Agenda to increase workplace participation, improve skills, reduce business regulation and boost productivity. Steve’s second government reformed the state's system for electing the upper house (Legislative Council) in Victoria with the introduction of proportional representation, with eight five-member regions replacing the previous single-member constituencies. This was a substantial political reform, advancing democracy in Victoria, giving minor parties the opportunity to win seats. Steve Bracks was raised in Ballarat and, together with Rob Knowles, was one of the two initial patrons of the Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka from its opening in 2013. After his resignation from the Office of Premier and from Parliament in 2007, Steve has held two major honorary positions, an advising role in East Timor working alongside the newly elected Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão assisting with the establishment of Gusmão's administration up to 2017; and Honorary Chair of the Union Education Foundation from 2011, ongoing. Steve was appointed as Chancellor of Victoria University from 2021. He is Chair of Maurice Blackburn Lawyers; the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) Trust and the AFL Strategic Community The Dinner Commemorates and Celebrates the 168th Anniversary of the 1854 Eureka Events with the presentation of the Eureka Democracy Award. The 2022 Eureka Democracy Award will be presented during the evening to Steve Bracks, AC. Investment Fund Advisory Board. He is a non-executive Director of the Bank of Sydney, Cbus Property Ltd. and from 2017 – 2019 of Jardine Lloyd Thomson Australia. Steve has served as Chair of the Cbus superannuation fund from 2007 to 2021; the Independent Chair for the Australian Subscription Television and Radio Association from 2008 to 2013; Chair of AFL Sportsready – the training body of the AFL from 2013 to 2017; Chair of Cycling Australia 2017 to 2018; and Chair of the McKell Institute Victoria 2016-2020. He is a member of the Australian Republican Movement’s Republican Advisory Panel and the West of Melbourne Alliance Board. He was a Senior Adviser to KPMG from 2007 to 2012 and a member of the National Australia Bank’s Philanthropic Board from 2008 to 2013. Mr Bracks received a Companion of the Order of Australia in 2010 for services to the Parliament and community of Victoria. In 2011 he was presented with the Timor-Leste Solidarity Medal. He has also received Honorary Doctorates from Ballarat and Deakin Universities. He is Patron of the Australia Lebanon Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Vic) Ltd (ALCC), the Balibo House Trust, The Burnet Institute, the Centre for Dialogue La Trobe University, the Conservation Ecology Centre – Cape Otway, the Eureka Democracy Centre, Ballarat, the Hadassah Australia Foundation, the Williamstown Seaworks Foundation, The Sir Rupert Hamer Records Management Awards, the Western Health Foundation and the Western Melbourne Tourism Board. He is also a leading advocate for both multiculturalism and Aboriginal reconciliation. GUEST SPEAKEREmeritus Professor Judith Brett, of La Trobe University, historian and author and former Professor of Politics, will be our guest speaker on the Evening. Judith joined La Trobe in 1989 to teach and research Australian Politics, Political Biography and Political History. While Judith retired at the end of 2012, she remains committed to political research, bringing the fruits of her enquiry to the general public through books written for a broad readership and through the media. Judith is a former editor of Meanjin and a contributing columnist for The Age. Judith has published extensively and to substantial critical acclaim about Australian political leaders (including Robert Menzies and John Howard) and various political issues. We look forward to hearing from Judith about her biography of Alfred Deakin (2017) which received the 2018 National Biography Award and also about her book Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage, (2019) which was shortlisted for the 2019 Queensland Literary Awards, both popular and well received contributions to our understanding of Australian political history. Come along and enjoy an evening of conversation, celebration and commemoration of the remarkable social change that was influenced by the events that took place at Eureka 168 years ago and whose impacts continue to positively influence our society today. www.eurekaaustralia.org.au TICKETS: $84 each, Tables of 10 - $840: Bookings essential - Contact the Secretary Peter Gavin 0417 135 373 or email committee@eurekaaustralia.org.au Payment by cheque/ mail Eureka Australia, 6 Gibbons Street, Sunbury 3429 Payment via EFT to BSB 704191 account 90789 (please put your name as the reference in the eft transaction Download the full flyer here:
The launch of the new Eureka Pathway of Rememberance took place on Friday May 27th 2022. The Pathway is a memorial to Australia’s Democracy Martyrs at Ballarat’s Eureka Stockade Memorial Park - the very site where they fell.  The Eureka Pathway of Remembrance memorialises the 35 diggers and their supporters, known to have died at the Eureka Stockade on 3 December 1854. In a manner that acknowledges the egalitarian nature of our nation, Diggers and Soldiers are recognised alongside each other, ordered only by their country of birth; their surnames in alphabetical order. There are plaques along the pathway for each..  His Excellency Mr. Tim Mawe, Ambassador for the Republic of Ireland to Australia, told the gathering “I am delighted that Ireland has been able to support the development of the Pathway. It is a small contribution to recognise the sacrifice made by the 14 Irishmen and all those who sacrificed their lives for an ideal of democracy in 1854”.  Eric Howard, President of Eureka Australia, said “Eureka is Australia’s most important story of ordinary people seeking a fair go from overbearing authority. ,,, It’s a message still relevant today.” He also said “ Within two years of Eureka, the autocratic, overbearing government fully controlled by a Governor was swept away and replaced with an elected lower house of Parliament with broad based male suffrage and a less democratically based but reformed upper house. The reforms unleashed and powered by Eureka were far reaching and ground breaking.”  The Pathway of Remembrance was proposed by Eureka Australia and is a jointly funded by Eureka Australia, the Cities of Ballarat and Goulburn, and the Irish, German, Canadian and UK Embassies.
Peter Lalor Philip, MC, Introductory Remarks Eureka Australia's Eric Howard Special Guest: Dr Geraldine Moore presents "George Higinbotham and Eureka" Michael van Leeuwen, VP, Vote of Thanks to Geraldine Adele Howard - Remarks 
Venue: Amora Hotel 649 Bridge Road, Richmond
Saturday 16 November 6.30 pm for 7.00 pm AWARDEE:
GUEST SPEAKER
Bookings essential - Contact the Secretary Peter Gavin 0417 135 373 or email eurekaschildren@gmail.com Payment by cheque: Post to 1st floor 420-424 William Street West Melbourne 3003 Payment via EFT: to BSB 704191 account 90789 (please put your name as the reference in the EFT transaction) www.eurekaschildren.org.au The Eureka Centre has announced the launch of Talking History @ Eureka, an initiative to explore significant new research into the history of the Ballarat region, with a special focus on the colonial period.
Presented on the first Tuesday of each month, these free talks will present new perspectives on Ballarat and Goldfields history with a special focus on the events and legacy of the Eureka Stockade. Speakers include academics, writers, independent researchers and people from diverse fields who are engaged in exploring and reimagining Ballarat’s past. “There is a real hunger in the community for discussion and debate about our rich history,” Anthony Camm, Manager Eureka Centre said. The ‘Talking History’ series will focus on uncovering fresh new research and ideas about the past. “The monthly lectures will present the latest research on Ballarat’s colonial history, including some unexpected and recently revealed aspects,” Mr. Camm said. Join us at the Eureka Centre on the first Tuesday of each month at 5.30pm to hear guest speakers bringing our history to life. Entry is free and no booking is required. The first session is scheduled for Tuesday, 3 September. Popular Theatrical Entertainment, Eureka, 1854 In 1854, the Eureka area was a site of lively, and cosmopolitan, cultural entanglements. Diggers, prospectors, traders, storekeepers and entrepreneurs were joined by roving touring acts, catering for the human throng. The result was a dramatic overload of masculine, youthful and hedonistic energy concentrated within key venues. In this talk, Ailsa Brackley du Bois will introduce Ballarat’s theatrical scene, as it was, prior to the Eureka Stockade. Ailsa is currently completing a Masters of Arts in Writing & Literature (Deakin). Her thesis is titled ‘Lost Spaces of Popular Theatrical Entertainment, Ballarat Goldfields, 1850s-1870s’. Second Session – Tuesday 1 October 2019 Minefields of Memory: a history of interpreting Eureka With a past of contested memory, political jousting and history wars, interpreting and commemorating the Eureka Rebellion has often been contentious, passionate and a story in itself. At times the memory of Eureka had almost been forgotten, only to be resurrected by the diggers, Eureka ancestors, interested community members, politicians and media. In her talk, Felicity Martin will take you through the journey of our attempts to interpret the Eureka story through graves, dawn walks, monuments, gardens, cycloramas, diorama dramas, re-enactments and stockades, festivals, light shows, artefacts and our institutions, all contributing to the collective memory of Eureka.Felicity Martin is an independent curator, living in Talbot. She recently completed her Masters of Curating dissertation on the history of interpreting Eureka. She was Manager and Curator of Gallery Lane Cove for 11 years and worked briefly for the former Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka.? Third Session – Tuesday 5 November 2019 George Higinbotham and Eureka – The Struggle for Democracy in Colonial Victoria George Higinbotham was a highly influential politician in colonial Victoria. One of his contemporaries described him as a man of ‘dash and daring who won from the privilege and class ground that they have never seen since been able to recover.’ Even today the debate rages about his character and his legacy. Some see him as a visionary who fought for responsible government free of Colonial Office Interface and obstruction, but an undemocratically elected legislative Council. Others see him as a flawed character whose legacy was turmoil. In this talk, author Geraldine Moore will explore the life of ‘the most loved and the most hated man of his day,’ and what this has to do with Eureka. Geraldine completed a Ph.D. at Monash University in 2016. Her thesis explored the early life of the controversial colonial politician, George Higinbotham. Her book, George Higinbotham and Eureka, was published in 2018. Our last year's Democracy Award winner Adele Ferguson has this week published her book 'Banking Bad: How Corporate Greed and Broken Governance Failed Australia'. Few people were more instrumental in bringing about the Royal Commission into the banking and financial services industries than journalist Adele Ferguson. Through her exposes in print and on television, she pursued the truth about funds mismanagement, fraud, lack of probity, and the hard-sell culture that took over the finance industry after the deregulation in the 1980s. But it wasn't just light-touch regulators and crooked bankers growing fat on bonuses she put under the spotlight. It was also their victims - men and women who had lost everything and had no recourse when they discovered empty accounts, egregious fees, forged documents and broken promises. She says 'This is a book for every person with a bank account'.  On the same day, a new Memorial to the Fallen was unveiled on the grounds of MADE, along with a Pathway of Remembrance which recognised those who lost their lives as a result of the Eureka Stockade event. Eureka’s Children facilitated the invitations to the various families connected to this memorial. Professor David Battersby, Chairman of MADE said that he appreciates Eureka’s Children assistance in organising these events as well as our ongoing consultative process with them. Eureka’s Children are important to us.  At the Memorial are David Battersby, Eric Howard & Jane Smith, CEO – MADE
EUREKA DIGGER’S MARCH Route of the Diggers’ March Points of Interest and Stopping Points Refer Site map 1. Bakery Hill - Start Point 1 2. St.Alipius Church - Stop Point 2 3. Hayes’ tent site - Stop Point 3 4. Carboni’s vantage point 5. Bentley's Eureka Hotel plaques - Stop Point 4 6. Site of Bentley’s Eureka Hotel 7. Eureka Lead – Stop Point 5 8. Eureka Stockade - Stop Point 6 (Adjacent to Contemplative Place – Cnr Eureka & Rodier Sts.) 9. Eureka Stockade Monument - Stop Point 7 ( near Cnr. Eureka and Stawell Sts.) For more information on the Diggers March Trail. Download the full guide that takes you along the trail.
Events 2018 You are all invited to the Annual Eureka Democracy Award Dinner. Venue: AMORA HOTEL, 649 BRIDGE ROAD, RICHMOND Friday November 23, 2018 - 6.30pm for 7.00pm. THE EVENING COMMEMORATES AND CELEBRATES THE 164th ANNIVERSARY OF THE 1854 EUREKA EVENTS WITH THE EUREKA DEMOCRACY AWARD AND ADDRESS. With Special Guest Speaker: Professor Clare Wright For more detail on how to book and the planned events on the night including a sneak peak at this years Democracy Award recipient, please download the Flyer by Clicking Here. With the event coming up shortly, ensure you book your tables early for the best experience. |
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