Frequently
Asked
Questions

1. What happens after the conference?

Citizen Advocacy Australia is working on publishing materials from the conference to continue Advancing Citizen Advocacy.

2. Who went to the conference?

• people who want to know more about Citizen Advocacy
• people who want to deepen their understanding of Citizen Advocacy
• people who want to meet other people involved in Citizen Advocacy to learn from each other
• people who want to share what they know about doing Citizen advocacy
• Citizen Advocacy coordinators
• Citizen Advocacy Board members
• people in Citizen Advocacy relationships
• people involved in disability advocacy
• people who support Citizen Advocacy
• people who support disability advocacy

3. Who ran the conference?

The conference was organized by the Conference Planning Committee, an advisory committee to Citizen Advocacy Australia.

The members of the Advisory Committee and its working groups were:

John Armstrong:
Citizen Advocacy Australia, Chairperson

Heather Buck:
CA South Australia, Board – Vice-Chair    

Mark Feigan:                    
Citizen Advocacy Australia, Secretary

John Ferreirinho:             
Citizen Advocacy Perth West, Board Member

Peter Hill:
Citizen Advocacy Australia, Director

Heather Hindle:
independent community member

Sharon Lowe:
Capricorn Citizen Advocacy, Secretary

Rosey Olbrycht:  
Citizen Advocacy South Australia, Manager                   

Kim Roots:
Side By Side Advocacy, Executive Officer

Bridie Smith:
Citizen Advocacy Australia, Finance Director

Jenny Smith:
Capricorn Citizen Advocacy, Chairperson

Citizen Advocacy Australia is the trustee company for the Citizen Advocacy Trust of Australia. More information about the trust is available at:
The Citizen Advocacy Trust of Australia
<https://citizenadvocacytrust.com.au>

4. What was the conference about?

The conference had three themes:

• strong boards
• strong coordinators
• strong practice.

The conference themes give focus for the purpose of the conference, which is Advancing Citizen Advocacy.

The purpose of the conference and its themes will help promote a shared understanding of what Citizen Advocacy is and how it is done well. The conference will help us have a shared understanding of:

• The distinctive identity of Citizen Advocacy. What it is and what it is not.
• What contributes to the quality of Citizen Advocacy
• What contributes to the viability of Citizen Advocacy
• What contributes to the longevity of Citizen Advocacy

5. When was the conference?

The conference was held over two days, 11-12 February 2023

6. Why did people go to the conference?

The conference was an opportunity to meet with like-minded people to find out more about the doing of Citizen Advocacy and learn from each other.

There were experts and people new to Citizen Advocacy. Everyone had the chance to learn new things and to further develop the things they are already doing.

7. Where was the conference held?

The conference was held at the Savoy on Little Collins in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

The address is 630 Little Collins Street, Melbourne.

The website is https://savoyhotelmelbourne.com/

8. How did people get to the conference?

The Savoy on Little Collins is next to the Southern Cross Station.

Southern Cross Station is a key transport hub for Melbourne and Victoria. It has suburban and country rail services. Airport Buses from Melbourne Airport go to this station.

8. How much did it cost to register for the conference

Registration for the conference was through Humantix.

Registration fees were as follows:

$250 early bird (until 31December 2022)

$300 from 1 January 2023

Concession $100

$175 Saturday with dinner

$150 Saturday without dinner

$150 Sunday

$500 Corporate
(for attendance by different representatives over the 2 days)