Reflecting and Celebrating - Social Enterprise in QLD 2025
Social Impact Hub and Queensland Social Enterprise Council were proud to bring an evening of inspiration to Brisbane.
We had a diverse and insightful group of speakers bring their unique points of view to our stage — with only 5 minutes to share what was often their 3 key points — and they did so well! The crew listening were a varied group of social enterprise founders, leaders in social sector, and other driven changemakers. We are so pleased you decided to join us. There was a buzz of inclusive networking and we know some fantastic connections were made. Thanks to all!
Our speakers provided insights from their experience, which could barely be more diverse!
Dr Dinesh Pilpana - Doctor, Lawyer and disability advocate
Talk: Overcoming Adversity
Dinesh shared the remarkable journey that led him to become the youngest board director of George Steuart & Co., a 190-year-old Sri Lankan conglomerate. Born in Sri Lanka and having lived through war, he moved to Australia and later suffered a spinal cord injury that left him paralysed. During a difficult period living alone in Sri Lanka, the generosity and mentorship of others helped him regain confidence, learn business skills, and discover entrepreneurship. Through these experiences, he rebuilt his life, worked in advertising, and eventually returned to complete medical school, demonstrating resilience, determination, and the critical role of community support in personal growth.
He reflected on the lessons of his journey, emphasizing the importance of kindness, mentorship, and dreaming big. The opportunities and support he received allowed him to achieve professional success and pursue ambitious personal goals, such as contributing to research that could enable people with spinal cord injuries to stand again. He framed his story around the idea of “ubuntu”—“I am because of you”—highlighting that individual achievements are rooted in collective support. Ultimately, he encouraged others to dream boldly, envision a better world, and move forward together, underscoring the power of community, courage, and ambition.
Bio
Dinesh was the first quadriplegic medical intern in Queensland. Dinesh is a doctor, lawyer, disability advocate, and researcher. While in medical school, he was involved in a car accident that caused a spinal cord injury.
Dinesh has completed a Bachelor of Laws at the Queensland University of Technology, a Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice at the College of Law, Emergency Medicine Certificate at the Australasian College of Emergency Medicine, and Doctor of Medicine and Griffith University. He is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors under a Disability Leadership Scholarship.
Dinesh works in the emergency department at the Gold Coast University Hospital. He is a researcher and senior lecturer at the Griffith University. Dinesh is a researcher in spinal cord injury, co-leading the BioSpine research team. He is a doctor for the Gold Coast Titans physical disability rugby team. Dinesh was a senior advisor to the Disability Royal Commission. He is an ambassador to the Human Rights Commission’s Includeability program. He is a founding member of Doctors with Disabilities Australia. He is an advisory board member to HealthyLife, a Woolworths company. Dinesh is a John Monash Scholar. He is an independent non-executive director of George Steuart & Co, one of the oldest companies in the world and oldest in Sri Lanka. Dinesh is a non-executive director of the Housing Hub, started by the Summers Foundation.
Dinesh was the Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service’s Junior Doctor of the Year in 2018. He was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2019. He was the third Australian to be awarded a Henry Viscardi Achievement Award. He was the 2021 Griffith University Young Alumnus of the Year. Dinesh was the Queensland Australian of the Year for 2021.
Richard Warner - CEO Nundah Community Enterprise Cooperative
Talk: The Three Things
Richard talked about the three things important to social enterprise.
People sit at the heart of social enterprise. The voices, experiences and leadership of those facing complex disadvantage guide the work and keep it grounded in real need. Meaningful participation—through listening, co-design and ongoing engagement—is essential, because people living the issues are the best experts in how to address them. Keeping the focus on people requires continual investment of attention, energy and humility.
Profit and politics complete the balance. A social enterprise can only create impact if it is financially sustainable, so strong business capability and sound commercial judgement are vital. At the same time, the sector thrives when it engages in broader systems change—advocating for supportive policies, funding and structural conditions that allow social enterprises to succeed. This kind of “politics,” done collectively, strengthens markets, builds bipartisan support and ensures the environment around social enterprise enables long-term impact.
Bio
Richard is passionate about social-change which sees those who are disadvantaged having a role, a say and a fair share of opportunity. He believes social enterprise is a powerful way for individuals and communities facing exclusion to be included and to achieve a good life. His professional training is in Social Work and Community Development and he has worked alongside people with intellectual disability and from refugee backgrounds for more then twenty five years. For the past fifteen years he has been the CEO of Nundah Co-op, awarded best Australian Social Enterprise (2015 & 2020). He also co-founded the Queensland Social Enterprise Council (QSEC) Australia’s first member based peak serving as its Secretary and Chair. Outside of work he practices and teaches meditation in a Zen tradition and is a keen gardener. And he also happens also to be a bilateral cochlear implantee!
Alan Duffy - President Community Living Association
Co-talk with Paul O’Dea: Winning with Inclusive Governance
Alan talked about how being a committee president and director gives him the authority to advocate directly with politicians and influence decisions that shape services.
He described how he brings constituents’ real issues — such as the loss of key worker funding due to NDIS reforms — into committee discussions, resulting in service improvements.
Alan said that all committee members share responsibility, use expert advice and work through complex issues together. He believes organisations supporting people with different abilities should include them in governance, ensuring their voices genuinely shape how services improve.
Bio
Alan is a highly respected member of the Brisbane disability advocate community He is President of Community Living Association , Self-advocate, founding member of Nundah Scammers Group, peer mentor, Board Member of Nundah Community Enterprises Co-op (NCEC), Mentor to members of the NCEC Youth Co-op, President of Independent Youth Housing Group, QDeNgage Consultant
Paul O'Dea - Treasurer of Community Living Association
Co-talk with Alan Duffy: Winning with Inclusive Governance
Paul highlighted the importance of people with intellectual disabilities being active decision-makers in organisations that affect their lives.
As a long-time committee member and Treasurer, he explained that having people with lived experience at the table strengthens policy, language and culture — such as CLA’s shift to using “people with different abilities.”
For Paul, serving on the Management Committee builds confidence and skills, while also helping CLA better understand and value the strengths of its members with intellectual disabilities.
Bio
Paul O'Dea is a leader and self-advocate for those who learn differently. He is the Treasurer of Community Living Association, Treasurer of the Independent Youth Housing Group Ltd. He is also a Board Member of Australiasian Society for Intellectual Disability. He currently enjoys working at HELP Industries.
Nicole Dyson - CEO of Future Anything
Talk: Shift Happens - Impact through Culture
Nicole talked about the 3 C's of culture and how working on this internally has had great positive effects on how they can create impact in schools.
Connection
Nicole talked about how as the organisation rapidly scaled, culture had been left to evolve unintentionally. To rebuild genuine connection, the team co-created core values and explored how these aligned or misaligned with their personal values. They translated these values into practical “above-the-line” and “below-the-line” behaviours, creating shared language and social cues that shaped everyday interactions. This focus on connection strengthened relationships with the organisation and with each other.
Cadence
A deliberate rhythm of working became essential for stabilising the team. She introduced structured routines—such as Monday deep-work time, Friday shutdown sessions, regular one-to-one catch-ups and full-team meetings—to bring clarity and predictability to how work flowed. Quarterly Base Camps provided extended time offline to reflect, reset and build culture together. Establishing this cadence gave staff confidence in the organisational structure and supported higher-quality work.
Capacity
The organisation also invested deeply in capacity building, developing a professional-growth framework with support from Social Impact Hub. Using a Design Thinking approach, team members identified personal and professional challenges, generated solutions, prototyped development opportunities and worked with internal coaches to put them into practice. This intentional focus on developing people reinforced the organisation’s culture and ultimately strengthened their external impact.
Bio
Nicole Dyson is one of Australia’s leading voices in future-focused education, youth entrepreneurship, and system-wide innovation. A dynamic educator turned award-winning entrepreneur, Nic is the founder and CEO of Future Anything, a bold organisation reimagining how young people engage with learning — by turning problems into possibility. From frontline teacher to trusted voice across classrooms and systems, Nic has worked with over 100,000 young people and teachers across Australia and New Zealand, impacting the learning of more than 1 million students. Through initiatives like YouthX, Australia’s only startup accelerator for school-aged entrepreneurs, and her design thinking tool Catapult Cards, she equips educators and students with the mindset and tools to create meaningful change. Her influence is global: Nic is an Obama Foundation Leader, a Snow Foundation Entrepreneur, a three-peat honouree on The Educator’s Most Influential List ('23, '23 & '25), and the driving force behind the only Southern Hemisphere organisation contributing to the IDEEC – Impact-Driven Entrepreneurship Education for Children- Project, a European Union-funded initiative shaping global best practice in entrepreneurship education. Nicole passionately believes that youth-led ideas have the power to bend the future and supports educators, schools, and systems to design and deliver future-focused learning that unlocks young people’s passion and potential. She was also a Queensland Australian of the Year Nominee for 2026.
Nic Marchesi OAM - Co-founder of Orange Sky and A Curious Tractor
Talk: Laundry and Tractors
Nic told a hilarious childhood story about learning to climb a tree with a Prusik knot to illustrate the deeper value of building practical skills. While the climbing attempt went ridiculously wrong, the experience highlighted how accessible skill-building can be and how powerful it is to try something new — even when the conditions aren’t perfect. In a world where knowledge is abundant, Nic spoke about the fact that what matters most is not just learning about skills but actually applying them, experimenting and discovering what you can do.
They draw out four lessons about building skills with intention:
Start with a simple, safe version of the skill (a “minimum viable product”),
Understand who your audience is while you practise
Make sure you have a plan for what happens if things don’t go as expected
Most importantly, have fun!
With these principles, he encourages people to approach new skills with curiosity, courage and playfulness — reminding us that meaningful learning happens when we’re willing to try, test, and enjoy the process.
Bio
In October 2014, Nicholas Marchesi co-founded Orange Sky alongside his best mate Lucas Patchett. Together, they built the first van Sudsy and Orange Sky was born. From small beginnings over the past eight years Orange Sky has grown to 56 services and helped thousands of people experiencing homelessness and they’re not ready to slow things down anytime soon.
Awarded Young Australian of the Year in 2016 and a 2020 Order of Australia medal, Nic has a passion and commitment to supporting people doing it tough. Nic has been instrumental in the significant growth of Orange Sky and is passionate about leading Orange Sky to deliver on its first five year strategy of supporting 40,000 friends by 2025.
Nic was selected as one of 200 worldwide leaders to attend the 2019 Obama Foundation Leaders Program in Kuala Lumpur, meeting with Former President & First Lady Barack & Michelle Obama to discuss a variety of issues, ranging from education, to environment to entrepreneurship. Nic was also the lucky recipient of the 2020 Stanford Australia Foundation Scholarship and in 2023 joined the Westpac Social Change Fellowship alongside inspiring changemakers from across the country. Nic previously worked as a camera operator and editor for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and for the Seven Network.
Nigel Webb - Ex-Chair of Queensland Disability Network, Support worker at CPL
Talk: Smart Governance, Strong Cashflow
Nigel talked about how strong governance begins with having the right people, with the right skills, around the board table. Drawing on his long involvement with QDN, he explains that a skills-based governance approach ensures the organisation reflects its 3,000-member base and harnesses their diverse talents. Through tools like a skills matrix and a commitment to building the capabilities of people with disability who want to become directors, QDN strengthens its leadership and stays true to its member-driven mission. This intentional focus on skills, representation and participation helps guard against backward steps in disability reform and keeps the organisation grounded and accountable.
Nigel also stressed that sustainability requires deliberate financial strategy. QDN developed an Investment Strategy in 2017, using accumulated funds to build long-term resilience. Through intentional investing, external financial advice and clear guidelines, the organisation has grown its investment pool from around $500,000 to approximately $750,000. Nigel argues for increasing this focus by dedicating 2% of the operational budget to sustainability efforts, recognising that not-for-profits cannot rely solely on grants. Strong cashflow and strategic investment ensure organisations can continue supporting vulnerable communities and maintain independence from uncertain funding cycles.
Bio
Nigel is a past Director of QDN – June 2009 – October 2020 and was elected annually as Chair of the Board by its Directors between February 2010 until the AGM of October 2020. Nigel was appointed to the Queensland Disability Advisory Council (QDAC) in September 2022. He was appointed as a Queensland Delegate of The Australian Disability Strategy Advisory Council (ADSAC) in June 2023/24 by the Minister/s. Nigel is employed by Choice, Passion Life as a Client Liaison Officer supporting 14000 clients throughout Qld & NSW. Nigel says,” With the final reports for the Disability Royal Commission and the NDIS review released with their respective recommendations, the NDIS Amendments Bill working through the respective Parliaments now, is the time that the voices of people with disability must be elevated more than ever and for QDN members and non-members to be actively involved”.
He has also been an active QDeNgage Consultant, a Housing Champion and a Peer Leader co-convening the NDIS Self-Management Peer group in recent years.
Nigel is delighted to see the success of the Emerging Leaders program and the Leadership Bursary that QDN supports each year. The Peer Leaders and each group situated within their communities must be encouraged and must flourish.
Nigel is also humbled to have been awarded Life Membership by QDN Directors’ in October 2022.
Allan English AM - Founder and Chair of English Family Foundation
Talk: The OSI Social Enterprise Roadmap: What you need to know
Allan explained that the creation of the Office of Social Impact is the result of more than a decade of ecosystem-building within Queensland’s social enterprise sector. Through the work of his foundation — supporting initiatives like the Social Enterprise World Forum and Social Enterprise Australia — and a pivotal connection between the Treasurer and local social enterprise leader Luke Terry, government leaders began to understand the transformative potential of social enterprise. Their exposure to real-world impact inspired deeper engagement, consultation with sector leaders like QSEC, and ultimately a commitment to invest $20 million a year into developing a stronger, more coordinated ecosystem.
He described how this investment has been shaped through extensive sector consultation, cross-sector collaboration, and deliberate partnership-building. Over 540 stakeholders contributed to the Roadmap, supported by expert roundtables drawing from philanthropy, government, intermediaries and social entrepreneurs. Major philanthropic foundations have committed to co-investing and aligning with government efforts, creating a rare three-way collaboration.
As the Roadmap now moves into a three-year implementation phase — supported by independent evaluation and ambitious impact targets — Allan emphasises that collective unity will be essential. By holding together through inevitable challenges, the sector can position Queensland as a national leader in social enterprise and demonstrate the powerful social and economic value created when government, philanthropy and enterprise work in partnership.
Bio
Allan founded Silver Chef to help hospitality entrepreneurs get started without heavy upfront costs. The rent-try-buy model grew to support over 25,000 clients across Australia, New Zealand and Canada. He later established the English Family Foundation to support social entrepreneurs creating change in their communities. He received an Order of Australia (AM) for his contribution to philanthropy and community service and was recognised as one of the AFR’s 21 True Leaders. Allan now chairs the Queensland Social Impact Advisory Roundtable, supporting the state government’s efforts to grow the social enterprise movement
Photos from the Year-End Celebration
Credits to Jessica Mendoza-Roth, Honor White, and QSEC for these amazing photos!
