Ms Elizabeth Ho

Elizabeth Ho OAM has been Inaugural Director of the Bob Hawke Prime Ministerial Centre at the University of SA from 1999-2014. The Bob Hawke Prime Ministerial Centre honours the contribution of South Australia's only Prime Minister, The Hon Bob Hawke AC. Late international patron, Nelson Mandela has personally endorsed the Centre’s values: strengthening our democracy, celebrating our diversity and building our future. The Hawke Centre attracts local and international speakers and offers a vibrant public program of lectures and seminars on key concerns for the 21st century, including sustainable societies and responsible economic development. It has won several awards. The prestigious Annual Hawke Lecture series brings credit to the State, features highly influential speakers and is broadcast nationally. In terms of the Hawke Centre's strategic directions, Elizabeth concentrated her efforts on building collaborative relationships with numerous entities to underpin the program. She has created effective partnerships to increase community engagement with civil society issues, attracting public audiences of up to 1000 to key events. Under her leadership, the Hawke Centre raised $8m in private donations and government grants towards new city west facilities opened in 2007. Elizabeth has a background in the development of state and national public projects and has held various senior posts in library and education sectors. As a former Associate Director of the State Library of SA, she worked with Sir Donald Bradman to establish the permanent Sir Donald Bradman Exhibition opened in 1998 by the Prime Minister of Australia. Honorary awards and appointments: In 2006 Elizabeth was appointed a South Australian Business Ambassador and a National Fellow of the Institute for Public Administration Australia (IPAA). In 2008 she was selected as one of 1000 Australians to participate in the PM's 2020 Summit to consider future directions for Australia. In 2009,she was added to the SA Women's Honour Roll by the SA Minister for the Status of Women, for services to public learning. In 2012, she received Australian Honours - a Medal of the Order of Australia for services to education and to women, and was announced by the Prime Minister as a People of Australia Ambassador championing respect for national cultural diversity. She is Deputy Chair of the Board of The Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia - an independent agency responsible for the settlement of migrants and refugees in SA. She is a Member of the Board of the May Gibbs Literary Trust and of the Catherine Helen Spence Memorial Scholarship Committee. She is a Global Advisor to the Global Fund for Women based in the USA - the largest private non-profit agency supporting women in developing countries. Elizabeth has previously been a member of the State Heritage Authority, the National Preservation Board of the National Library; and, the Australia Remembers (World War II) State Committee.

National Fellow , Institute of Public Administration in Australia,Past Associate of the Australian Library and Information Association

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Arts (Honours) The University of Adelaide