As a tribute to Mark Pascoe – founding CEO of the International WaterCentre – we invite you to join us at this special event, where we wish to honour and celebrate the joy that we all experienced in having Mark as a colleague, mentor and friend.

Mark was imaginative and highly networked in the way he worked with colleagues across the broader water industry throughout his career. His vision for IWC was to create "sandpits" for water sector actors, sometimes polarised, to come together and play - to find new and innovative ways to collectively consider and progress a complex water issue. We take his playful philosophy forward with this event as we explore the topic of:

“Bridging Boundaries - Collaboration within and beyond water”

And yes you can join us in the “sandpit” as we seek to hear your thoughts to key questions, such as:

What enables & inhibits collaboration across sectors, between organisations and across generations?
What are some inspiring examples of collaboration?
What leadership skills, behaviours & practices are most needed for collaboration?

We're inviting passionate guest speakers to stimulate your thinking and catalyze the discussion. Panel sessions will help map what are the elements of a pathway for change. Plus in small groups, with a skilled facilitator, your collective views on this topic, joint discussions and ways to stimulate greater collaboration will be sought.

Joining us on our panel we have:

Lisa McLean, CEO - Circular Australia to share her experience with collaborating across 'cross-sector' boundaries,
Rob Fearon, General Manager for Servicing Planning - Urban Utilities to talk to collaboration for 'cross-organisational' boundaries within the water sector, and
Andrew Chesterman, who has held various CEO, Executive and Board roles to discuss collaboration to traverse 'within-organisation' boundaries.

We also have Sophie Barrett, UQ joining us for a quick Spotlight conversation about her AWA Award winning student project and cross-generational boundaries.

Everyone is welcome to join this event, regardless of where you fit in the wide mix of disciplines that can help solve these complex challenges. You are also certainly welcome if you had not had the chance to meet Mark and enjoy being part of a of holistic approach to water challenges. Especially welcome are early career professionals who Mark always made time to meet and chat. Plus we welcome the extensive connections that Mark developed over the years, bringing a wealth of experiences. We hope to replicate a rich network of colleagues sharing and building options together.

Networking will be a feature of the event – before, during and after.

Join us from 13:15 for this event that will start at 13:30. To truly toast and celebrate 2024 together and remember our dear colleague Mark Pascoe, please stay on for extended networking with drinks and canapes from 17:00 to 19:00 overlooking the River from the stunning Rooftop at The Grove.