The India Australia Business & Community Alliance (IABCA), supported by Investment NSW and Austrade, now in its 9th year was a reminder of the opportunity that exists for Australian public diplomacy to utilise its domestic business diaspora strategically to advance its foreign policy and trade interests. And the opportunity for Indian public diplomacy to capitalise on the Australian Indian diaspora to globalise its development agendas. Affirming that the best is yet to come.
Speaking about the IABCA partnership, Minister for Enterprise, Investment and Trade, Tourism and Sport, and Western Sydney, Hon Stuart Ayres MP said:
“The partnership the NSW Government shares with IABCA strengthens ties between India and Australia. The IABCA continues to be at the forefront in fostering stronger economic, diplomatic, and cultural ties between our two nations.”
The IABCA platform this year brought together 1000 key influencers and bi-lateral leaders from across the two nations. Comprising of the IABCA Global Leaders Forum and the IABCA Awards Ceremony, this ‘Meeting of Minds’ showcase at the Star Events Centre on 29th April 2022 connected entrepreneurs, innovators, and disruptors from across Australia and India.
Congratulating the winners and the IABCA Alliance, The Hon Dan Tehan MP, Minister for Trade, Tourism, and Investment shared:
“The India Australia Business & Community Alliance is an excellent platform to recognise and honour the deep business and community links between our two countries. I congratulate all the award finalists and commend you for your contribution to our strong economy and the Australia India relationship.”
The winner of the Young Professional of the Year Award Rishi Kher, Co-Founder and CEO of Holy Sanity, told The Australia Today that it was a truly humbling experience to be recognised by IABCA:
“I am humbled and grateful to be recognised as Young Professional of the Year. I have spent many years taking risks and have had my family make sacrifices on my behalf. This award helps motivate me and my team at Holy Sanity to dream big on a journey that we hope will make a lasting impact on generations to come. The annual IABCA initiative is a welcome sign of how far relations between Australia and India have evolved.”
Dr Meenakshi Arora, Associate Professor in Environmental Engineering at The University of Melbourne was the winner of the Australia India Impact Award (Individual) of the Year. She mentioned to The Australia Today how honoured she felt to have this acknowledgement for her years of work:
“I am honoured and deeply humbled. It’s a privilege to have this acknowledgement for my years of work in bringing the Indian and Australian scientific communities together through various research collaborations in Water supply and pollution areas and through Melbourne India Postgraduate Academy (MIPA). Thanks to IABCA for providing me this platform to share my work with the broader community and showcase the positive aspect of the bilateral relationship between Australia and India.”
Speaking about his journey to The Australia Today, Business Leader of the Year Award winner Shailendra Kumar, who is a Global AI Thought Leader & Practitioner and author of “Making Money Out of Data”, highlighted the support he received in Australia:
“When I arrived in Australia 16 years ago, the local Australians gave me great support and since then I’ve only received love and affection, both professionally and personally. The people of Australia are just awesome and Australia is an awesome country to live in. I’m proud that many Indians in Australia are driving a great deal of innovation thanks to the Indian-Australian community, which is growing at an exponential rate.”
Dr Pamela Humphreys, Director, Macquarie University College, who won the Australia India Science Research and Development Award (Individual) told The Australia Today that winning the award is meaningful in terms of recognition and raising profile for future collaboration:
“It was such an honour to receive this award. Over a decade of work has translated into supporting over a quarter of a million Indians who are planning to take an English test. We are proud that our three low-cost online IELTS and PTE test preparation courses have helped so many already to achieve their goals. The IACBA event has raised the profile of how Australian and Indian companies can work together for bilateral cooperation and positive outcomes.”
The Winners across all the 14 categories were.
- IABCA YOUNG PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR
Rishi Kher, Co-Founder and CEO, Holy Sanity
- IABCA BUSINESS LEADER OF THE YEAR
Shailendra Kumar, Global AI Thought Leader & Practitioner, Author of Amazon Bestseller “Making Money Out of Data”
- IABCA MANAGING DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR
Mayank Manish, Founder and Executive Director, OpEzee
- IABCA COMMUNITY SERVICES EXCELLENCE AWARD (Individual)
Professor Manjula O’Connor, Psychiatrist, Clinical Hon Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne
- Highly Commended Certificate
Dilpreet Kaur Taggar, Founder, South Asian Today
- IABCA COMMUNITY SERVICES EXCELLENCE AWARD (Organisation)
REACH for Training (REACH)
- Highly Commended Certificate
The Association of Haryanvis in Australia (AHA)
- IABCA BUSINESSWOMAN OF THE YEAR
Elaine Starkey, CEO, Global Study Partners
- IABCA AUSTRALIA INDIA IMPACT AWARD (Individual)
Dr Meenakshi Arora, Associate Professor in Environmental Engineering, The University of Melbourne
- IACBA AUSTRALIA INDIA IMPACT AWARD (Organisation)
Sannam S4 Group
- Highly Commended Certificate
Australia India Travel & Tourism Council (AITTC)
- AUSTRALIA INDIA SCIENCE, RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT AWARD(Individual)
Dr Pamela Humphreys, Director, Macquarie University College
- MICRO BUSINESS OF THE YEAR
Connect2MyDoctor
- EXCELLENCE IN TRADE & INVESTMENT
Dr Badri Narayanan Gopalakrishnan, NITI Aayog
- EXCELLENCE IN PARTNERSHIPS
Link Group
- SME OF THE YEAR
AirPhysio
- Highly Commended Certificate
RD Facilities Management
The IABCA Lifetime Achievement Award, this year, was conferred to Amb. Anil Wadhwa, Former Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, Author Australia Economic Strategy Report 2020.