Speeches
Monday, 30 March 2026
Reception for Child Development Council
I warmly welcome our 2026 Charter Ambassadors to Government House, especially those from regional areas - Goolwa Secondary College, Kadina Memorial School, Kangaroo Island Community Education, Investigator College and Victor Harbor High School.
In my husband Rod’s and my visits to secondary schools, including yours, across the State, and through the Governor’s Civics Awards, we have seen firsthand how engaged young South Australians are with the world around them, and how readily they step forward to shape it.
I thank each of you for volunteering to be a Charter Ambassador.
Your willingness to stand up, speak out and take action is a demonstration of active citizenship in its truest form.
I encourage you to see the Charter Ambassador Program as a genuine opportunity to develop your knowledge, your skills and your sense of agency.
To recognise that your voice has power, that your ideas have value, and that the Positive Impact Project you undertake this year has the potential to create a deep and lasting imprint on your school community and beyond.
I believe that some of our best ideas are developed through actively listening to other people.
Today, as you undertake workshops at the Adelaide Festival Centre, I hope you will listen generously to your fellow Ambassadors from schools across our State, because the perspectives you gather there will strengthen the work you do in your own school.
I am also deeply encouraged by the remarkable growth of this program.
From 47 Ambassadors across five schools in 2023, to 201 young South Australians today - and many more schools expressing interest for the future.
I thank the Child Development Council for its dedication in building and sustaining the Charter Ambassador Program.
I thank the Council for its unwavering pursuit of better outcomes for children and young people, and for its vital work in giving meaning to data so that policymakers can make evidence-based decisions.
I also recognise the Ambassador Program Facilitators, the educators and support staff in schools across the State who guide these young Ambassadors throughout the year and who make the program possible.
The growing enthusiasm for civics in our schools is not simply a program statistic.
It reflects a broader, profound shift in how young South Australians understand their place in our democracy and their capacity to contribute to it.
To all of our 2026 Charter Ambassadors: I wish you every success in the year ahead.
I am sure you will be welcomed back to Government House one day, in recognition of the active citizens I am confident you will become.