Speeches
Tuesday, 19 May 2026
Reception for the Association Nationale des Members De L’Ordre National Du Mérite
Je suis ravi de vous accueillir à Résidence du Gouverneur.
Welcome everyone to Government House.
When I was approached to host a reception to shine a light on the Prix du Civisme, a prize to encourage students to become involved in civic projects, I was immediately enthusiastic.
Civic education has been one of my priorities as Governor throughout my term, as it was for my predecessor, the Hon Hieu Van Le.
He established, and I have been proud to continue, the Governor Civics Awards for Schools, which encourage young people to be active citizens and contribute fully to their communities.
As Rod and I visit schools across the State, we have been heartened by the pride and enthusiasm that young people have displayed in contributing to their regions.
Through our visits, we aim to provide encouragement, congratulations and perhaps even inspiration for young people to be active citizens, engaged in the life of their community.
It is through the aspirations of young people that we can hope to guide the evolution of community; community based on equality, opportunity, and respect for each other.
So, we immediately recognised a kindred spirit in the Prix du Civisme.
The Ordre National du Mérite was founded in 1963 by General Charles de Gaulle, one of France’s greatest leaders.
Providing exceptional service to others, to the nation, both selflessly and voluntarily, are hallmarks of the order.
The Australian Association of the order has been active for many years and in 2021 decided to award its first Prix du Civisme.
Initially the award was made only to Australian French Bilingual schools, but three years later it was decided to make it available to any school in which French is taught in both Years 5/6 and Years 9/10.
The prize aims to reward and encourage individuals or groups for their civic, community and public interest contributions.
As teachers of French or representatives of organisations that do business or have connections with France you know language can serve as a bridge to understanding each other’s culture, values, and shared civic responsibility.
South Australia has strong and enduring links with France, founded from the time when pioneering explorers Matthew Flinders and Nicholas Baudin met in 1802 at Encounter Bay while they were both charting our coastline, a landscape then largely unknown to European eyes.
Despite not knowing whether their countries were still at war, they put aside any differences and exchanged information in the spirit of scientific cooperation.
Since then, an enduring friendship has developed between France and South Australia, with the French community enhancing our State’s cultural and intellectual life.
Friends
I commend the work of the Association Nationale des Membres de l’Ordre National du Mérite in bringing the Prix du Civisme to Australia through its local Section and thereby fostering civic-mindedness among young people.
In relation to the prize, we are joined by His Worship the Mayor of Unley, Mr Michael Hewitson, and Mrs Noelia Carvajal, the French co-ordinator of Unley High School, in recognition of the fact that Unley High School won the secondary school prize in 2023 for its projects including fundraising for the victims of earthquakes in Syria and Turkey.
But the school has been the only nomination received from South Australia since the award’s inception. I know there is much good work throughout the State that deserves similar recognition.
I encourage you all to help drive a greater sense of community and connection through student participation in the awards.
In that way we can help young people connect not only with the French language, but also the values of global citizenship, cultural understanding, and social responsibility which France has done so much to inculcate in the modern world.