Annual WJ Craig Lecture

Presenting the 25th Annual WJ Craig Lecture will be Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Council for Social Service (ACOSS) Dr Cassandra Goldie.

Prior to her appointment at ACOSS, Cassandra was the Director of the Sex and Age Discrimination Unit at the Australian Human Rights Commission where she played a pivotal role in the inquiry into the Sex Discrimination Act, Pay Equity, National Homelessness Legislation, reforms to corporate governance to promote women in leadership and decision making roles, and the campaign to achieve Paid Parental Leave.

With the Protecting Victoria's Vulnerable Children Inquiry Report due to be tabled in parliament in February, this lecture will feature Cassandra speaking on the key issues affecting the community sector and what needs to be done to strengthen and improve the protection and support of vulnerable young people.

Connections is honoured to have Dr Goldie present the Silver WJ Craig Lecture.

When: Tuesday February 14, 2012
Where: Melbourne Town Hall, Condell Room Swanston Street, Melbourne.
Time: 11:00am - 1:00pm
RSVP: Kirrilee Torney 03 9271 0816 or RSVP@connections.org.au by Tuesday February 7, 2012

To download your invitation to the 25th Annual WJ Craig Lecture, click here.

 The Annual WJ Craig Lecture aims to stimulate and encourage debate on important social issues.

The Lecture honours Connections' history and the philanthropic legacy of William John Craig (1839 -1899) and his family that endures in the work of Connections to this day.

    Previous Lectures have covered...

  • Just terms and fair treatment: Towards a new national story for Aboriginal and non-Indigenous Australia.
  • Protecting Children's Rights
  • Engaging the community - the rights and responsibilities of citizens.
  • Social Justice in Australia - What is the future?
  • The New Social Capital: Helping people, families and communities plan for 100 years of life.
  • Poverty, marriage & mass transit - more connected than they might appear.

Background to Lecture

William J Craig (known to his friends as WJ) was an affluent Melbourne importer and retailer in the 1890s. A dedicated family man and a prominent member of the Presbyterian Church, he and his family were committed to helping families experiencing poverty and hardship.


William John Craig (1839 - 1899)

Without the altruism of philanthropists such as WJ Craig and our current supporters and partners, who donate according to their means, tens of thousands of children and their families would not have received our support for more than 80 years.

WJ Craig's daughter Elizabeth McNeill McCormick honoured her father with a major donation in 1925 of the mansion 'Linda' in Canterbury Road allowing for the establishment of the Presbyterian Babies Home, later to become what we know today as Connections.


Historical images of activities at 'Linda' when it was the Presbyterian Babies Home

Previous Lecture Publications

To download copies of our Lecture publications click here to go through to our publications page.