Changemakers to Unite at International Social Marketing Conference

23 August 2016 at 10:13 am
Staff Reporter

The 2016 International Social Marketing Conference (ISMC), to be held at the University of Wollongong on 26 and 27 September will bring together Australia's brightest minds in social impact and behaviour change.

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Staff Reporter | 23 August 2016 at 10:13 am

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The 2016 International Social Marketing Conference (ISMC), to be held at the University of Wollongong on 26 and 27 September will bring together Australia’s brightest minds in social impact and behaviour change.

Marketing soft drinks and smartphones is easy when compared to marketing healthy behaviours.

Coming together to address Australia’s most pressing social issues, the conference will combine the expertise of practitioners and academics across public health, environmental issues, Not for Profits, behaviour economics, government and PR / marketing agencies working to create social change.

The two-day conference, organised by the Australian Association of Social Marketing and the University of Wollongong, will feature 16 leading-expert speakers, offer more than 68 industry-led sessions and host seven interactive workshops.

The latest tools and approaches to changing behaviour in the areas of health, the environment and sustainability, gambling, family violence and transport will be presented.

This year’s keynote speakers include Clary Castrission, a social entrepreneur who is the founder and CEO of the 40K Group. The 40K Group is made up of three companies united by the common goal to make a massive positive social impact on the world. Having spoken at TEDx and presented to the United Nations his ideas of “Innovation of Restriction”, he will be speaking about making a positive impact on society and how all businesses can do good in this world.

Other keynote speakers include Kelly Dent from Oxfam, who is currently working on agriculture and sustainable livelihoods, climate change and rights in crisis. With a Masters in Climate Change, Dent will share new ideas for upstream social marketing and influencing public policy in the area of climate change.

Tracey Bridges is a social marketing practice lead at SenateSHJ’s award winning social marketing and behaviour change practice. Bridges has worked on a diverse range of projects across crucial social issues such as sexual health, mental health, family violence, biosecurity and child protection. As a specialist in strategy, issues management and social marketing, she will be discussing social marketing on the strategic communications level.

Australian Association of Social Marketing president Ross Gordon sums up the need for the ISMC in the face of today’s complex social issues: “There are a number of big social challenges facing us today – issues such as health inequalities, violence against women, and looking after the natural environment.

“This is why we need the ISMC, to bring everybody working in the social marketing and social change field together to learn about the latest ideas, concepts and techniques for achieving social change, and to network with their peers and share their expertise.”

As speaker Bridges said: “Social marketing is evolving all the time and there are always new fields of thought to tap into and explore.”

This is exactly what will occur on 26 and 27 September when over 150 practitioners, academics and students will converge on the University of Wollongong’s main campus.

On Sunday 25 September, there will be optional workshops offered by international and Australian social marketing experts held in advance of the official conference. Keynote speaker Castrission will be facilitating a near sold out workshop on Interactive Insight into the Power of Social Enterprises.

Some of the other popular workshops available include a free workshop on the Social Marketing and the National Disability Insurance Scheme and Ethics in Social Marketing, an interactive discussion on the moral and political dimensions of the industry. This year’s conference is set to continue to advance the practices of social marketing forward.

The two-day conference cost is: