Australian university to open social business centre
Australian university to open social business centre
The University of New South Wales in Australia has announced it would open a Yunus Social Business Centre to promote the concept and its practice as a way to tackle social problems.
The announcement came during Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus' visit to the university in Sydney last week.
A memorandum of understanding was signed between Prof Yunus and Prof Les Field, vice president and deputy vice-chancellor of the university, to this effect.
Yunus visited Australia between October 8 and October 11, Yunus Centre in Dhaka said in a statement yesterday.
He was invited as the chief guest to the 10th annual conference of the Bangladeshi Architects in Australia. The theme of the conference was to find more socially responsible roles for architects.
Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, parliamentary secretary to the social services ministry, spoke among others at the conference held at Syndey Opera House on October 9.
Reading out a message from Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Fierravanti-Wells welcomed the famed Bangladeshi anti-poverty activist to Australia and thanked him for his initiatives in eradicating poverty worldwide.
The organisers also hosted a dinner in Canberra which was attended by Australian parliamentarians, ministers, diplomats, academics and professionals from the Bangladeshi community.
On October 10, the founder of Grameen Bank spoke at a corporate luncheon hosted by Grameen Australia and Asialink, a think-tank of Melbourne University. The event was attended by 400 guests representing major banks, philanthropists, community groups, foreign affairs officials and university students.
Yunus pointed out that unemployment is a plague that is eating away at the youth. "With no fault of their own, the system, owing to its inconsistencies, is barring them from utilising their entrepreneurial potential."
On October 11, Yunus delivered a public lecture at Monash University at Melbourne.
Monash Chancellor Alan Simon Finkel elaborated on the university's plans to introduce social business courses and seminars.