Coffs Harbour student attends National Leadership Forum

Southern Cross University Coffs Harbour student, Joshua Hills, has just returned from the National Leadership Forum in Canberra, where he met with a range of federal government ministers.

Joshua, who is completing his Honours year in the Bachelor of Business in Hotel and Resort Management, was one of 300 students selected from around Australia to take part in the four-day forum.

The National Student Leadership Forum provides an opportunity to discuss the significance of faith and values as foundations for effective leadership. It is hosted by 45 members and senators of the national parliament who think something needs to be done to develop leadership characteristics in the country’s young people.

“It was quite inspirational to meet those people and hear what they had to say. We met with ministers, business leaders and Indigenous leaders who discussed what it means to be a leader. It was good to hear the different stories,” Josh said.

“During the dinner on the first night we were assigned a member of parliament and I was with the Member for Dawson (Queensland) James Bidgood. We went to his office and discussed his life-work balance. It was quite an eye opener.

“I found it quite inspirational. It made me realise they are a lot more human than people think and we shouldn’t be so sceptical. It’s more than just what you see in the media.”

During the four days, Josh spent a number of days at Parliament House and had the opportunity to meet the Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and the new Leader of the Opposition, Malcolm Turnbull.

While it hasn’t sparked an interest in politics for Josh, he is keen to pursue a career in management after completing further study.

He plans to submit his Honours research in the next few weeks and has applied for a PhD scholarship to continue research in the area of strategic management.

Josh completed Year 12 at Coffs Harbour High School in 2004, has been the recipient of a Coffs Ex-Services Club scholarship and is the current recipient of a Telstra Country Wide Honours Faculty of Business scholarship.

Photo: Joshua Hills has just returned the National Leadership Forum in Canberra.