Melbourne, 15 March 2012: A host of Australian personalities have shared their thoughts on Australia's future as part of a nationwide poll being carried out by GE to understand in two words, what everyday Australians think are the biggest challenges facing the country's future.
The two words might be 'climate change', 'better healthcare', 'ageing population', 'house prices', or 'The Ashes' but GE wants to know what the Australian public thinks.
The campaign, titled 'Two Words for Tomorrow' will run until May and display live results as words are entered at www.twowordsfortomorrow.com.au. GE will share the results with the country's decision makers and use them to inform its local business efforts to help build a better future for Australia.
"We want to spark a discussion among the Australian public to understand what the big challenges are to them," said GE's Emma Rugge-Price. "GE works on the things that matter. We want to know what matters to Australians so we can focus our efforts locally and help build a better future for our country."
Launching tomorrow in Melbourne, GE will be in Federation Square with a huge four metre high screen displaying a 'word waterfall' as the public have their say online or at one of six iPad polling stations on-site. The word waterfall will form Australia's 'streams of consciousness' as thousands of submissions from all over the country present live on-screen.
A host of Australians have already submitted their words highlighting the challenges they are passionate about:
Cricket legend, Kerry O'Keefe -- "Greater Awareness"
Former Australian cricketer and ABC cricket commentator Kerry said: "Greater awareness is an important aspect that we as Australians must address. The "it'll be all right mate" sentimentality often translates into inaction and Australia, if it is to have a more exciting future, must act on issues that stop us maximising our potential. We must be more aware of educational needs, of how we can better compete internationally in every sphere - be it business, sport or general standard of living. If something has to be done in the national interest, often our inbred conservatism stymies action."
Australian Olympic Swimmer, Matt Targett -- "Food Rules"
Matt Targett will represent Australia in the pool at the London Olympics and said: "As an Olympic swimmer, I have lived the adage that 'you only get out what you put in'. I'm passionate about food and encouraging those around me to eat healthy and delicious meals. I've become involved with a project with the Archerfish Foundation that's about helping people make better choices about what they eat. We need to understand the issues preventing some Australians from having a healthy diet. The next step is finding innovative and effective ways of tackling these issues."
Young Australian of the Year 2012, Marita Cheng -- "Technology Entrepreneurship"
2012 Young Australian of the year Marita Cheng has done a lot of work to increase technology and engineering skills in Australia and said: "Technology entrepreneurship is something that we don't currently have enough of in Australia. To remain internationally competitive I think it's important that we strive to increase engineering and technology education in Australia and encourage young people to use their technical skills to produce Australian high-tech companies."
Australian Olympian, Nicola Zagame -- "Active Lifestyle"
Nicola Zagame will represent Australia at the London Olympics as part of the Australian Water Polo team aiming for gold. Perhaps unsurprisingly, her two words are 'Active Lifestyle'. She said: "Getting out and being active is so important for people of all ages as regular exercise can help boost your energy, maintain your independence, manage the symptoms of illness and promote good sleep. Exercise is good for all dimensions of your health- for your body, mind, memory, and mood."
Words will be categorised into themes with the results available in real-time and searchable by gender, age and location to provide clear insights into what Australians think are the biggest challenges for the country's future.
Have your say today at www.twowordsfortomorrow.com.au
About Two Words for Tomorrow Campaign:
Australians can share their Two Words For Tomorrow through a dedicated website www.twowordsfortomorrow.com.au, or via a Facebook app, interactive polling banners and widgets on popular news websites. People can also visit a unique installation located at prominent locations in Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and Sydney. The first installation will launch in Melbourne's Federation Square on 15 March and will roll out across Australia during April and May. The online component of the campaign launches on 8 March across social media platforms. The campaign will be supported by online advertising, social media and PR.
Installation tour dates and locations:
- Melbourne, St Paul's Court, Federation Square: Thursday 15 and Friday 16 March 2012
- Perth, Murray St Mall: April
- Brisbane, Reddacliff Place: May
- Sydney, Martin Place: May
Joanne Woo
Corporate Communications Director, Australia & New Zealand
[email protected]
+61 409 330 731