The Club Melbourne Ambassador Program is honoured to announce its new patron in chief, the Hon. Alex Chernov, AO, QC Governor of Victoria and new patron, Premier and Minister for the Arts Ted Baillieu.
“I look forward to working closely with Melbourne’s leading minds as patron in chief of the Club Melbourne Ambassador Program, a vital component of Victoria’s business events industry” said the Hon. Alex Chernov, AO, QC.
Premier and Minister for the Arts Ted Baillieu said he was delighted to take on patronage for such an important program: “Club Melbourne ambassadors work tirelessly to bring international business events to Melbourne that showcase Victoria’s science, medicine, research and innovation. Business events are a great contributor to our tourism industry and Victoria’s economy, representing the highest yielding sector of the tourism industry and generating $1.2 billion annually.”
Club Melbourne is a collaborative strategy supported by the Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau, the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) and the State Government of Victoria.
Its 119 ambassadors are influential Melburnians who bring together industry leaders to support Melbourne’s growth and success in hosting business events. Over the past five years Club Melbourne’s ambassadors have been involved in acquiring 44 business events for Melbourne.
One such event was the recent International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics General Assembly which attracted up to 4000 delegates from 100 countries over eight days at the MCEC. Professor Ray Cas, Monash University and Dr Tom Beer, CSIRO are Club Melbourne ambassadors that were heavily involved in procuring this event and served as the Chair and Deputy Chair of the congress.
MCEC’s chief executive Leigh Harry said “I am thrilled that Club Melbourne has garnered the support of these two influential patrons. The program’s ambassadors work extremely hard to promote Melbourne and their achievements to date have provided a positive effect on Victoria’s economy and supported local industry.”
Chernov and Baillieu will attend the prestigious Club Melbourne 6th Anniversary Dinner on 17 August 2011 at the MCEC, where 15 new ambassadors will be inducted into the Club Melbourne Ambassador Program.
The Hon. Alex Chernov, AO, QC was sworn in as the Governor of Victoria on 28 April 2011 and the Hon Ted Baillieu was sworn in as the 46th Premier of Victoria and Minister for the Arts on 3 December 2010.
