Second stop on a three weeks conference tour of Hawaii and Australia was a visit to the City of Greater Bendigo in Victoria. The invitation to address the community came via the Bendigo Bank one of the most remarkable examples of community banking we have ever seen.
Bendigo Bank pioneered, nearly ten years ago, a model of community banking that has been adopted by nearly two hundred communities Australia wide. At a time when major banks abandon small and rural communities Bendigo’s Community Banks are growing like mushrooms providing not only a needed service but a financial return as well. Every year hundreds of thousands of dollars are returned to the communities that establish the local franchises of the Bendigo Bank, funds that can be invested in community activities to spur new growth.
Our visit to Bendigo allowed us to meet with Bendigo Banks officials, including John Sirolli (maybe a long lost cousin from my region of Italy?) and to observe two more projects started by the Bank: Lead On, an exciting youth initiative, and TELCO, a community owned and operated telecommunication company. Yvonne Fizer and I addressed a meeting sponsored by the Central Victoria Business Network (yet another spin off from the Bendigo Bank) and discussed the possibilities of future work in Bendigo with both the Bendigo Bank and the community.
Dr. Ernesto Sirolli
CEO
Sirolli Institute
1 877 SIROLLI
(916) 446-9264
www.sirolli.com
http://sirolli.blogspot.com/
"The future of every community lies in capturing the passion, imagination, and resources of its people."
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