Friends of Australia

What do Mark Olive, Donna Hay, Bryce Courtenay, Curtis Stone, Dick Smith, Kieran Perkins and Baz Luhrmann have in common?

They, along with around 100 other high profile people, were invited to be part of Tourism Australia’s Friends of Australia program, developed “to harness the power of bright and influential individuals who are making a name for themselves on the world stage, and who have a genuine affinity with Australia”, says  Andrew McEvoy, Managing Director of Tourism Australia.

The 100 Friends of Australia include sporting stars, fashion designers, environmentalists, entrepreneurs and artists, and some very influential high-achievers and opinion leaders – from Australia and overseas. They were all invited to Sydney in March 2010 to attend the program’s launch at the Shangri-La Hotel, overlooking Sydney Harbour. “I’m extremely passionate about our local produce, particularly the wine and food we have on offer in Australia”, says Mark, an advocate of Tourism Australia.

Mark and the other ‘Friends’ will help represent and promote Australia at local and international events as part of this ‘word of mouth initiative’.

View the other Friends_of_Australia.