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Elaine Henry OAM

Elaine Henry OAM

Elaine Henry has been a leader in the non-profit sector for over the past 25 years; formerly as the Executive Director of the Cancer Council (NSW) and until the end of 2010 as Chief Executive of The Smith Family, a leading social enterprise focused on breaking the cycle of disadvantage through the power of education.

Over a 30-year period since returning from living and working overseas, Ms Henry has served on a wealth of committees and boards at the state, national and international levels. During the past decade she served as the Inaugural Chair of the Commonwealth Government's Stronger Families and Communities Partnership 2001-07 and the Australian Families & Children's Council as well as being a member of the former Prime Minister's Community Business Partnership and Deputy Chair of the Commonwealth Government's Welfare to Work Consultative Forum. She was also a non-executive Director of AXA Trustees from 1998 to 2001.

Elaine is a Founding Director of Social Ventures Australia, the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth, which she now chairs, and was the Inaugural Chair of Nonprofit Australia Ltd from 2003-10 and Deputy Chair of the Community Council for Australia in 2010. She is a Director of the Australian Social Innovation Exchange and the National Breast Cancer Foundation.

She has served on a number of Advisory Boards of Universities including the University of NSW, Wollongong, Sydney and Curtin; is a Governor of the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia (CEDA), a Member of the Advisory Council of The Global Foundation, the Australian Statistics Advisory Council, a Director of the Public Interest Journalism Foundation and The Financial Literacy Board.

Ms Henry was awarded the Medal in the Order of Australia for services to community health in 1994; was selected as one of 50 Australian women to be profiled in the 2000 Businesswomen's Hall of Fame; recognised as one of the Australian Financial Review's BOSS True Leaders in 2001, again in 2004, 2007 and 2010 and in 2009 honoured by Research Australia with their Lifetime Achievement Award.