The Henry Parkes Foundation

The Henry Parkes Foundation was set up in December 1998 by Parkes’ descendants and others, both to honour Sir Henry himself — the man dubbed ‘Father of Federation’ — and to carry forward his egalitarian vision for Australia in ways relevant to today.

The Foundation aims to encourage Australians to find out more about their country’s political and constitutional history, and about how they can participate as citizens. Its activities include an annual oration, with a distinguished speaker focusing on challenging social/political issues in Australian society, with some reference to the ideals and objectives of Parkes.