Paying it forward
Over the years, Sydney businessman Benjamin Chow AO, has ‘paid it forward’ and nominated people for recognition in the Order of Australia honours system. Mr Chow was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2007 for service to the community through inter-cultural activities, including the establishment of Harmony Day.
Benjamin Chow has nominated others in the community for recognition.
“I do believe recognising the contribution of others is important,” he says. “Much of the work in my community, and especially in the Chinese community, is often unseen.”
He would like to see that change. “The best way to achieve that goal is to nominate more people from diverse communities,” he says.
“I have heard the Governor-General and the Governor of New South Wales both say that it is important that there is a broader cross-section of our community recognised in the Australian honours. I support this!”
Mr Chow would like to see recognition become ‘normalised’ in Australia, and particularly across multi-cultural communities. He says that being seen to ‘self-promote’ is often not encouraged despite a lot of people doing very good work in a range of community and advocacy groups.
“I am involved in several different community groups, both in the Chinese community and more broadly. So I come across many people that I want to nominate for their contribution. And I am in a good position to encourage others to nominate the people they work with. But to be honest, it can be challenging especially for people who have English as a second language.”
Mr Chow was surprised to hear that nominators don’t need to know everything about the nominee; the Order of Australia research team independently researches nominations and adds to the original nomination. But as he takes nominating seriously, he says he likes to provide information when it is available. “I don’t make nominations lightly,” he says.
Mr Chow’s commitment to nominating people for the Order of Australia, the way we as a nation can recognise and celebrate the people in our community that inspire us, remains strong.
“Achieving change is slow,” he says, “but it’s important to keep going if we want to see a difference.”
The Office of the Official Secretary to the Governor-General, which administers the Honours, is improving the accessibility and usability of all forms to make it possible for anyone to nominate. If you need assistance completing a nomination, call 02 6283 3533.