Peter Ireland

2020 UNE Alumni Community Award Winner

Peter Ireland's approach to life at UNE in the 1970s speaks volumes of his personal character and the values instilled in him from childhood. Tumbling into a Bachelor of Arts course and then a Diploma and Masters of Education, he "had a crack" at everything - from committees, orienteering, french and debating to drama, philosophy and sport. Especially sport.

"I've always been a great believer that the more things you try, the more those experiences build your personal stock of resilience," says Peter, who grew up "near a cow bail north of West Wyalong". "You can draw on those experiences and challenges your entire life, and constantly learn from them."

It's a basic tenet that has underscored Peter's professional career, sporting success, community contributions and now consultancy work. In his initial school leadership roles he began advocating for those who needed extra support, including rural, Indigenous and refugee students. And his philanthropy hasn't stopped.

"My father always talked about looking out for others," Peter says. "Although we had a large family of nine, Dad was always active in the community and was honoured with an  OA for his community service. There’s that famous saying by either Shakespeare or Picasso that the meaning of life is to find your gift and the purpose of life is to give it away."

Whether it was Friday night street patrols to serve coffee and provide companionship to Sydney's homeless or organising the uplifting Sony holiday camps for students with severe cognitive and physical disabilities, Peter's own community spirit has soared. It has reached admirable heights in the past 10-15 years through his fundraising efforts for four major charities - the Humpty Dumpty Foundation, which provides vital medical equipment for Australian children's hospitals; the Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children; the Kids with Cancer Foundation; and BlazeAid.

"I am often reminded of those inspirational words by William Wilberforce [the British politician and philanthropist who led the movement to abolish the slave trade],'You may choose to look the other way, but you can never say again that you did not know’. It's a good reminder to step up if you can."

Steps have never been a problem for Peter. His impressive sporting career began representing UNE, New England Zone and Australian Universities XV in rugby and athletics (the pentathlon, 400m hurdles and 800m) during his UNE days, leading to multiple gold medals at the Australian Masters Athletics Championships from 2008-2011 and a 400m hurdles gold medal at the World Championships in 2009.

He remains a highly competitive man when set a challenge. During the past 18 years Peter has won the Balmoral Burn - Sydney’s steepest hill sprint - on eight occasions in his age group, and was the highest individual fundraiser (for the Humpty Dumpty Foundation) in this event in 2014, 2015 and 2018. Since 2006, he has scaled Sydney's Centrepoint Tower 10 times, raising tens of thousands of dollars for the Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind children.

"I was blessed with two wonderful parents, some healthy athletic DNA and a good memory; it's been enjoyable to use these in a positive way for all sorts of groups in our community," Peter says. "If you're fortunate enough to have done well in life, it's good to send the elevator back down. I think it's incumbent upon us, otherwise we are not leaving or building a legacy, and fundraising is actually fun."

From 2012-2019 Peter was Head of Governance, Policy and Risk as well as Company Secretary for the Sydney Catholic Schools Trust Board. He had previously held senior leadership roles, including Principal of MacKillop Senior College in Port Macquarie and Deputy Headmaster of St Ignatius’ College, Riverview. More latterly, as a governance consultant, Peter has worked with board members and directors, managers and administrators in private and public spheres to help set higher ethical benchmarks for best practice. Since 2008 he has also been a selection panel member for the prestigious Australian Winston Churchill Fellowship Trust.

Sport remains a part of Peter’s active lifestyle. This includes morning swims, gym and regular cycling with his wife Annie, as well as maintaining robust support for the Wallabies. "Training for fitness is a discipline," Peter says. "No-one sees the thousands of hours behind any success. Sport, for me, doesn't build character; it reveals character. It's a great leveller."

The parallels between sport and governance are striking. "The same ideals of transparency, accountability and respect exist; all representing ethical behaviour," Peter says. "As in sport, you need to continually nurture a reliable reputation and a culture of trust in the best boardrooms. You've always got to win clean. Raising the bar on governance is another community contribution that I continue to enjoy."

Just never challenge Peter to a push-up competition. In February 2020 he raised over $68,000 for BlazeAid when he won the Mosman Push-up Challenge, managing a muscle-burning 114 push-ups in the regulation 2 minutes. Peter says the community outcome and satisfaction easily trumped the pain and was redolent of Rudyard Kipling’s message, still hanging sagely over Wimbledon’s centre court: “If you can dream – and not make dreams your master; if you can think – and not make thoughts your aim; if you can meet with triumph or disaster, and treat those two imposters just the same”.

Congratulations Peter on your podium finish, earning a 2020 UNE Community Award.