In March 2013, our Founder and Chair, Andrew Larpent commenced a week of immersion in the challenges and opportunities facing communities from Commonwealth countries living in the UK, following his offer of a place on the Commonwealth Study Conferences Leaders (CSC Leaders) programme.
This was a programme for Commonwealth leaders that ran between 2013 and 2019.
It was during this programme that the initial concept for CommonAge was developed and tested. It was overwhelmingly supported as one of the leading initiatives to be taken forward after the study conference.
On 22 July 2013, a workshop hosted by Compass Group, was held Melbourne, Australia to discuss the formation of CommonAge, ThomsonAdsett designed our logo, and CommonAge was officially launched in Melbourne, Australia in November 2013.
Read our story and a message of support from the then Commonwealth Secretary General, Kamalesh Sharma here.
As part of the celebration, the eagle eyed amongst you may have noticed our special anniversary logo. Thank our great friends in Brand Partners in Adelaide, Australia for their unwavering and very generous support with the design of our logos and other collateral over the years.
We would particularly like to convey our thanks to those who have served on the CommonAge Board through these formative years:
- Sharon Blackburn, UK and Australia
- Richard Catto, New Zealand
- Keryn Curtis, Australia
- Stuart Flynn, Australia
- Andrew Larpent*, Australia and UK
- Stephen MacIntyre, Australia
- Judy Martin, Australia
- Nilanjana Maulik, India
- Chris Straw, Australia
- Margie Van Zyl Chapman, South Africa
- Klaus Zimmermann, Australia
- Helen Jones, Australia and UK
- Cedi Frederick, UK
- Dan Levitt*, Canada
- Ken Bluestone*, UK
- Femada Shamam* South Africa
- Mansoor Dalal*, India
- Andrew Kavala*, Malawi
- Samantha Bowen, Australia
- Jacqueline Wong*, Malaysia/Brunei
* Denotes those serving on our Board of Directors in 2023
We also take this opportunity to recognise and thank our wonderful team of Annie Waddington-Feather and Jill Seaman for their brilliant work over the past 10 years for managing our communications, social media, and website, and providing vital technological support.
Thank you everyone for your continued support, and we look forward to continuing to work to ensure older people are fully recognised in society, and are supported and enabled to live well in an all-age friendly commonwealth.
