Candid Conversations with Clare Beaton-Wells

Foundations for Tomorrow.org's Clare Beaton-Wells led Melbourne Forum members and guests through a very stimulating session on the great pro-active work FFT has undertaken to prod, cajole and equip Australia’s political leaders to think beyond electoral cycles. FFT punches well above its weight as an organisation with an ambitious agenda and big dreams peopled by those largely in their 20s with an enviable level of wisdom, tenacity and passion. FFT is a youth-driven, non-partisan non-profit organisation focused on long-term policymaking intergenerational fairness and governance reform.

Clare was joined by her colleagues 𝗟𝘂𝗰𝘆 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝗴, 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀 𝗥𝗶𝗲𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗮𝘄 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝗙𝗧’𝘀 𝗖𝗼-𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿, 𝗧𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗼𝗿 𝗗𝗲𝗲 𝗛𝗮𝘄𝗸𝗶𝗻𝘀. They shared in answering the many questions and observations of our members and guests. The group, and particularly Clare, were heavily involved in the development of the 𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮’𝘀 𝗪𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 which was introduced into the Australian Parliament in March 2025. This groundbreaking legislation seeks to ensure that each and every government decision consider their long-term impact on future generations.

When asked what we, as engaged and curious citizens should focus on, the FFT team encouraged us to each work on positive intergenerational interactions in our own families and networks, on longer term thinking that considers the impact on future generations, and to ensure that we always brought others along with us. We were also all invited to be involved in FFT’s National Conversation Development Lab.

Melbourne Forum members and guests were greatly impressed with the work of FFT and suggest that we keep in mind the names of our five FFT guests – as we expect to hear a lot from them. And to remember that we heard them at Melbourne Forum first!

Our thanks again to Clare Beaton-Wells and colleagues for sharing their insights, and to Dr Marianne Broadbent for hosting this terrific event.