Recent newspaper reports of terrible road accidents involving young people in country Victoria have again highlighted the human impact of road trauma. Many doctors, nurses and ambulance officers experience that trauma at close quarters.

The PwC Melbourne Institute Asialink Index has for four years has been in the tricky business of providing objective measurements of changes in one of the nation’s ethereal yet critically important assets: the vast web of personal, political, economic and cultural ties which join Australia and our neighbours.

Governments are in the business of changing and shaping behaviour. Whether it is preventing crime, reducing obesity, tackling the road toll or encouraging water conservation, governments have an interest in encouraging “good behaviour” rather than “bad behaviour”.

The focus on innovation by every company across the world, big or small, has radically changed the way we do things from workplaces to a company’s culture, hierarchy and processes. Employees are also increasingly encouraged to work and leverage technology inside and outside of the office, drawing knowledge and expertise from diverse people and environments. There is a growing recognition that in order for true innovation to occur, collaboration is essential.

As the carbon price legislation winds its way through Federal Parliament, we are assailed nightly by ads on the telly featuring “dinky di” Australians complaining about the carbon price. While the ads feature what appear to be ordinary Australians, the message is being paid for by a lobby group of big businesses.