Category: reimagine

By Peta Riles (Corporate governance and administration)

The collapse of the Geospatial Council of Australia highlighted a critical lesson for the profession: strong governance and financial oversight are essential, but they are not enough on their own. A sustainable institution must also be built on broad engagement that gives legitimacy and resilience. A future body should be member-driven at its core, while also establishing formal mechanisms that bring in perspectives from industry, corporate partners, and state associations.

At the heart of such an institution are its members. Individual professionals form the core, and their authority should extend to strategic and extraordinary decisions made through annual or special general meetings. This includes board elections, constitutional amendments, budgets, and major policy directions. Structured advisory councils and committees should feed into the board, ensuring that proposals reflect the breadth of the profession before being put to the membership for approval.

Industry, corporate, and state-based associations also play a vital role. Their expertise, sectoral knowledge, and ability to identify risks enrich decision-making. By participating in advisory councils, project committees, and consultation mechanisms, they contribute meaningfully without undermining the legitimacy of a member-led system. The balance lies in ensuring they have influence but not voting rights.

The board itself must embody both independence and expertise. A structure of seven to nine directors, including two to three independent directors with strong backgrounds in finance and governance, would strengthen oversight. The board’s role should be distinct from operational management, focusing on strategy, fiduciary responsibility, and risk. A dedicated treasurer or finance director should monitor budgets, report transparently, and chair the audit and risk committee. Regular financial updates to members would enhance accountability and ensure that risks are identified early, a safeguard made urgent by the lessons of the GCA collapse.

Representation at both the state and professional levels is also essential. State committees would preserve local and regulatory connections, while specialist advisory councils—for surveying, GIS, remote sensing, and other areas—would provide structured guidance without overloading the board. Term limits for directors encourage renewal and prevent entrenchment, while conflict-of-interest registers and annual disclosures guard against misuse of authority. Independent audit and risk committee reports should go directly to the board and be made accessible to members through annual reports.

A clear and transparent constitution underpins the whole system. It should codify membership criteria, board structure, officer roles, election processes, meeting requirements, and dispute resolution procedures. By clearly demarcating member authority from advisory input, the constitution ensures continuity and stability. Transparency is further reinforced by the annual publication of audited financial statements, governance and risk statements, and records of board decisions. Regular member forums would keep dialogue open and maintain alignment with the profession’s needs.

By combining member-led voting, structured stakeholder engagement, independent expertise, and robust financial oversight—underpinned by a clear constitution—this model offers simplicity, resilience, and inclusivity. It balances legitimacy with accountability and ensures that the institution remains responsive to the wider geospatial sector. In doing so, it lays the groundwork for a professional body that can endure and provide lasting value for its members and the broader community.

We have been working to save the surveying and mapping memorabilia held at the Surveyors’ House during the administration of the Geospatial Council of Australia.

Together with colleagues, we reached out to the liquidator to ask that these important items — which reflect the history and achievements of our profession — are not simply discarded. They are part of our shared story and deserve to be preserved for future generations of surveyors and mappers.

This is an ongoing effort, and we welcome ideas or support from anyone who can help ensure these materials are protected and given a proper home.

Here is an email we sent to the liquidator to hope the memorabilia might be preserve by the state bodies and other national institutions.

The legal profession in Australia provides a clear example of how a profession can balance state responsibilities with national coordination.

At the state level, every practising lawyer must hold a practising certificate issued by the local admitting authority. For example, in Victoria this is governed under the Legal Profession Uniform Law (Victoria) and administered through the Law Institute of Victoria. Equivalent provisions exist in every state and territory. These state-based regimes ensure professional competence, discipline, and statutory obligations are tied directly to the jurisdictions where lawyers practice.

At the national level, the profession speaks with one voice through the Law Council of Australia. The Law Council represents Australian lawyers on issues that cross state borders or sit at the federal level. Its remit spans:

• Areas of law shaped by federal legislation, such as family law, corporations law, migration law and constitutional issues.
• Policy debates affecting the profession, including access to justice, regulatory harmonisation, diversity and inclusion, and international engagement.

This dual structure — state statutory licensing and national advocacy — ensures lawyers are regulated where they work, while still having a coordinated voice on matters that affect the profession as a whole.

For surveyors, mappers and geospatial professionals, the lesson is similar. State-level associations will always be critical, because statutory responsibilities such as land titling and professional licensing remain with the states. But a national body is also essential to manage migration assessments, nationally recognised professions such as hydrographic surveying, federal policy, and Australia’s role in international forums and standards.

The legal profession shows it is possible to respect state authority while ensuring a strong, united national voice.

Daniel Paez