Iconic Australian entrepreneur and adventurer Dick Smith will be the keynote speaker at a one off seminar taking place in Queenstown on Friday September 14.

The seminar, ‘An Afternoon with Dick Smith’ is intended to provide a forum for the discussion of some of the challenges facing business and society over the coming years and will give audiences the chance to gain greater insight into the mind of a man renowned as one of Australasia’s most progressive thinkers.

Event organiser Andrew Martin of Oneness Publishing said he was expecting there to be a lot of interest due to Smith’s high profile as a businessman and his history of daring exploits with tickets expected to sell quickly.

“This is a rare opportunity to hear one of this era’s business leaders and visionaries talk about the world as it is, where it should be going and how we should go about taking it there,” Mr Martin said. ” Dick wants to talk about the real issues our businesses and societies face and what he has to say is thought provoking and possibly even controversial for some.”

The founder of Dick Smith Electronics, Australian Geographic Magazine and Dick Smith Foods,Smith is well known for his outspoken views on ‘extreme capitalism’, limits to growth and foreign ownership of agricultural resources. He is a staunch advocate for supporting local industries as opposed to selling ‘off the farm’ and importing cheap foreign goods that destroy local industry and economies.

As well as being a successful businessman and iconic character Dick Smith is an avid adventurer achieving many aviation firsts such as flying solo in a helicopter around the world as well as the first to successfully complete an east-west crossing of the Tasman Sea by balloon, from New Zealand to Australia against prevailing winds. Other notable awards include: Australian of the year, Adventurer of the year, and he was awarded the Lindbergh Award for his life time achievement of a balance between technical advancement and environmental preservation.

Known for being a bit of a practical joker, (stunts have included an ‘attempt’ to tow an iceberg from Antarctica to Australia to obtain more fresh water) he has a serious side and is committed to raising awareness and offering advice to a growing list of socially and environmentally aware organisations and groups. More recently he was recognised by Stanford University in the US for his work in educating the public and students about issues such as overpopulation,unconstrained consumption and unsustainable growth.

‘An Afternoon with Dick Smith’ will be hosted by leading business and environmental commentator Rod Oram and will also feature Sam Johnson who coordinated the Student Volunteer Army following the Christchurch Earthquake.

For more information visit: www.tomorrows-business.org