Redefining Ambition: Simon Griffiths Delivers 2026 Newman Lecture
What if ambition were measured not only by what we achieve, but by the positive change we create?
That question sat at the heart of the 2026 Newman Lecture, one of Mannix College’s most significant intellectual traditions.
This year, Mannix welcomed Simon Griffiths, co-founder and CEO of global social enterprise Who Gives A Crap, to address a College community that included residents and staff alongside Old Collegians, donors, members of College governance, University and Church leaders, and friends of the College.
Speaking on “Success, Purpose and Pressure: Redefining Ambition in an Uncertain World,” Simon challenged conventional ideas about achievement and invited the next generation to think more deeply about success, failure, purpose and the contribution they hope to make.
It was a particularly fitting conversation for a university college. Our residents are surrounded by messages about achievement: get the marks, secure the internship, build the CV, land the job. Simon offered a broader proposition. Ambition matters, but so does what we choose to do with it.
From an Idea to Global Impact
Simon’s own career provides a compelling case study.
Who Gives A Crap began with an unconventional crowdfunding campaign and has grown into a globally recognised social enterprise operating across more than 35 countries. Along the way, it has donated more than A$20 million to organisations working to improve access to clean water and sanitation.
But Simon’s message was not a polished story of uninterrupted entrepreneurial success. He spoke candidly about risk, failure, feedback, pressure, relationships and the importance of leaving room for life beyond work.
His message was practical, optimistic and occasionally counterintuitive: careers rarely unfold neatly, failure can be useful, purpose can emerge rather than arrive fully formed, and sometimes knowing when to persist is just as important as knowing when to change course.
Ten Lessons for the Next Generation
Drawing on his experience as an entrepreneur and impact leader, Simon distilled his advice into “10 lessons I wish I’d known when I was sitting where you are today.”
- Dream
- Take educated risks
- Failure is good
- Feedback is a gift
- Take time off
- Never burn your bridges
- Burn your bridges
- Let your passion find you
- When people tell you “you can’t do that”, ask why, and maybe ignore them
- Have fun
Together, the lessons offered something more useful than a formula for success. They encouraged residents to remain ambitious while being curious, resilient and willing to question the assumptions that often shape study, careers and life.
A College Where Ideas Matter
Named in honour of Saint John Henry Newman, the annual Newman Lecture is one of the flagship events of the Mannix calendar and an important expression of the College’s intellectual life.
Each year, Mannix invites a distinguished thinker or leader to engage our community with a significant contemporary question. The purpose is not simply to hear from accomplished people. It is to expose residents to ideas beyond their disciplines, challenge assumptions and create space for thoughtful conversation about the world they will inherit and help shape.
Recent Newman Lectures demonstrate that breadth. Professor John Thwaites AM explored geopolitics, climate action and sustainable development in 2025. Dr Joanne Orlando examined digital wellbeing, artificial intelligence and social media in 2024. In 2023, Professor Kate Fitz-Gibbon brought questions of gender equality, empowerment and structural reform to the centre of the College’s intellectual conversation.
Across different disciplines, the common thread is clear: universities should prepare young people not simply to succeed in the world, but to think seriously about it.
Following the lecture, residents, Old Collegians, donors, governors and friends continued the conversation over Formal Dinner. That combination of intellectual challenge and community is central to the Newman Lecture. Ideas move from the stage to the table, bringing different generations, professions and perspectives into conversation.
For our residents, that matters. Intellectual life does not only happen in lecture theatres and tutorials. It happens when people with different experiences sit together, test ideas and listen to one another.
Simon left the Mannix community with plenty to think about. In a culture that often encourages young people to accumulate achievements, his challenge was more enduring: be ambitious, certainly, but think carefully about what your ambition is for.
