Keynote Speaker Geoff Lake has been a Councillor in the City of Monash since 2000. Since that time he has worked hard to improve services and facilities in Glen Waverley and the wider City of Monash while keeping council rates as low as possible.

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During his time on Council, Geoff has played a prominent role at the local, state and national levels. He is currently the President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) based in Canberra which represents the 562 local councils across Australia.

As ALGA President he is a member of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) alongside the Prime Minister and State and Territory leaders.

Geoff works as a lawyer at a national commercial law firm and is a board member of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade (MFB) where he also chairs its governance and risk committee. He is a former president of the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV).

At the age of 22, Geoff became the youngest ever Mayor in Victoria when he was elected Monash Mayor in 2002.

As Mayor, Geoff exposed Councillors at the South East Regional Waste Management Group who were travelling for no purpose and at ratepayer expense to extravagant places all over the world.

Despite criticism and push back from the establishment, he took on these vested interests and put a stop to these junkets and the wastage of public money.

He also abolished the mayoral robes and use of the 'Your Worship' title, got rid of the personalised number plates for the Mayoral vehicle and slashed the Council's spending on hospitality and functions.

During his time on the Council, Geoff has pushed hard to limit annual rate increases. Monash now has the lowest council rates in the greater Melbourne metropolitan area.

While promoting fiscal restraint, Geoff has also been a key supporter of major projects in the local area such as the Monash Aquatic and Recreation Centre (MARC), the Wheelers Hill Library, the Monash Gallery of Art, the Wellington Community Centre and the Clayton Community Centre.

Geoff believes in lean, effective and responsible government and has driven greater efficiencies through the Council budget.

He has promoted initiatives to strengthen services for disadvantaged people in Monash and has played a leading role in the exciting transformation and reinvigoration of the Glen Waverley Activity Centre into the bustling restaurant, hotel, office, retail and entertainment hub it is today.