“Guy has done more than cast a stone into the waters of international development work: he has made a big splash, and the waves will continue to ripple far into the future, inspiring others to keep striving to make this world a better place.”
Our Founder’s Story
Guy Winship was no ordinary guy. Born and raised in South Africa, he grew up during apartheid and was always passionate about social justice. He refused to accept that colour could determine your ability to succeed in life and he vowed to see what he could do personally to break down the systematic barriers in place at the time.
His social-purpose work began during university when he volunteered as a teacher in black high schools in low socio-economic areas in Durban and he campaigned for an end to apartheid. Upon graduation Guy gravitated to organisations focused on social equity, and went on to run a not-for-profit in Uganda pioneering microfinance to women and marginalised individuals, reaching more than 30,000 Ugandans during his time there.
This is where he came to understand how financial and personal empowerment can be a vehicle for intergenerational change, and create a path out of poverty.
In 2001 Guy relocated with his family to Australia and soon after, in September 2003, he established World Education Australia which later became Good Return. His time in Uganda sparked a belief in the potential for financial and economic empowerment of low income people in his new neighbourhood of Asia and the Pacific.
Tragically in 2014 Guy was diagnosed with ocular melanoma which eventually metastasised and took his life. He worked tirelessly as CEO during his illness, eventually stepping down in 2016. In 2020 Guy was posthumously awarded an Order of Australia Medal for service to the community through social welfare.
It is Guy’s vision that still inspires the Good Return team of employees and volunteers today.
As Gordon Cairns, former Good Return Board Member, so eloquently stated at Guy’s retirement function, “Guy is a special man. His legacy is remarkable, and we owe it to him to build on it…he has inspired those around him and we are better for knowing him.”
Watch this inspiring video to hear Guy explain the importance of social justice programs in enabling financial independence and resilience.
Order Guy’s biography “A Good Life”
https://www.amazon.com.au/Good-Life-Story-Winship-Return/dp/1760415839
The Guy Winship Award
In recognition of the vision, compassion, commitment and inspirational leadership that Guy Winship has shown as the founder and leader of Good Return from 2003 to 2016, the Guy Winship Award was established in 2017 as a legacy and continuation of his untiring efforts towards achieving a world without poverty.
Each year, one person is selected from Good Return’s partner organisations, to develop their professional skills through participation in quality training and capacity building programs. Different themes are selected for each year’s award. For example, the first award in 2018 was focused on promoting women’s leadership so women employees of financial service providers participating in the CAFE Initiative in Asia Pacific were invited to apply.
Our most recent winner was Laxmi Ghimire, an employee at World Education Nepal, a local partner of Good Return. Laximi used the award to conduct a study visit to SEWA Bank in India to improve his knowledge and skills on client protection initiatives in microfinance. He also aimed to gain a better understanding of how financial education has evolved in India, what approaches SEWA is using locally and what challenges they face. Laxmi is now applying the learnings in his home country, Nepal.