The last three months has been a busy and productive period for RDA Logan and Redlands. We have focussed on engaging key stakeholders including Logan City and Redland City Councils, local businesses and community groups.
RDA Logan and Redlands welcomes the appointment of Senator the Hon Bridget McKenzie as Minister for Regional Services, Sport, Local Government and Decentralisation. While in Canberra recently I took the opportunity of meeting the Minister and am appreciative of her time (photo of me with the Minister).
The Minister has significant responsibilities across rural health, rural communications, decentralisation and regional development. To ensure RDAs receive close attention and support, Minister McKenzie has advised that the Hon Andrew Broad MP, Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister, will have responsibility for the administration of the RDA Program. RDA Logan and Redlands welcomes the appointment of the Hon Andrew Broad MP which will see Minister Broad take the day to day lead on RDA issues. I look forward to catching up with Minister Broad soon.
I conveyed RDA Logan and Redlands commitment to working alongside the Ministers and the Department to grow and invigorate our region, and of course, an invitation to visit our vibrant and thriving region is extended to the Ministers.
The Hon. Gary Hardgrave
Chair
Regional Development Australia Logan & Redlands
The appointment of our Chair, The Hon Gary Hardgrave, as a member of the Inland Rail: Kagaru to Acacia Ridge and Bromelton Community Consultative Committee provides the region with high calibre representation on this critical initiative.
The Committee allows Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) Inland Rail Project Team to consult with the community on aspects of the studies required as part of the project approvals process, as well as provision to ARTC Inland Rail of insights into community issues, concerns and opportunities. Details of the Committee are available here.
We will be providing updates at regular intervals and encourage you to contact us with any questions/commentary in relation to this project to
Round 3 of the Australian Government's Building Better Regions Fund is now open with Infrastructure Projects and Community Investment streams available – refer to the BBRF website for full details.
Grants are available for projects which will create jobs, drive economic growth and build stronger regional communities into the future. For Round 3, $200 million is available, with up to $45 million of this funding earmarked to support tourism-related infrastructure projects.
We have been busy connecting with our stakeholders. Here are some of the people we have met and events we attended over the past few months:
Meadowbrook Summit
Leading experts in health, tertiary education, economic development and investment spoke at the Meadowbrook Summit from 20 to 21 September 2018.
Building on the planning done to date, the Summit sought to create momentum around the vision for Meadowbrook, with a focus on stimulating healthcare investment and advancing tertiary education.
The first session addressed creating a health and wellbeing precinct. The keynote presentation was provided by Tim O'Neill, Executive Director - SEQ Development, Economic Development Queensland, after which precinct initiatives and were presented by Linda O'Brien, Pro Vice Chancellor, Head of Logan Campus, Griffith University; Dr Jacinta Powell, Executive Director, Logan – Bayside Health Network, Metro South Health; Dr Paul Wilson, General Manager – Brisbane, TAFE Queensland.
The second session addressed investment in a health and wellbeing precinct. The keynote presentations were provided by Bernard Salt, Managing Director, The Demographics Group; Kerrianne Meulman, Managing Director, Urban Economics; and Sheena Reilly, Pro Vice Chancellor (Health), Griffith University.
Redland Showcase Innovation and Aged Care Summit
The Redland Showcase Innovation and Aged Care Summit demonstrated how innovation and technology is changing the face of services and how co-design with older people is reforming the options available.
The program included keynote presentations as follows:
- Digital Disruption in the Aged Care Sector; Professor Andrew Beer, University of South Australia
- Delivering Better Care Outcomes - The Role of Digital Health in the Aged Care Sector; Angela Ryan, Australian Digital Health Agency
- Opportunities from the Modern Ageing Movement; Julianne Parkinson, CEO Global Centre for Modern Ageing
- Opportunities for Robots in Aged Care; Dr Sue Keay, CEO Australian Centre for Robotic Vision.
The following workshops were conducted:
- Innovative Aged Cared in Island Community National Summit
- Co-designing & co-creation of new aged care service models and infrastructure.
The Summit concluded with a panel discussing “Consumer Directed Care – opportunity for innovation or recipe for disaster?”
Redlands City Council Education and Training Roundtable
The Roundtable was to address the following issues in parallel with the launch of the Redland City Council endorsed Education and Training Industry Sector Plan 2018 to 2023:
- Fostering collaboration and strategic partnerships
- Growing higher education and alternative learning pathways and supporting emerging industries
- Growing international education.
Workshop series for food and agribusiness sector: Boosting regional competitiveness and innovation
We partnered with RDA Gold Coast, RDA Ipswich & West Moreton and FIAL (Food Innovation Australia Limited) to organise a series of workshops designed to boost the competitiveness and innovation of businesses in the food and agribusiness sector. There will be seven workshops in total held over the next eight months.See full details here.
RDA National Forum Canberra: Collaborating and networking to grow regional economies
Our Chair The Hon. Gary Hardgrave, Deputy Chair Kim Kerwin and Director Regional Development attended the RDA National Forum in Canberra from 15 to 17 August 2018. The Forum provided the opportunity to network with peers, to learn what has worked in other regions and develop partnerships with key stakeholders such as the National Disability Insurance Agency.
The National Forum was opened by the Hon Dr John McVeigh MP, the then Minister for Regional Development, Territories and Local Government, who spoke about the Federal Government’s commitment to strong local economies, high quality services, particularly in health and education and active and engaged communities.
The opportunity was also taken to meet with a number of senior Government Ministers and Departmental officials.
Island Hopping and Mainland Events
We recently had the pleasure of being invited to attend both North Stradbroke Island and Macleay Island.
On North Stradbroke Island (NSI) we met with QYAC (Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation). It was extremely interesting to discuss various topics involving the island culture, economy and future vision.
We also met with Queensland Government officials with whom discussions were held on strategies being worked on for the viable economic transition from sand mining to other enterprises.
We had the opportunity to visit parts of the island while we were there. The scenery is breathtaking and there are many options available for holidaying on the island including glamping.
Whilst on Macleay Island we met with some of the members of the Macleay Island Progress Association (see photo far right). We discussed the various concerns surrounding economic development on the island and had the chance to view the community premises in which their activities are conducted.
There were some common themes with both visits, the most prevalent was the instability and lack (in some cases) of reliable internet connection. This appeared to be a real barrier to attracting new businesses to the islands.
yourtown
yourtown works with Logan and Redlands secondary schools and Group Training Organisations to support eligible Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students into one or two year School Based Traineeships (download information flyer). The student is placed in paid employment one day a week (or part-time as negotiated) and is required to complete units of accredited study so that at the end of the traineeship, they have real world work experience under their belts, plus certificate qualifications and school completion.
For further information please contact Alizon Wilson, Indigenous Mentor – SBT Recruitment and Placement on 3387 8800 or
INNOV8 Logan launch
We attended the launch of Logan City’s official virtual innovation hub, INNOV8 Logan. The event showcased some of the most inspiring innovators and provided a forum for entrepreneurs and startups from Logan and surrounds to share ideas and tap into a wealth of business knowledge and connect with mentors and like-minded people.
The previous Queensland Chief Entrepreneur, Steve Baxter shared tips on how to succeed as he officially launched this community driven initiative. INNOV8 spokesperson Tony Sharp said that INNOV8 Logan was “just the start in Logan”.
“This will help local start-ups to connect with the support they need to make their big idea a reality and give the city’s mentors an opportunity to give back.”
INNOV8 Logan is launching a fortnightly newsletter jam packed with events, meet the local innovator stories and hits and tips. Subscribe here.
As Christmas closes in, we are continuing our commitment to our collaboration with other neighbouring members of the Regional Development Australia Network and look forward to working alongside more of our local businesses, community organisations and educational establishments.
We have enjoyed a long and productive relationship with Mabel Park High School and will be meeting with them again shortly. This school is a leader in health education (including being a partner in the development of the Logan Health Precinct), drone and aviation training.
We are also pleased to announce our sponsorship of the Griffith University GLO @ Logan Entrepreneurial challenge. This event is designed to provide regional high school students the opportunity to innovate over three days employing best practises in entrepreneurial and STEAM education. The event attracts up to 80 high school students across a broad spectrum of schools from the Logan and Redlands region.
Check out our newly redesigned website for information and links to upcoming events for Logan and Redlands small businesses:
Logan Region Workshops from LOED and Innov8
RDA / FIAL Food & Agribusiness Workshop Series:
- e-Commerce Readiness (5 Feb 2019, Gatton)
- Meet the e-Commerce Platform (5 March 2019, Brookwater)
- Retail Readiness & Private Labelling (9 April 2019, Logan & Redlands)
- Meet the Retailer & Network with Team (14 May 2019, Logan & Redlands)
- Market Diversification & Intelligence (19 June 2019, Gold Coast)
- Export Essentials Forum (July 2019, Gold Coast)
ASBAS Digital Solutions workshops (Logan and Redlands region)