The Plan
- Executive Summary
- The G21 Geelong Region Plan

Executive Summary

Overview

The G21 Geelong Region Plan is a sustainability plan for the region that looks toward 2050. It identifies and addresses the challenges the region will face in the areas of environment, settlement, land use, community strength and economy as well as the need for change in the way we make things happen.

Who's Involved

The plan was developed during 2006/07 and represents the work and opinions of hundreds of people and organisations including G21 Councils, the State Government, peak bodies and environmental, community and business organisations of the region.

Why Is It Different?

This plan is a collaborative “grass roots” approach to long term regional challenges. It is a plan for the future of our region, developed by the people of our region. To be successful, it will need to be endorsed, supported and implemented by all levels of government and members of the alliance.

The research supporting this strategy is robust and includes information from regional, Victorian and national organisations, as well as specifically commissioned research, analysis and extensive consultation.

This plan is unique in Australia and will create new opportunities for delivering priority projects for the sustainable future of our region.

A NEW WAY OF WORKING TOGETHER
The plan addresses a timeframe outside normal Council and parliamentary terms. New whole-of-government and whole-of-region implementation protocols and development pathways are therefore necessary. New methods of resourcing, coordination and operational innovation are an integral part of the plan.

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PARALLEL DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES
The G21 Geelong Region Plan is made up of two parts:
1) The Strategy
2) The Projects
Whole-of-government endorsement of the strategy will follow research, development, review and public comment periods.
Projects of the plan are nominated, prioritised, developed, endorsed and implemented on an ongoing, case by case basis.

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Background

G21 Is An Alliance

G21 is the alliance of a variety of independent organisations with a shared vision for the Geelong region.

Members of the alliance include the municipalities of Colac Otway, Golden Plains, Greater Geelong, Queenscliffe and Surf Coast, the Victorian Government and over 100 community and business organisations committed to securing a bright and sustainable future for the region.

The alliance is not an authority, it is a collaborative voice for the region that provides:

• A platform for the region to speak with one voice to all levels of government.

• A forum to discuss ‘big picture’ regional issues across interest groups and municipalities.

• Efficiency through facilitating multi-agency collaboration and sharing of information and resources.

• More resources from all levels of government and the private sector through the co-ordination and prioritisation of regional projects, and

• Alignment of the objectives of major regional organisations with those for the sustainability of the region.

From Pillars To Plan

G21 is an evolving alliance.

In 2002 leaders of key regional organisations volunteered to lead “Pillar Groups” that would identify and deliver projects for the region. Twenty-four projects were identified as part of the G21 Geelong Region Strategy (2003), Twenty-one of these projects have since been delivered or significantly advanced.

As new projects were identified, the instance of issues requiring the collaboration of more than one pillar began to increase.

The G21 Geelong Region Plan is a sustainable growth strategy and a “foundation project” of the first plan. It delivers a strategic framework upon which the pillars and other stakeholders can prioritise and measure the success of their projects in moving towards the agreed vision for the Geelong region.

Developing The Plan

The development of this plan has featured an extraordinary level of consultation.

After bringing together the research, evidence, strategic plans and other information submitted by a variety of organisations, two research reports were developed detailing the challenges facing the region (see “Evidence and Reference Documents”).

More than 35 consultation forums attended by almost 1000 people were then held to seek advice and opinions from various regional interest groups. Following the consultation forums, the first draft of the plan was released for “stakeholder review” to representatives of selected key regional organisations (listed on page 86 of this strategy).

Feedback from the stakeholder review resulted in significant changes to the structure and content of the plan. Feedback from the “public comment” period included opinion and expertise from key employers and industries and community organisations of the region as well as from the public.

Further significant changes and addtions were made as a result of this process.

This method of development will deliver an unprecedented level of regional collaboration and support for the plan’s strategy and projects.

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Plan Structure

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Planning To Three Horizons

Fifty years ago the Internet and the telecommunications revolution were beyond imagination.

Balancing Current Reality And Future Vision

We are living in a region (and world) that we know will be transformed in unanticipated ways within the timeframe of this plan.

For the most part, this plan addresses issues that are now evident and that can reasonably be predicted to have an impact on our region over the next forty-five years. The plan responds to these issues with directions, policies and objectives that can practically be adopted by all stakeholders in the current political, business and social environment.

However, the plan also aims to balance the practical application of initiatives and actions that can be implemented now, with consideration of the more speculative possibilities that may affect the long term future of our region.

Third horizon objectives are somewhat aspirational at this stage. They represent long-term issues that may have a significant impact on the future of our region if we do not consider them in our current planning.

HORIZON 1 – Up to 5 years
The first horizon typically involves near term issues and the external forces shaping the community – like the economic composition of the region – are more or less fixed. The challenge is to be as efficient as possible within these constraints, to keep costs down, make existing infrastructure systems work as well as they can and maintain the health of existing core priorities.

HORIZON 2 – 5 to 20 years
In planning for the more distant ‘second horizon’, there is a greater opportunity to influence current trends so as to reshape the economy, settlement patterns and community structures at the margin. But the overall balance of priorities across the region will still be strongly influenced by current patterns, simply because of the influence of decades of historical investment. The planning challenge here is to improve productivity from existing infrastructure and to ‘seed’ new forms of business. It is also important to avoid cutting off infrastructure options that will support more dramatic change in the region into the future.

HORIZON 3 – beyond 20 years
The third horizon is sufficiently distant that the region need not think of itself as being limited by current economic and population structures when visioning its preferred future. Nevertheless, this preferred future will be influenced by the more fundamental aspects of the region such as environmental quality and landscapes, skills, culture and heritage.

The Outcomes

A Shared Vision

This plan is a framework for achieving the vision, through sustainable growth, looking towards 2050.

The shared vision of the G21 Geelong Region Alliance is:

“The Geelong region is Australia’s most desirable destination for living, visiting, working and investing; it is renowned for its vibrant, cohesive community, exceptional physical environment and vigorous economy.”

The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible.
Arthur C. Clarke

An Agreed Strategy

The strategy presents regional objectives that respond to the challenges and opportunities the region will face over the next 45 years.

In order to balance current reality and future vision, the strategy features short, medium and long-term objectives to address each policy.

The strategy has been endorsed by all levels of government and members of the alliance. In endorsing the strategy, the alliance and government bodies acknowledge that achieving these objectives is integral to the sustainable development of the G21 region. The strategy will provide the basis for the terms of reference for the development and implementation of regional projects.

Priritised Projects

The projects of the plan are presented on a searchable database available on this site and will be nominated, prioritised, developed, endorsed and implemented on a case by case basis over coming months and years.

Projects must support the short, medium or long-term objectives in the strategy and are owned and delivered by a variety of regional organisations.

A project can originate from any regional stakeholder and must:

• Deliver regional benefits.

• Require multi-agency collaboration, and

• Address objectives of the G21 Geelong Region Plan.

Accepted regional projects are then prioritised against criteria including:

• Social, environmental and economic benefits.

• Strategic alignment with objectives of the G21 Geelong Region Plan.

• Leadership and human resources, and

• Likelihood of funding.

The role of G21 in project delivery varies from case to case and often includes:

• Letters of support.

• Establishment of project teams, leadership and champions.

• Provision of supporting research evidence.

• Assistance in building business cases.

• assistance with funding applications.

• Marketing and media support.

• Regional communications and promotion.

• Project management, measurement and reporting, and

• Guidance and advice.

Approval and implementation processes for individual projects are discussed in greater detail on page 90 of the strategy.

More than 100 new and existing projects aligning with the objectives of the strategy have already been identified and are presented on a web-based project information database for futher discussion and development.

Next Steps

New Pathways

New collaboration and implementation pathways will be established and used by the alliance to secure support and resources for projects. This includes new processes for State and Federal Government engagement and better co-ordination of regional stakeholders for greater efficiencies in advocacy, lobbying and network communications.

Agreed priorities and co-ordinated implementation pathways will present stronger cases for funding support, creating greater likelihood of implementation and success.

The significant contributions from the networks and alliances engaged in the development and delivery of this plan are based on good will and a desire to see the region succeed. The successful delivery of the projects will require a similar level of collaboration and commitment.

Roles And Responsibilities

Through further collaboration, a governance model will be defined for the establishment of project implementation policies and procedures. The model will include:

• A clear set of roles and responsibilities of government departments, local councils, project leaders, key regional organisations and G21 staff.

• Principles guiding the initiation of all projects claiming to address the plan.

• Guidelines for proposing and evaluating projects.

• Guidelines for delivering measurable results.

• Reporting requirements.

• Means and measures for managing progress against the the objectives of the plan.
• Risk management.

• Clear processes for funding consideration, and

• Communication resources and strategies.

Monitoring Results

Indicators to monitor our progress in achieving the regional objectives have been identified, established and targeted for further development.

Current indicators results for all policies of the plan can be found listed against each policy in the strategy.

Indicator review intervals will be determined and incorporated into the plan’s project governance procedures.

Individual project measures will be determined on a case by case basis.

OUR IMPERATIVES
The following imperatives align with the five directions of this strategy and are integral to our ability to respond to the challenges and opportunities the region faces.

1: Make environmental gains
We must bring together government, statutory authorities, community and business people in a deliberate and organised way to agree on and resolve the region’s biggest environmental challenges including climate change, water supply and the health of our ecosystems.

2: Use our land wisely
We must set aside, protect and use land to provide current and future choices for residential, industrial, commercial, rural and agricultural needs, while minimising impact on the natural environment. Key economic and service centres of the region must be vibrant and attractive, supporting a mix of residents, businesses and community activity.

3: Increase access for social equity, creativity and learning
We must engage, connect and unite the people of the region to build a framework for equitable access to the internationally recognised basic prerequisites of health. We must further develop the region’s access to and reputation for arts, culture, learning, recreation and diversity to create an economically productive, socially viable and ecologically sustainable future.

4: Generate new business, raise skill and education levels and create more jobs
We must bring together public and private sector organisations to ensure ongoing links between the demands of the economy and the capacity of the workforce. This includes support for technology transfer and industry transition with internationally recognised telecommunications and techology standards.

5: Maximise opportunities
We must make our mark as a well informed, creative and innovative place that encourages fresh thinking and bright new ideas including initiatives to achieve competitive advantage in attracting outside investment, recruiting and retaining talent, increasing tourism and increasing political influence.