This blog has been created to keep the very positive momentum created at the Sustaining Rural Communities Conference held at the Crossing Theater in Narrabri in April 2010
Thanks
to Roxanne Smith for details of this interesting business development initiative
from NSW. Certainly a comprehensive support initiative. Click here for flyer.
Many
thanks to Alan Greig of the Mercury Centre for this wonderful article on the
role of community cooperatives in Australia. Besides being a great overview, it
gives details of three communities who have used the model to return a hardware
service to the town (Casterton, Victoria) , establish Australia’s first
community owned renewable energy farm (Hepburn, Victoria) and create a community
health service (West Belconnen, ACT). This article is from the Bank of IDEAS Newsletter
The City of Greater Shepparton (Victoria) are organising an amazing community
development event in September entitled “Inspiring communities- Building the
Community from the Inside Out”. It is guaranteed to be quite an
unconventional event.
Babinda
is one of the great small towns of Australia. It has a long tradition of local
residents being pro active in designing and implementing initiatives to ensure
their positive future. The Babinda Taskforce and local Community Bank are just
two examples. Battered by Cyclone Larry in 2006 and Cyclone Yasi in 2011, and
the news that their historic Sugar Mill will close with the loss off 60 jobs.
The town has responded with its characteristic gutsy
nature.