The Sunshine Business Council (SCBC) has conducted two of three planned think-tank sessions to debate how we as a region, can raise the quality of development and environmental management if we are to achieve the Sunshine Coast Council’s objective of being Australia’s most sustainable region. The second session was held on Monday May 4 and explored in greater detail some of the ideas, options and questions raised in the first session, which was hosted at the end of March. These included:
- What is meant by the term ‘a sense of place’?
- How do we protect the uniqueness of our communities?
- What does good development look like and what do we expect and want?
- How do we manage urban sprawl and impacts on the environment?
- How should we define growth so that we all understand what is meant, implications and advantages and disadvantages
No doubt some people will believe that these questions have been asked and answered many times. However, while they are still being asked, we need to do a better job of answering them. That is why we have asked academics, interest groups, industry and local government to sit in the room together to discuss and hopefully provide some clarity on these points for the community. We want to draw on the work that has already been done and communicate the outcomes more effectively so that people’s questions are clearly answered and the vision for the Sunshine Coast is put into perspective.
The session was informative and challenging with the Director of the University of the Sunshine Coast’s Sustainability Research Centre, Prof. Tim Smith leading a discussion to demonstrate how the consequences and linkages of decisions made in one area can impact on other parts of the regional environment, society or economy. It was a timely reminder that we live in a democracy where we elect politicians and councilors to represent our views. While we are fortunate in Australia that our political leaders seek consultation on many key issues, even when they are not always compelled to, we do need to make sure this works to the advantage of our regional community as opposed to simply creating greater confusion.
Communities value visionary leaders and demand accountability, transparency and effective communication from all levels of government. If we want diverse― and sometimes opposing ― groups to work together and contribute to the development and sustainability of this region then we certainly need effective communication within the region from political and business leaders.
We are fortunate to have three major developments on the Sunshine Coast at present – Kawana Health Precinct, the new CBD in Maroochydore and the master-planned Sippy Downs Town Centre around the university. In addition we have the proposed airport extension and Stockland’s Caloundra South development. These projects and others are focused on diversifying the economy and will underpin economic growth and job creation for the region for the next decade and importantly, reduce the Sunshine Coast’s stubborn unemployment rate which has consistently remained higher than the state’s average for several years.
We are also fortunate that our two councils are committed to good environmental management, the protection of our flora, fauna, waterways, coast and other such natural assets. Ms Narelle McCarthy has said that the Sunshine Coast Environment Council (SCEC) believes the performance of our councils in overall environmental management is sound and generally well researched and understood, but that it is through the implementation of a number of pivotal strategies and an ongoing commitment to ecological sustainability that we will see the region prosper into the future.
This goes to the balance that these think-tank sessions are exploring. Whilst a strong and diverse economy and a healthy environment underpin the lifestyle and amenity which characterise the Sunshine Coast, we need to find a way to ensure both are successfully nurtured and protected. It is no longer appropriate to simply jump on the anti-development/anti-growth bandwagon nor to deride the efforts of those who work to protect our ‘softer’ environmental and cultural assets. Our thinking needs to be more sophisticated than that or we will fall well short of becoming Australia’s most sustainable region by 2031 and we will continue to under-perform other regions in our capacity to employ our people, irrespective of their age.
Regardless of what side of the debate we sit, we are now in the same room thinking, talking and debating and determined not to waste our time and efforts. Time will tell.