Why did the apple fall from the tree?

Imagine you are sitting under an apple tree, and you see an apple fall, do you ever wonder why? Issac Newtown did. In 1687, he dared to ask the question WHY the apple fell rather than what happened or how it fell. Because of Newton’s question, we have an understanding of gravitational forces.

While it is important to understand WHAT a project is and HOW it will be achieved, the most important thing along the road for project success is understanding the WHY: the reason why you are doing the project in the first place. Does it align with your values? Are you passionate about the cause? Do you have a deep belief in making a difference? The why gives us the motivation to persist: the reason or reasons for the striving for outcomes.

Now, take a four-person team. Mix in a little leadership, a lot of passion, a splash of enthusiasm and a strong desire to make other people’s lives better and you have the beginnings of four amazing project pitches. Over the day we witnessed a smorgasbord of Project Pitches presented to the group, starting with a well organised and thought-out Yellow Team, who demonstrated their passion about providing access to our beaches for all abilities, complete with a PowerPoint presentation and thoroughly researched data. Next came Green and Red Teams’ brainstorm of ideas around their themes of Youth Mental Health and Intergenerational Connections. Finally, along came Blue team’s wonderings and ideas around how to best assist Food Share in becoming a Regional Food Hub. So from here with a balanced blend of –

• What the project is,
• How the project will be completed, and
• the all important WHY …the project was chosen.

The newest LGSC community projects have taken their first enthusiastic steps into the South West Arena.

Thank you to our guest speakers, Karen Foster, O2 Media and LGSC Chair, Dr Bernadette Northeast and Annabel Cussen, EO South West Community & Jones Foundations

Kylie Moroney, LGSC 2021 Participant

Everyone needs Community and Community needs “everyone”

A community should be a place that we can be ourselves, for this to truly happen communities needs to be inclusive, diverse, and equal.

An inclusive community understands and respects differences, such a but no limited to:

• age
• caring responsibilities
• cultural background
• disability
• educational level
• ethnicity
• gender expression
• Intersex status
• religious beliefs
• sexual orientation

Let’s empower and educate everyone to understand what inclusion is, by creating opportunities for communities to engage with advocates, like SAFE in the South West a program that aims to raise awareness of diversity, and challenging attitudes of homophobia, biphobia and transphobia in schools, community services, organisations, and the wider community.

We need to be promoting capacity not only in the community but also in our workplaces. Examples of inclusion in the workplace would be, for people with all abilities to be able to navigate around a business as an employee/customer or visitor easily. Information should be accessible in a way that is understandable by all.

Kylie Thulborn summed up inclusion in the community beautifully with two words “Community for Community”.  Kylie passionately spoke art, creativity and music being a universal language, and how important this is for building inclusion. A great example of this is the Find your Voice All Abilities Choir, that have performed at our very own Port Fairy Folk festival, and at Australia’s Got Talent. This is inclusion through the arts at its absolute best.

The Great South Coast has so many amazing arts, culture and wonderful stories that can all be found on the Story Towns podcast, take the tour like the 2021 Leadership Team did.

Thank you to our guest facilitator Alma Besserdin for her insights into workplace diversity, inclusion, and unconscious bias. Thanks also the Kylie Thulborn, Co-Founder Find your Voice Choir, Sparklez Hernan, Brophy Family and Youth Services, Ethan Bloom and Gareth Colliton Teacher/ Executive Producer, One Day Studios (LGSC Alumni).

Tania Penny, 2021 Program Participant

Process Makes Perfect

Process! Process! Process! The value of process in any project, whether large or small, cannot be overstated. Our Program Day presenter, Kevin Bennett was clear to ‘always follow and trust the process’. Processes make it very clear to all project team members what is expected of them and if followed correctly, can give the best chance to implement a successful project. This knowledge will be beneficial to all 2021 LGSC participants as we develop and manage our community projects.

The day was set up in a manner which provided us with an interactive learning experience working on a fictitious project in our project team.  The activity was set up in a way that we worked through this project in a methodically. This illustrated to us how important following the process is for project management. The interactive nature of the day honed the themes around project management we were being taught.

Understanding the five stages for a project is important to help us stick to the process. These stages are:

1. Initiating
2. Planning
3. Executing
4. Monitoring / Controlling
5. Closing

Working within our project teams, we were able to get a sense of what it will be like to work together on our own community projects. For most of us, our strengths and weaknesses were highlighted during the task we worked on. A mix of different strengths is a good thing for any project management team and if we follow the processes put in place, we should be able to execute our community projects to the best of our ability.

Process is important. And the process makes sense. If as teams we can follow the process properly, we will help ourselves to succeed. Our goal is to implement a project which helps the local community. For some of us, we have never done anything like this before. Following the processes will help us enormously and keep us on track so that we can do the best possible project.

Jamie Pepper, LGSC 2021 Participant

Thanks to Kevin Bennett, KB Business Solutions [email protected]

Menu of the day Strategic Thinking and Ethical Leadership

A feast of the delicacies of Strategy and Ethical Leadership encompassing facts, wisdom, and wit.

Three keynote speakers addressed, highlighted, and delivered on the need for and impact of validated planned strategy and ethical leadership to positively contribute to the overall health and welfare of the communities we work and live within, the region, the state, and the country.

Dr Jonathon Spear, Deputy CEO and COO, Infrastructure Victoria was the highlight of my day via his delivery of the background, achievements of the organisation, and the rationale of the powerful forward-looking recently released draft report’s dynamic vision and focus over the next 30 years.

Highlights

• 90% of the recommendations from Infrastructure Victoria’s first report released in 2016 have been delivered on or are on their way to completion.
• There are enormous potential economic and social benefits from the recently released draft 30-year Infrastructure Strategy.
• Infrastructure Victoria is talking about benefits to Regional Victoria.
• Communities within the region must align with the regional strategic plans to fully drive the maximum value for the region.

My takeaway quote “take it and run with it” in relation to the information and recommendations included in the report striking the sweet spot with me via the draft report’s recognition of the need for power transmission infrastructure upgrades.  The much discussed and now acknowledged requirement to upgrade transmission lines leading to positive economic and social impacts i.e.

• instilling a feeling of safety within communities through knowledge that the replacement of outdated aged unsafe and decaying infrastructure is on its way,
• the more efficient transmission of renewable power to all,
• the enticement and encouragement of all types of manufacturing to move to/into the regional rural areas and
• the ability to provide the economic efficiencies which will then drive regional economic, social health and welfare benefits in all forms.

Thank you to Lisa Dwyer for her witty delivery, talk and walk through in her capacity as Great South Coast Regional Partnership Chair.

To Dr Greg Wood and Simon Illingworth your invaluable insights and challenges into and within ethical leadership, were powerful signposts to help navigate the often-blurred principles of ethics and the importance of ethical leadership.

To all the guest speakers of our third day feast of knowledge, strategy and ethics – thank you, we enjoyed the menu.

Oonagh Kilpatrick, 2021 Program Participant