The National Local Government Economic Development Conference is set to launch the nation’s first national professional body for economic development and practitioners in Local Government: Economic Development Australia (EDA). After 12 months of planning, the nation wide support created at the inaugural 2005 ED Awards has been embraced to form an enthusiastic Board with representatives from every State. The Board will hold its first meeting at the two day conference being held Thursday 16 November and Friday 17 November, at the Arts Centre ANZ Pavillion in Melbourne.
The establishment of EDA provides the nation’s economic development practitioners with a recognised peak body to help with professional development and policy creation. EDA will build on work happening nationally including:
- achieving the highest standards of performance by members in pursuit of programmed professional development
- raising awareness of the needs and opportunities for economic development
- communicating government policies to the community
- providing community and practitioner involvement in policy development
- encouraging cooperation between regional and community organisations.
The national conference will provide a unique opportunity for practitioners from across the nation to explore leading examples of how Councils have been able to deliver positive outcomes in their communities through the attraction of investment and the creation of jobs. The conference will draw from a number of inspirational and successful initiatives, which have been adopted in different parts of Australia and it has been specifically tailored to enable delegates to immediately use the information in their daily work.
It will be heavily focused on case studies so as to enable delegates to draw important lessons from leading Councils.
After the huge success of the 2005 ED Awards, EDAV has taken the mantel while EDA was being formed in order to deliver the 2006 ED Awards. The response by the nation’s economic development practitioners to the awards has been enthusiastic again and the judges are currently reviewing the applications.
Guest speaker, Federal Minister for Small Business and Tourism, Fran Bailey, will provide a keynote presentation at the gala awards evening being held on Thursday 16 November.
The awards are again generously sponsored by AusIndustry, Sinclair Knight Merz, Tesltra Countrywide, Sensis, and Powercor Australia, and new sponsors Australian Made, Charter Keck Cramer, VECCI and Essential Economics International.
For more information about the conference or awards please contact conference organisers Hallmark Conferences and Events on (03) 8534 5000 or visit www.halledit.com.au/conferences/LGEcoDev/06/
