A Joint Initiative Between     Heart of Wisconsin     Business & Economic Alliance and     Community Foundation of     South Wood County

About Breaking News Program Dates Feedback Donate Contact Industry Cluster Message Board		Enterprising Rural Communities Study Tour 2004 – Australia Thursday, November 11, 2004 Last night we stayed on the campus of Latrobe University, in the town of Bendigo, Victoria. We stayed in small houses set among towering eucalyptus trees. Those with smooth bark are called gum trees. The trunks on many of these trees are massive, several feet wider than most trees I've seen in Wisconsin. Bendigo is a town of around 93,000 people. It is a prosperous city, with over 4,000 small businesses, a rich cultural offering, and great plans for the future. The "Make it Happen" initiative encourages people to move from the larger cities, such as Melbourne and Sydney to the smaller cities, such as Bendigo. We spent the morning meeting with Brian Hinneberg, of Victoria Regional Development and several other people involved in shaping the future of this city as well as one of the tiny towns in Victoria that was in danger of disappearing completely. We met with Brian Hinneberg, manager of Victoria Regional Development. He says that in the past 12 years, Bendigo has gone from 120 vacant store fronts to 6--and that's after adding 400 additional spaces. There are around 1,500 people a year moving into the city, with an additional 35,000 expected within the next 20 years. To manage this growth, Bendigo is expanding into the surrounding areas, promoting satellite towns for the additional population to live in. The city has no large box stores, instead choosing to promote more locally owned small businesses. To help ensure that a skilled work force will be available to sustain the increased population, Victoria Regional Development offers skills programs that directly benefit businesses through one on one management counseling and technical assistance. Brian Gould, who works with Brian Hinneberg told us that there are some massive projects in the works for the area. In the works is the largest olive grove in the Southern Hemisphere, a joint effort of several municipalities in the area and the resumption of gold mining, which ceased because extraction became too expensive and environmentally problematic. With water a precious resource in the area and both olive production and mining being water intensive, we were curious about the effect of these enterprises on the water supply. It seems that the area slated for olive production is sufficiently removed from the Greater Bendigo Area, so that securing water should not be a problem. And, according to Brian Hinneberg, new mining techniques mean that water will actually need to be pumped out of the new mine, so that there will be a net increase in water availability. Brian Gould went on to say that Victoria is concerned about the environment, particularly the effects of green house gases. He says that Victoria Regional Development is studying the problem, using its own facilities as a test bed. For example, by turning off the monitors when computers are idle, the department will save 60 percent on the power to operate its computers, which translates into less energy needing to be produced, and thus the lowering of green house gasses. Kim Chadbourn, Victoria Regional Development Officer, says an important aspect of her department is to act as a facilitator rather than disburser of funds. She travels her district listening to people, spotting trends, and working to access and capitalize on resources. One trend that concerns Kim is the disappearance of small communities in Victoria. She notes two indications of a community's health--the existence of a community bank and of a "footie" (football) team. Participation in sports is extremely important to Australians. Most communities of any size at all have a footie team. They are an important link in the social structure of communities. She noted that many communities are losing their banks. And when a community loses its bank it tends to lose its viability. Attention and commitment by community leaders plays an important part in determining the fate of marginal towns. Jillian, a woman who attended the meeting was from the small town of Talbot. With a present population of 300 people, Talbot was the first mining town in Victoria. It was of questionable viability when Jillian moved there a few years ago. She moved there because of the friendly people, peaceful setting and rural location. She was a driving force in bringing life back into the old town. The first thing residence did was send out a "tea bag" survey, named so because it took the time necessary to brew a cup a tea to fill out the survey. The survey provided the answer to two questions: 1) What vision did townspeople have to boast the economic level of the city; 2) what talents did individuals possess. Combining the results of several fund raisers and the proceeds of a $7,500 grant, the town created the London House. This combination farmers market and coffee shop became an important anchor in the city. The money from the grant went primarily to print a brochure. Volunteers from the town worked to built an attractive facility from a run down building. The result has breathed new life into the town's economy while boosting the town's moral and prospects for the future. Along with a community vision and strong local leadership, a broad volunteer base is crucial. Jillian worries about volunteer burn out, saying this is a major issue when it comes to the continued success of London House. Andrew Cairns is a highly successful entrepreneur in the Bendigo community. While noting that 90 percent of businesses start in rural communities and move to large cities, it is his goal to keep those people and the revenue generated from their businesses in rural communities. He notes that since most entrepreneurs live in rural communities, it's important to put money back into those communities to encourage innovation. Operating a company that seeks to create locally owned telephone companies in rural communities (versus the Australian behemoth "Telstra") Andrew says that communities need to create a "Community Balance Sheet" to examine its assets and liabilities. It's important for a community to possess a common vision that sells passion and enthusiasm, he says. Announce to the market that you are a "cool and hip" community, says Andrew. He believes that regional sustainability should be the goal of any revitalization project. He noted several keys to successful regional sustainability: • Start to think and act as one • Don’t guess • Define capital base – human – intellect – product – financial • Reduce capital drain • Commercially sustainable • Continued learning • Embrace youth • Produce world quality product • Use technology to open new markets • Break down the silos – commonality of purpose. After lunch and a networking session, Brian Henneberg took us on a short tour of Bendigo. We then met with representatives of "Land Care" This is a community based program to improve the sustainability of the land. While improving the land, it also improves the capacity of communities--helping individuals work as a team and start thinking about the use of the community for future generations. Decades of clearing the land by European settlers has had a devastating effect on the Australian ecosystem. A highly saline layer of water lies close to the surface in many areas of the county. The plants in the native bush cover soaked up huge amounts of water, thus keeping the saline level from raising too close to the surface. As land clearing removed the bush, the lack of vegetation caused the water level to rise, poisoning the land with salt. Land Care is a major factor in restoring damaged land and preventing further damage to the country's ecosystem. Land Care provides a collaborative approach to land management. While it receives funding from the government, it is a grass roots, community based movement. Over 40 percent of the nation's farmers are involved in the movement, with an estimated 80 percent of the farm communities involved. We visited a farm where the owners have planted over 1 million trees. It will be 30 years before they're ready to begin harvesting. In the meantime, they will begin doing their part in protecting the fragile ecosystem. Lessons Learned Today • Private sector can have non-traditional role in community development and that can be very successful • You can be more effective when people are working together with less dollars , versus the large expenditures without the people collaborative – social glue – bringing people together with a common goal • Government views itself in a supportive role rather than in a financial way • Communities need a shared vision, champions to promote that vision, and volunteers to sustain it.
		Copyright © 2004, Community Progress Initiative, South Wood County & Town of Rome