Tagged with Government

Henderson Town Centre Project, Auckland, New Zealand.

The reduction of vandalism and graffiti through arts based place making and youth engagement.

This project responded to a request from stakeholders within the Henderson Town Centre for vibrant and positive public art that could cover multiple sites, and create visible change within selected public spaces. Public spaces blighted by graffiti and vandalism.

Our project methodology utilised the power of Public Art to engage with youth to reduce vandalism and graffiti sustainably in the short and long term. It did this by linking a series of public art making events to entry portfolio requirements to higher education in art and design.

Image: Kakano Youth Arts Collective member Nate Cole with Community Constable Marty Speers. Henderson Pop-Up Space, 2016.

The project’s success relied on facilitating partnerships between Local Government, Unitec Institute of Technology, and a local Henderson community outreach organisation the Kakano Youth Arts Collective. This combination of institutional resourcing and stewardship, government funding, and essential local knowledge and social connections was a vital set of management tools.

The project involved engaging local 16 to 20 year old youth who have a Police record of vandalism and graffiti, but have been identified through the outreach program as being creative. These young people are the peer group to the 12 to 15 year olds, also engaged in tagging and vandalism but deemed too young for the project.

The methodology involved a series of public artwork strategies and mentoring workshops by well-known street artists. Permanent and temporary public artworks were supported by skills based workshops such subjects as screen-printing and hand-lettering. This work program produced a series of high profile permission based public art initiatives, authentic, and capable of constant renewal. They were structured to create a visible and achievable staircase into an Art and Design education pathway. A path previously seen by the youth to be unattainable. Our program of creative practice and mentoring ensured a connection was made by the youth between their tagging designs and the skills and approaches inherent and required in a commercial design.

To date, the program has measured a 60% reduction in vandalism and graffiti within the town centre.

Paul Woodruffe MLA
Unitec Institute of Technology.
[email protected]

 

UN Report Shows E-Government Boosts Sustainable Development

43581329 - united nations headquarters with flags of the members of the un

United Nations Headquarters

The 2016 UN E-Government Survey provides new evidence that e-government has the potential to help support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs).  The Survey finds that e-government is an effective tool for facilitating integrated policies and public service by promoting accountable and transparent institutions through open data and e-participation and participatory decision-making as well as by advancing online services to bridge the digital divides.

The Survey found that United Kingdom has pursued continued development on e-government innovation, and its Government Digital Service has been replicated by other countries around the world. Australia and the Republic of Korea recently established robust telecommunications infrastructure, invested in developing their human resources, expanded usage of e-government facilities and extended service delivery.

World And Regional E-Government Leaders

Top E-government performers:
United Kingdom
Australia
Republic of Korea
Singapore
Finland
Sweden
Netherlands
New Zealand
Denmark
France

The rankings are based on the report’s E-Government Development Index (EGDI), which ranks countries by measuring their use of information and communications technologies to deliver public services. The Index captures three dimensions: scope and quality of online services, status of telecommunication infrastructure and existing human capacity.  A key theme is how information and communications technology (ICT) and e-government can best contribute to the implementation of the SDGs. Effective use of ICTs by governments can help people connect to the services they need, as well as to create a fair society that provides equal opportunities for everyone.

E-government has grown at a rapid pace over the past 15 years.  In the 2016 Survey, 29 countries score “very-high,” with EGDI values in the range of 0.75 to 1.00, as compared to only 10 countries in 2003. Since 2014, all 193 Member States of the UN have delivered some form of online presence.  This is in stark contrast to 2003, when 18 countries, or about 10 per cent of all countries, were without any online presence.  In 2016, 51 per cent of countries had “low-EGDI” or “medium EGDI” values, down from over 73 per cent of countries in 2003.

The UN E-Government Survey is produced every two years by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs. It is the only global report that assesses the e-government development status of the 193 UN Member States. It aims to serve as a tool for countries to learn from each other, identify areas of strength and challenges in e-government and shape their policies and strategies in this area. It is also aimed at facilitating discussions of intergovernmental bodies, including the United Nations General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council, on issues related to e-government and development and to the critical role of ICT in development. 

Source: United Nations. 

Read more.

National Sustainability in Business Conference 2016

Renewables – Markets – Innovation – Opportunities – Capital

Following feedback from Association members and partners the “National Sustainability in Business Conference” will be re-convened on the Gold Coast in October 2016.

The Conference will have the following focus;

  1. Renewable Energy Systems and Sources such as Biofuel, Biomass, Hydrogen & Fuel Cells, Hydropower, Solar Energy, Geothermal Energy, Wave Energy, Tidal energy,  Energy Storage and Wind Power.
  1. Think Local Firstl – development of the local economy and community, urban agriculture, Buy Local.
  1. Innovative business opportunities, Incubators, Start Ups, Venture Capital / Entrepreneurs.
  1. The Energy Markets – Regulators, Wholesale and Supply Chain, Retailers, Consumer Demand,  Carbon trading

National Sustainability in Business Conference 2016

Conference streams will include but not be limited to;

  • The Markets – The Regulators
  • Business Opportunities/Venture Capital
  • New Trends and Technologies
  • Policies and Strategies that address the conference themes
  • Energy Transformation from Renewable Energy System to Grid
  • Energy Research and Application for Business
  • Public Awareness and Education
  • Future Challenges and Directions

The program will consist of keynote presentations, concurrent sessions and workshops.

All presenters will have the opportunity to have their paper published internationally with an ISBN in the “Book and Proceedings and Outcomes” which will be available post event.  The program will have over 40 presenters and all attendees will have access to the pod-cast archive included in the registration fee.

Details on how to speak or present a workshop at the conference will be released later this month.

Like minded Associations or groups who want their members to have access to special discounted rates should contact the secretariat (E) [email protected]

The conference is an initiative of the Association for Sustainability in Business Inc (a non-government not for profit organisation) and its partners.

 

Association 5 year commitment to Developing Northern Australia Conference

Peter Sugg, Developing Northern Australia Conference

Peter Sugg

The Association in business has made an initial commitment to host the Developing Northern Australia Conference for the next five years.

Our members believe that developing the Northern Regions will be one of the most significant undertakings in Australia since Federation.

Following the outstanding success of this year’s event in Townsville, which will see 6o presentations added to the podcast resource, planning has commenced on the destination and venue in 2016.

We will continue to provide business, policy makers, academics and communities with a vehicle to access and share information on the journey to a successful and sustainable transition in Northern Australia.

We invite delegates, presenters and conference partners to submit articles which will be promoted and distributed via the Blog and the Association’s extensive social media platforms. You will find the guidelines for submitting content on the website.

The Book of Proceedings based on presenters who wish to have full papers published will be distributed through the National Library in Canberra and will also be available in soft copy format from the Association website.

We would like to thank our partners and sponsors with a special mention for James Cook University, Trade and Investment Queensland, City of Townsville, The CSIRO and Ergon Energy.

Prof Allan Dale, Developing Northern Australia Conference

Prof Allan Dale

The committee would like to also thank and acknowledge Allan Dale, Professor of Tropical Regional Development, for his excellent stewardship of the conference program.

Allan has a strong interest in integrated natural resource policy and management in northern Australia. He has both extensive research and policy expertise in governance systems and integrated natural resource management and is Chair of Regional Development Australia Far North Queensland and Torres Strait.

 

 

 

100 Speakers at Joint Sustainability and Liveable Cities Conference Melbourne, June 2013

Over 100 Presenters over the 3 days – 17th to the  19th  of June 2013 at the Novotel Melbourne St Kilda.

Confirmed keynotes presenters include;

  • Dr Nick Fleming, Chief Sustainability Officer, Sinclair Knight Merz and Chairman of the Sustainability Taskforce of Infrastructure Partnerships Australia, and a Director of the Board of the Australian Green Infrastructure Council. NSW
  • Jason Roberts, Co-Founder, Better Block,  USA
  • Melissa Houghton, Director, Sustainability at Work, VIC
  • Professor Anthony Capon, Head, Discipline of Public Health, Faculty of Health University of Canberra ACT
  • Tony Wood, Energy Program Director, Grattan Institute, VIC
  • Simon Lockrey, Research Fellow, Sustainable Products and Packaging, Centre for Design, RMIT University, VIC
  • Professor Billie Giles-Corti, Director,   School of Population and Global Health,  Melbourne University, VIC
  • Angela Hazebroek , Director Urban and Regional Planning Solutions (URPS),  SA
  • John Thwaites, Professorial Fellow, Monash University, and Chair of ClimateWorks Australia and the Monash Sustainability Institute.

Message from the Mayor Amanda Stevens
The City of Port Phillip remains committed to maintaining a sense of place, reinforced by a network of public spaces, local character and built heritage as well as well designed community infrastructure to support our diverse community. This conference will be an excellent opportunity to explore innovation, exchange ideas and be creative… more

Welcome from Conference Chair, Paula Drayton
“This is a fantastic opportunity for professionals in the public and private sector to examine the challenges and solutions needed to develop the Liveable Cities of tomorrow.  The Conference will also examine public policy and social/community outcomes and consider what actions we can take to positively influence the ongoing debate… more

The full program is available on the conference website

Two Conferences! Three Days! One Location!
Delegates will have access to an extensive range of topics with over 100 presentations across three days including Keynotes, Concurrent Sessions, Case Studies and Posters.