Australian Regional Economies Conference 2008 Report

There was an excellent field of speakers, both of international and more local repute: Ed Blakely, Neville Sawyer, Brian Dabson, Mark McCrindle, Roy Powell, Roy Green, and Steve Garlick. Presentations were also made by the University of Newcastle, Gosford City Council and Parkes Shire Council.

Globalisation is a fact of economic life, but it relies on local knowledge, relationships and motivation that cannot be equalled by distant competitors. Economic Gardening - the focus of AREC - encourages good, small, local businesses to grow within a region, and access the world from within the region, rather than moving elsewhere. Other factors provided a continuing theme of relevance to Regional Development here, on the Central Coast, and more broadly around the nation. These themes included the level of education in a region, which links into the level of skills required to sustain and grow a region, the infrastructure needs for growth, particularly transport hubs, and the need to attract, encourage and develop new ideas and the people that generate and sustain them.

Determining an identity for a region, ie. What attracts people to a region, and what encourages those people to stay and become part of the community? Why should they invest in the community in financial, cultural and social forms? Questions that are important to determine how people can be encouraged to provide intellectual and financial investment and cultural growth in a region.

Identity and branding, and human capital, were mentioned consistently throughout the conference proceedings as a means of attracting, and retaining, new investment and cultural development. Identity, or branding, provides a focus for the community in marketing their region to other communities, it is human capital which will provide the impetus for growth.

Innovation and knowledge development is about investing in human capital to ensure continuing intellectual, financial and cultural investment in a Region. How to encourage innovation? Innovation is often generated by enthusiastic people across the age spectrum, but it is still important to attract and retain young people for constant renewal of innovative ideas.

Education, particularly higher education, generates new ideas, and attracts more people who may be innovative and enthusiastic. Tertiary institutes encourage young people to a region, but they also encourage young people to remain in a region, and possibly develop its assets. It is this human capital which will drive economic growth through the pyramid of knowledge that is developed through encouraging tertiary institutions. Tertiary institutes encourage lifelong learning and add value to a region, building on the creative/innovative knowledge that exists in the community.

In short, delegates to AREC were encouraged to look at innovation and creativity, encourage entrepreneurship, identify what the region stands for, maintain the human capital that will encourage innovation and creativity that will develop and sustain investment of intellect, financial and culture in a region.

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