January - March 2024 Newsletter

CEO intro RDA GW and the Greater Whitsundays region have hit the ground running for 2024, carrying on from the momentum of a successful 2023. From a committee perspective, Jeff Stewart-Harris has been confirmed as our new Chair, and we will be going to market at the end of April for new committee members. Once our new line-up is finalised, we will also appoint a new Deputy Chair, to take over from Jeff's previous role. Along with the below project updates, I wanted to highlight a key focus for RDA GW in the coming year. We will be working more closely with other RDA organisations across Northern Australia, as well as North Queensland specifically. With more meet ups and collaboration planned, our goal is to identify opportunities for major economic and infrastructure development that will benefit multiple regions, where we can then work together on a larger scale to make a stronger case to the Federal Government for programs and policy that will facilitate those opportunities.  From a North Queensland perspective, we'll be looking to establish a structured program of activity for internal assessment of regional priorities - in relation to key Federal programs and policies - providing a collective response and more value to the greater region as a whole. For further updates, follow our Facebook or LinkedIn pages. Regards, Robert Cocco CEO - RDA GW

Awards recognition The Just Saying Project 2024 Women's Awards were a highlight in March, with several of our Women in Leadership program attendees as nominees and winners. Our CEO, Rob Cocco, also took out the inaugural "Equaliser Award", in recognition of his support in facilitating equal opportunities. Congratulations Rob! Waste to energy solutions Following a regional study facilitated by Whitsunday Regional Council, we've been involved with discussions around waste to energy processing solutions and potential providers. The aim of this is to progress the initiative by further involving local government and key stakeholders. View the feasibility study for a regional plastic recycling facility in the Whitsunday Region here. Housing Project updates Workforce accommodation has been a key focus of the Housing Project, including the EOI call out from Mackay Airport and conversations with local developers who are exploring both workforce and social housing. Also on the social and affordable housing front, we've been working with Tier 1 entities regarding further developments - including a 23-home project in Bowen. This has included input from the Regional Australia Institute via their National Regional Hosting Summit report. Biofutures designation We've been fielding considerable interest on the State Government's designation for biofutures development in the Mackay region from both national and global companies. The interest has been around establishing manufacturing facilities in Mackay, and we've been sharing this information with interested stakeholders. It's early days but stay tuned for more! Solar farms This quarter has also seen significant interest from large multinationals in renewables projects in the Mackay region. These private proponents are namely looking to establish solar farms and looking at Mackay as a potential location. Freight solutions In conjunction with local sea and air ports, we've had a focus on how to improve fundamental freight solutions in and out of the region for all manner of product. With the aim of reinvigorating our coastal ports, without such a reliance on road, we've collaborated to map out potential opportunity and what development would be required to achieve that goal.

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