President’s column

I was thrilled to see so many of our local government champions from around the nation receive accolades for their achievements and contributions in the recent Queen's Birthday Honours List and I extend my personal congratulations to all of them.

I'm particularly delighted that former member of the ALGA Board, Mrs Margaret De Wit, received a Medal (OAM) in the General Division. Margaret served on the ALGA Board from 19 July 2012 to 31 March 2016. Margaret also served as President of the Local Government Association of Queensland and Councillor for Brisbane City Council. Congratulations Margaret!

In just a matter of days, ALGA will officially open its two major annual events: the Regional Cooperation and Development Forum this Sunday and the National General Assembly of Local Government on Monday. 

This year's Regional Forum, themed Pillars of Growth, will be an important opportunity for mayors, councillors and other key decision-makers from metropolitan, regional, rural and remote councils to come together in the Nation’s Capital to share their knowledge and experience in building substantive local and regional capacity. 

The forum is also the official venue for the launch of the annual State of the Regions report. This year's report by National Economics – the 20th in the series – continues to examine the key factors driving and hindering regional economic growth, and assists local councils to understand their own region and compare performance with other regions.

The theme of this year’s National General Assembly of Local Government, ‘Building Tomorrow’s Communities’, goes to the heart of the role of local government in modern Australia. Key presentations will address how councils, often working in partnership with other levels of government, or the private and not-for-profit sectors, are shaping the future and responding appropriately to the challenges that lie ahead. 

Timelines are now very tight but you can still register for both events at this link: http://www.conferenceco.com.au/nga/.

I'm looking forward to opening these notable events and I hope to see you there. 

 

            Mayor David O’Loughlin

            ALGA President