Setting Up & Managing Big Projects forum

10.00  Morning Tea

10.30  Welcome and purpose

11.00  Building the relationships

Big projects rest on a foundation of relationships with host of other organisations that provide support and funding and whose activities the Network wants to influence. Those relationships develop slowly, and require attention to the interests of other parties.

Paul Martin, Coordinator, Yarram Yarram Landcare Network. YYLN is part of the Corner Inlet and Nooramunga Steering Committee, a group of agencies, industry, local government and landcare that have agreed on priorities for improving the quality of water moving into this important coastal area. YYLN has spent several years patiently building up a plan of landholder and landcare group actions in the catchment, and showing government agencies that the Network can deliver community action on government priorities. Paul will talk about what YYLN did to get to the point where the Network has a seat at the table and is respected as a credible community voice.

Brett Wheaton, Hindmarsh Landcare Network. 12 years ago a few landcare members came up with the crazy idea of creating corridors of road side vegetation to link the Big and Little deserts. That job was completed in 4 years, not the expected 10, and the project has gone on to vegetation on private land to build up the corridor. Brett will speak how they sold the idea to cautious landholders and Shire staff, and second, how Hindmarsh Landcare has handled one of the big challenges presented by the Caring for Our Country program – keeping partnerships on a good footing in a competitive environment.

12.00  Improving planning and management in the Network

Bigger projects force a Network to get better organised in its internal project and staff management and to keep connecting long-term and big picture thinking to the local groups that make up the Network.

Moragh Mackay, Coordinator Sustainable Agriculture Program, Bass Coast Landcare Network. BCL was set-up in 2004, and now has 11 local Landcare groups and manages many projects, including landscape scale change projects. Each stage of growth has brought opportunities and problems that have required better management arrangements. Moragh will take us through that journey, describing the planning processes the Bass Coast uses to keep order in the midst of a complex activity.

Janet Hagen, Coordinator, Hughes Creek Catchment Collaborative. Hughes Creek is a small network of four Landcare groups in the Strathbogie Ranges, that ran a New Generation Landcare Grant project. Janet Hagen will talk about how they allocated that funding to on-ground works, which included recognition of landholders who had a track record of successful on-ground work. She will also tell us about the think tanks the Collaborative has used to get the community thinking about where they want to go long-term.

1.00   Lunch

1.45   New and old partners for big projects

With big projects, Landcare Networks move beyond just doing everything themselves and look for ways to partner up with other organisations. Here we look at some new partners, and some old ones in their new (CFOC) clothes.

Cam Nicholson, Coordinator, Woady Yaloak Catchment Group. WYCG is part of the FarmCare consortium, which brings together several Landcare Networks with Southern Farming Systems, Victorian No-Till Association, Central Highlands Agribusiness Forum and Southern Quality Produce. With this mix of partners, it has been possible to talk outside the NRM world to Meat and Livestock Australia and the Future Farm Industries CRC.  Cam will set out why WYCG got involved, why industry partners are interested in working with Landcare and how FarmCare changes the relationship with government agencies.

Belinda Pearce is running the "Do it with Dung - from the Mountains to the Murray" Dung Beetle Project, which is hosted by Kiewa Catchment Landcare Group. The project utilises Landcare facilitators and their groups to find interested farmers across the NE region. Prior to her involvement with Landcare, Belinda worked for the Lucyvale Better Beef Group, managing various dung beetle projects. Belinda will talk about why she chose to work through Landcare, what the benefits are to her project, and what benefits she sees Landcare getting from landholders’ strong interest in dung beetles.

Judy Croker, Coordinator, Mid-Loddon Sub Catchment Management Group. Judy has been successful in winning funding for large projects, under NHT and now under Caring for Our Country.  She has learned a lot about pitching big projects to funding programs and their Canberra managers. She will tell us how she does it, and what has changed with the CFOC guidelines.

2.45    Where to from here?

Time to think through the implications of the day for your Network.

3.30      Close

Who’s running the forums? The Landcare Network Readiness Project is funded by the Landcare and Community Engagement Unit, DSE, and reports regularly to Regional Landcare Coordinators and to policy units in DSE. Ross Colliver is setting up the forums - contact him on 0411 226519,  03 9078 1108, or colliver@ttdg.com.au. Or talk to your Regional Landcare Coordinator.

And keep in mind our next forum …

New Roles for Landcare. 25th September, Melbourne. Landcare has been a facilitator and broker but mainly with government funding for natural resource management. But it is now stepping into new roles, as a standard-setter in markets for ecosystems services, or as a partner with industry groups and private philanthropy. This forum brings together Landcare Networks taking up these roles, plus organisations helping Landcare open up these relationships.