Media Releases
The Committee for Melbourne has partnered with the University of Melbourne’s Graduate School of Business and Economics, to launch the first Melbourne Business Practicum today at 11am on Monday 15 February, 2010, at the Royal Botanic Gardens.
The Committee for Melbourne has been instrumental in locating appropriate organisations requiring high-level research.
“An initiative of the Committee’s Higher Education Taskforce, the practicum projects allow both high-achieving local and international graduate students to work on real projects in conjunction with local businesses to develop their skills and knowledge base,” Higher Education Taskforce’s Co-Chair and Innovation Australia’s Chairman, Mr David Miles AM said.
Teams of post graduate students will undertake two-week projects designed by participating Melbourne-based organisations.
“A priority identified by the Committee’s Higher Education Taskforce is the need for greater integration between our university and business sectors,” Mr Miles said.
“The Melbourne Business Practicum allows universities and business to work together on meaningful projects thus better utilising our valuable resource of highly skilled postgraduate students in Victoria,” he said.
“The practicum also provides an opportunity for highly skilled international students to gain greater exposure to Australian business culture which is especially important if they are considering making Australia their permanent home,” Mr Miles said.
During the inaugural project this month, students of the Graduate School of Business and Economics will produce a cutting-edge and invaluable tool for all gardens across Australia and overseas to ascertain their carbon footprint.
The team of four international and local students working on the Royal Botanic Gardens project will ascertain the value of their carbon footprint by creating an Environmental Accounting model. This model will involve accounting and environmental practice and has the potential to assist gardens throughout the world.
The next practicum to commence in 2010 will be an examination of the regulation, taxation, cost frameworks and other incentives facing commercial and housing developers in Australia’s cities. This project is hosted by the Grattan Institute, a think tank focused on Australian domestic public policy.
The students’ findings will be used to make policy recommendations on how market design can encourage commercial and housing development that matches housing and employment needs.
Industry partners for other projects in 2010 include the eab group, a local IT company, and the Faculty of Business and Economics.
The Committee for Melbourne has announced today, the appointment of Mr Andrew MacLeod as its Chief Executive Officer, commencing January 2010.
In taking the role, Mr MacLeod said, “I am pleased to be joining the Committee for Melbourne. I am excited by the challenge of working with the Committee’s broad and influential membership to improve our business sector, and ensure the city’s global relevance and liveability. I look forward to using my experiences and knowledge gained in Australia and overseas. This is a wonderful opportunity to contribute back to the city which made me and to use my strengths to make a positive contribution to Melbourne.”
The Chairman of the Committee for Melbourne, Mr. George Pappas, said Mr MacLeod’s appointment is a real win for the Committee for Melbourne.
“The level of interest in the position of CEO for the Committee for Melbourne was unprecedented, with a very large number of well qualified applicants contacting us directly as well as nominations being put to us by various community leaders. Andrew was selected by a very thorough process, involving nearly all Board members, from a shortlist of highly competent candidates.” Mr Pappas said.
“We were greatly impressed by a number of Andrew’s attributes. Among them, is a demonstrated track record of being able to engage stakeholders to achieve difficult, complex and significant outcomes,” he said.
“With Andrew at the helm, the Committee has an opportunity to move up another step, just as Sally Capp helped us to do, because, like his predecessor when she took on the job, Andrew is a person who is on the rise,” he said.
Mr MacLeod has had a diverse and rewarding career, enjoying leadership roles within large and small business environments in the private and public sector. After holding positions with the Australian Army and Dunhill Madden Butler in Melbourne, he accepted a role in the International Committee at the Red Cross working in countries such as former Yugoslavia and Rwanda.
In 1999, Mr MacLeod moved back to Melbourne to focus on consulting and entering politics. Andrew accepted a role from Deputy Premier John Thwaites as Senior Political and Policy Adviser and remained there for a year until January 2003. At this point, he decided that he wanted to return to his international activities and successfully applied to the United Nations (UN) in Geneva. For eight months in 2003, he held a number of positions there until October 2005 when the UN sent him to Pakistan to co-ordinate the massive earthquake relief in Kashmir. Between October 2005 and May 2008, he was based in Pakistan and, from May last year to May this year, in The Philippines, dealing with typhoon relief and recovery.
Andrew MacLeod was born in November 1966 in Melbourne. He completed his first degree at the University of Tasmania, graduating in 1992 with a double degree in Arts/Law.
Mr MacLeod is a silver medallist in 200m Butterfly at the 2002 World Masters Games, a former state medallist in surf-lifesaving, and achieved fourth place in debating at the World Championships.
Background information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_MacLeod
The release today of acreage in the Gippsland Basin for the exploration of carbon storage sites is a key step towards the establishment of low emissions coal technology that would bring international investment and jobs to Victoria, and guarantee the State’s power supply, according to the Committee for Melbourne.
The Committee’s Policy Director Susan Vale said Victoria has an opportunity to be a world leader in the demonstration of CCS technology in the context of coal-fired power generation.
“A large scale CCS demonstration project in Victoria could become a model for applying CCS technology to power generation worldwide, and establish a leading global position for Victoria in this critical new industry,” she said.
The Latrobe Valley was an ideal site because there is a major cluster of emitters; there are abundant reserves of brown coal; there is proximity to storage onshore and off-shore, which keeps transport costs low; and the size of potential storage is huge, Ms Vale said.
CCS works by capturing greenhouse gases as they are produced, compressing the gas and then storing it underground, either on or offshore. If coupled with coal-fired generation it could create a low emission, reliable base-load electricity supply.
Benefits to Victoria would include:
• Lowering our greenhouse gas emissions;
• Developing CCS infrastructure that would guard the value and relevance of Victoria’s brown-coal resource;
• Create new industries and jobs for Victoria;
• Promote regional development in the Latrobe Valley; and
• Showcase Victoria’s innovation and R&D capabilities.
Ms Vale said the Federal Government had put up $2.4million to fund up to four CCS demonstration projects with announcements due in March 2010, and $100million annually to establish the Global Institute on CCS. The State Government had also put up $110million through the Energy Technology Innovation Strategy and had been an early mover in reducing red tape to enable a demonstration project to be established.
“The money is available for a large scale CCS project. Now it’s up to all Victorians to show their support for bringing this investment to our State,” Ms Vale said.
The Victorian Government should show leadership on climate change issues by introducing a Climate Change Bill as a matter of urgency, according to the Committee for Melbourne.
In a submission to the Government’s Green Paper on climate change, the Committee said a State Climate Change Act would offer legislative certainty to businesses and professions working on sustainability issues, and provide incentives for greater investment and research.
Committee CEO Ms Sally Capp said Victoria could use its status as the first Australian state to introduce a Climate Change Act as an investment attraction, considering that currently there is a range of footloose public and private “green” capital looking for a base.
“Providing legislative certainty could also allow Melbourne to continue to promote its credentials as a hub for sustainability research and development in Australia and the Asia Pacific, and indeed, the Southern Hemisphere,” she said.
The Government has said it will enact a Climate Change Bill around the same time as it releases the Climate Change White Paper, but the community needs to know more specifically when, what will be in it and how business and Victorians will be affected so that we can start planning for it with certainty,” Ms Capp said.
“Victoria is potentially the State with the greatest challenges posed by climate change – due to its heavy reliance on brown coal and the impact of drying climatic conditions on water supply – but the problem was also creating new opportunities by driving research and change on climate change issues.
“Melbourne’s booming population is also placing a heavy emphasis on finding sustainable solutions to accommodate strong growth,” she said.
The enactment of the Climate Change Bill was critical in establishing a comprehensive, whole-of-Government approach to dealing with Climate Change issues.
An expert panel should be formed to provide advice to the Minister for Climate Change on the development and implementation of climate change impacts assessments and have an ongoing advisory role in reviewing the effectiveness and implementation of the new arrangements on Government policy and legislation over an initial three to five year period, Ms Capp said.
To view the Committee for Melbourne’s submission, click here.
Two initiatives from the Committee for Melbourne – the airport Welcome Booth and the Culture Card – received funding in the State Government’s Thinking Global Action Plan for International Education launched by Premier John Brumby this morning.
Committee CEO Sally Capp said it was important to connect international students to the Melbourne community from the moment they arrived and throughout their stay in Victoria.
“We need to address issues of student safety and vulnerability which to some extent relate to the un-connectedness of international students who are away from their family support networks,” Ms Capp said.
“International students both want, and need, to develop their networks and understanding of their host communities and cities,” she said.
The Welcome Booth has been operating on a trial basis at Melbourne Airport for the peak induction weeks in February and July this year. “It is fantastic that the Government’s support will ensure this initiative is a permanent part of our student welcome in Melbourne,” Ms Capp said.
The Culture Card is a new initiative to start in 2010 and will help students understand and connect to our culture and life in Victoria.
The Culture Card will introduce students to activities and destinations in Victoria, such as football games, arts performances and outdoor experiences. Students would be welcomed to these events, and the activities would be specifically tailored to meet their needs and interests.
Ms Capp also welcomed the other initiatives in the Thinking Global package that would help to raise Victoria’s standing as a competitor to other international study destinations, such as the investment in a scholarship program to attract outstanding students to our State.
International education is the most important service industry export in Victoria with a value of almost $5 billion in the 2008 calendar year.
An overarching planning policy for Melbourne should be established including emphasis on increasing density within existing urban areas and the delineation of a final urban growth boundary, according to the Committee for Melbourne’s CEO, Ms Sally Capp.
In a submission to the Urban Growth Boundary Review, the Committee recognised the need to accommodate new growth areas for future Melbourne, but urged the Government to consider greater emphasis on policies to increase density within existing areas as a preference over further expanding the city’s boundaries.
“As Melbourne’s population expands, the Government and the community need to develop creative ways to accommodate people close to where they will work, shop, study and enjoy recreational activities,” Ms Capp said.
“Housing needs to be affordable, but so do living costs and this can only be achieved along with a high quality sustainable lifestyle if transport is readily accessible and travel times are kept to a minimum,” she said.
“An overarching policy is needed for Melbourne of increasing density along arterial transport routes as a matter of right with height limits sensitive to neighbourhood planning and with appropriate protections to preserve the character and liveability of existing suburban communities encased within the arterial boundaries.
“A final urban boundary also needs to be established to provide long term clarity as to the final limits of Melbourne with future growth beyond this to be achieved through increasing density in existing areas or the further development of regional satellite centres in Geelong, Bendigo, Ballarat and Gippsland centres,” she said.
Ms Capp said further development of regional rail links was supported to improve connections to Melbourne.
The Government was also to be applauded for its consideration of the impact of expanding growth areas on sensitive ecosystems in the Urban Growth Boundary Review and its efforts to provide offsets to protect and preserve our environmental heritage, she said.
“Melbourne’s reputation for liveability is in part related to its public spaces and green areas. Existing parklands and green wedges surrounding Melbourne must be preserved and enhanced despite the pressure of population growth,” she said.
Moving Galleries, an initiative of the Committee for Melbourne, today launched its latest exhibition of travelling art and poetry that touched on the theme of transformation, at Melbourne’s iconic Flinders Street Station.
Parliamentary Secretary for Public Transport and the Arts, Mr Rob Hudson officially launched the exhibition together with Connex’s Deputy Chairman Mr Bruce Hughes, Committee for Melbourne’s Chairman, Mr George Pappas, and artists and poets of the exhibition.
“What differentiates one city from another is the way in which culture moves within its structure, working to shape a city, ultimately giving it its own personality,” Mr Pappas said.
Moving Galleries’ latest exhibition, Transformation, shows art projects that ‘transformed’ everyday spaces in and around Melbourne and poetry that explores the theme of ‘transformation’, by observations on the seasons, the natural world, work and human relations.
The exhibition documents art projects that enlivened spaces such as laneways, city buildings, and iconic landmarks, such as Federation Square and St. Pauls Cathedral, altering their everyday appearance.
Amongst the exhibition is Mr Robbie Rowland’s The Upholsterer, an interior manipulation, and Martin Corompt and Philip Brophy’s No Answer, a series of unreachable payphones ringing and illuminating Lush Lane.
“Three hundred and fifty thousand people every day have the opportunity to enjoy these works… with more than 200 million customer trips each year – that really is bringing art to the people,” Mr Hughes said.
The Moving Galleries initiative reflects its creative use of public spaces, making art and literature accessible to everyone, reinforcing Melbourne as the nation’s cultural and creative capital.
Supported by the Department of Transport and Connex, Moving Galleries has been moving art and poetry around the metropolitan region since 2006, as part of the Committee for Melbourne’s incentive to build on Melbourne’s renowned cultural identity.
Moving Galleries’ 2009 Transformations exhibition will be appearing on 40 Connex trains and will continue for approximately six months.
Victoria’s competitiveness as an international study destination is under threat if the Government fails to act on concession fares for international students, according to Committee for Melbourne CEO, Ms Sally Capp.
International education is Victoria’s biggest service export industry but Victoria’s attractiveness to international students is falling behind other States and competitor countries due to a lack of support once the students have arrived, Ms Capp said.
Victoria and New South Wales are the only States in Australia that do not offer concession fares.
Melbourne also compares poorly to our key international competitor destinations of US, UK, Germany and France who all offer transport concessions to international students.
In 2008, 161,625 international students were enrolled in courses in Victoria generating $4.45 billion for the State while the cost of providing the concession fares could be as low as $2.4 million Ms Capp said.
A survey of 670 international students prepared for the Committee for Melbourne in 2008 found that 90 per cent of students’ experience of Melbourne was adversely affected by the lack of transport concession fares, she said.
The report found that international students would use public transport more if concession fares were offered with the additional number of tickets purchased offsetting the cost of the scheme.
Ms Capp said the concession fares could be offered for travel in non peak times, alleviating overcrowding on trains and trams.
Concession fares would also make it easier for students to live further out from the city centre easing inner city congestion and alleviating the student housing shortage in inner areas.
“We know that word of mouth is the number one influencer of student’s decisions about their future study destination. We need people who are studying here to have a great experience, to feel welcome and supported, and to tell their friends back home that Melbourne is a great place to live and study,” Ms Capp said.
Former Victorian Chief Commissioner, Ms Christine Nixon has won the Committee for Melbourne’s 2009 Melbourne Achiever Award.
Ms Nixon was presented with the award for her outstanding contributions to the Melbourne community at the Committee for Melbourne’s annual dinner attended by the Prime Minister, the Hon Kevin Rudd MP.
Committee Chairman Mr George Pappas said Ms Nixon had left Victoria Police in a great position after almost eight years at the helm.
“Her impact on policing, crime reduction and community safety is integral to her lasting legacy as Chief Commissioner. Ms Nixon helped the Victorian Government build stronger and safer communities and we are all the beneficiaries,” he said.
“During Ms Nixon’s time as Police Chief, Victoria’s underworld crime was successfully tackled through the Purana Taskforce, the crime rate dropped by 24.5 per cent, the road toll was reduced by 26 per cent, there was a huge cultural shift to change how police worked with the community to increase respect and cooperation, and the security of Australia’s first international sporting event since September 11 2001 - the Commonwealth Games, was successfully implemented,” Mr Pappas said.
“The community is grateful that her skills will now benefit those who suffered such enormous loss in Victoria’s devastating bushfires on Black Saturday through her appointment to head the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority,” he said.
Past recipients of the Melbourne Achiever Award have included: the award winning architect and urban designer, Professor Rob Adams AM; research biologist, Sir. Gustav Nossal; well-known philanthropist, Dame Elizabeth Murdoch AC; renowned Melbourne businessman, Mr. Ron Walker AC; and sporting greats, the Oarsome Foursome.
Mr Pappas said the Committee for Melbourne congratulated Ms Christine Nixon on being the sole recipient of the Committee for Melbourne 2009 Melbourne Achiever Award and wished her well in her new role.
Victoria’s Latrobe Valley is the ideal location for a scale coal CCS project, even on a world scale, and should be considered a top priority, according to the Committee for Melbourne’s CEO, Ms Sally Capp.
“We need to act now on CCS, and the best place to do that is in Victoria,” Ms Capp said.
This morning Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will launch the Federal Government's new Global Carbon Capture and Storage Institute, which will manage a $100 million research effort to demonstrate clean coal technology.
Former World Bank chief, Mr James Wolfensohn, will chair the panel that will oversee the goal of bringing 20 carbon capture and storage projects online and proven within the next decade.
Ms Capp said carbon capture and storage is about long term reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, security around the delivery long term of energy supplies and preserving the value of Australia’s coal resources and jobs related to that industry.
Victoria wants to be the first State to get a project up and running, she said. The Committee for Melbourne has already been working on bringing the major players together to prepare for a project to begin.
The Latrobe Valley’s unique combination of abundant coal reserves (up to 500 years at current usage levels), cluster of high emitters (four major brown coal-fired generators) and known large storage sites in the adjacent on and off-shore Gippsland basin, mean that a demonstration project could be established here more quickly than in other locations and at lower cost, she said.
“There is a lot of support from the Victorian business community and our universities to work with the Government on a scale sized project,” Ms Capp said.
The benefits to Victoria include creating long term value for the State’s brown coal assets, opportunities to showcase our R&D capability, potential new industries and new jobs for Victoria, attracting international interest and recognition of Victoria’s leadership in this area.
To get a scale demonstration project up and running in Victoria Ms Capp said we need:
Funding support to be secured;
Legal and legislative frameworks to be put in place including bringing forward Victorian legislation for exploration for onshore storage;
Establish onshore storage areas and pipeline infrastructure; and
Build community understanding and support as to why this project is so important.