Building resilience vital for regions as Response to pandemic

IT is within our capabilities to navigate through this strange new pandemic world, says Mary Duniam – but we can’t rely on pre-Covid thinking

IN 2020 we found ourselves at a unique time, entering the space of a pandemic which affected our families, communities, jobs and our health and wellbeing.

It became a time of uncertainty when we did not fully know or understand the sorts of factors that made our situation what it was. Many felt anger and impotence because we personally lacked the tools, skills or resources to conquer this acute volume of uncertainty. How could we turn this uncertainty into opportunity? How resilient are we? How will we navigate this uncertain future we are now facing? As the Covid-19 curve flattens, what is on the other side?

The Covid-19 crisis has called for action. We want reassurance from our governments and ideas coordinated and communicated to us to build capacity for recovery.

However, we cannot solve our problems with pre-Covid19 thinking. What now are our priorities and levers for change?

Firstly, let’s make sense of our region, our distinctive place. My place, North-West Tasmania, is where we work and play. Therefore, our place matters. Our own sense of place is rooted in our individual biophysical, social and spiritual connection.

However, the emerging challenge is for each of us to understand our place within our own region. Recent events are forcing us to accept the region connects places creating fluid boundaries, to discard historical parochialism, and look towards a connected and collaborative future.

While we may look to strong leadership at this time, we should not underestimate our own capacity for innovation, to be champions and arbiters for change with benefits that are meaningful personally, to our place and to our region. It must be acknowledged that parts of my region are struggling economically with high youth unemployment, low Year 12 retention rates and a significantly ageing demographic.

Comparatively, our region cannot rely on the public service bubble of the southern region to provide employment and sustain local economies. While we may have a low population, diverse and disparate settlements throughout the region, we do

not exist in isolation.

The North-West now has the opportunity to move from response to resilience, of turning uncertainty into bold action.

The strengths of our region cannot be underestimated. Our multifarious agricultural industries are world class, our coastlines and wilderness areas are sublime, our lifestyle is the envy of many.

However, the new “normal” for our region post-Covid-19 is to encourage individuals and organisations to play a pivotal role in the regional quest for increased connectivity to fuel innovation dynamics so as to transform our region that is socially and economically sustainable.

The new strategic location of the University of Tasmania Cradle Coast Campus in Burnie is an example of catalytic leadership and innovation by creating a new centrality for the region. This new centrality will become inextricably interlinked with its regional partners to network, to connect the dots, to create and share greater knowledge about our region thus creating entrepreneurial awareness.

Not only is UTAS Cradle Coast a well-placed gateway to drive innovation in our regional communities while maintaining a strategic educational focus that is relevant to our communities, but research also confirms regional universities such as UTAS Cradle Coast contribute to higher skilled regional populations and improves retention of regional school graduates.

All of us share the value of our own region and beyond, and our experience can teach us to appreciate what we have and build our resilience and social capacity.

Dr Mary Duniam is councillor and Deputy Mayor of WaratahWynyard Council and deputy chief representative with the Cradle Coast Authority.