Conversation Co was engaged to deliver a sector-leading engagement and research program to inform Council’s actions around community safety. The aim of the program was to explore the community’s perceptions of safety and compare this to reported crime levels. We wanted to understand: risk factors; protective factors; locations of concern; and potential actions for Council.

Outdoor dining parklets (or spacelets) are now so commonplace it’s difficult to remember the time before they existed. We are all enjoying having a coffee outdoors, or a glass of wine on a pleasant Friday night.

Like many others, the COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns took its toll on our team. We knew people were feeling particularly isolated and some were experiencing poor mental health.

Conversation Co recently partnered with Moreland City Council, City of Darebin, and Homes Victoria to work with their communities and stakeholders in developing Housing and Neighbourhood strategies, to improve the standard of development in each municipality and strategically plan for the future housing needs of their diverse communities.

Being a good corporate citizen is a driving force for Conversation Co. Be anything but an a#%!h&le. 

This shapes the projects and clients we work with, the people we employ and of course the way we run our organisation.

Community engagement to finalise actions for a suite of plans that deliver on the Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan.

Conversation Caravan was engaged by the City of Melbourne to plan and deliver the engagement approach to seek feedback on the draft Towards Smoke-Free Melbourne 2025 policy – an unprecedented public health initiative within Victoria. The Policy describes the vision that “the City of Melbourne will become a smoke-free city by 2025 with smoking restricted in the majority of public spaces and events”. 

July is National Desexing Month! This is a national initiative undertaken by the National Desexing Network (NDN) & Animal Welfare League QLD to link pet owners to services where they can receive discounted desexing from participating vets & Councils around the country.

Community engagement is commonly a process that collects qualitative feedback. It often involves ‘open’ consultation – anyone who is interested or affected can participate. It uses ‘non-random’ selection – stakeholders are deliberately defined and targeted according to their interest in the project. Some stakeholders will have more influence than others.

It’s hard to believe that a project that felt so tough and emotionally tiring (at the time), is now up for an award, and has financial commitment.

On May 21 Australians had the opportunity to have their say about their Federal Government representative, by voting in the Federal Election. 

Voting at local, State/Territory and Federal elections is one of the most important ways we can have our say about the future of our local community and our nation.

This month I have started an exciting new journey in learning AUSLAN. It is something I have been considering for a few years now but learning a language can be daunting and difficult to find the time for. Thankfully, having friends to demonstrate learnings and being a part of a company that is driven by inclusivity, has made this venture an exciting one! 

People who are caregivers of young children, family members who are frail, ill or have a disability may face additional barriers in taking part in community engagement activities.

They say it takes a village to raise a child, unfortunately, like many people our village was hard to reach during the COVID-19 pandemic. This never felt truer than when myself, my husband and our two small boys all tested positive to COVID-19. 

I was recently reading on social media about a woman’s discomfort when dealing with government paperwork in labeling her partner a “secondary” caregiver of her child. She felt that the father of her kids was very much an active and present parent, and that he shouldn’t be downgraded to “secondary”. However the reality in Australia at present is that for most women in heterosexual relationships who have been able to become parents, they are the ones doing the majority of caregiving.

Australia sends 27% of its waste to landfill, compared to Sweden’s enviable 1%.

Sweden does this by burning 52% of its rubbish and converting it into energy. The remaining 47% gets recycled.

On Volunteer Recognition Day, we recognise and promote the tireless work of volunteers across the globe. Everyday, volunteers dedicate time and effort to ensure the inclusion of those often left behind, or those who simply need an extra hand or a listening ear.

Developing and maintaining a high level of trust amongst members of a working group is an essential aspect of group effectiveness. When members trust in the process and build trust with each other they are more likely to achieve better outcomes, not only for themselves but for the group. When trust is high, group members will more openly express their thoughts, feelings, opinions and share information. When trust is low, members hold back and aren’t able to progress through the process.

In the spirit of autism awareness, I polled some of my autistic and neurodiverse friends to ask what they’d like the world to understand about their amazing minds and their experience of the world.