2022-08-15 General Committee Meeting Agenda

GENERAL COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                                   15 AUGUST 2022


School and Tertiary Learning

•    The Digital Cadetship Program for students in Grades 10/11 continued into a third year,
     teaching 40 students (across 11 schools) digital design and web development over two
     school terms.
•    The School Holiday Workshop Program continued through FY 21/22, with 57 workshops held
     over the last 12 months. Created for young people with a passion for learning and creating
     through technology, (e.g., coding, robotics, digital design, music production, game design),
     these workshops are taught by talented local teenagers from the Hub’s Cadet programs.
•    The Hub’s other after-school program, the Young Inventor Club currently led and coordinated
     by the fourth ‘generation’ of young leaders in Grades 8-10 also continued in FY 21/22.
     Projects completed in the last 12 months include designing and building a prototype
     hovercraft (with remote controller), learning Blender (3D modelling software), 3D design and
     printing and, assembly of a remote-controlled race car using electronics


Green Economy
Green Industry Development Plan
•    Noosa’s Green Industry Development Plan is well underway. In late June, a final Green
     Industry Research Report, considering feedback on the highest-value ideas, activities and
     programs relating to a green economy in Noosa, was completed having undertaken 10
     stakeholder interviews and 3 meetings.
•    Key pieces of work informing the report included the creation of a Noosa green business
     database, economic analysis of green economy trends and a comparative analysis of
     Noosa’s competitive advantage, benchmarked against comparable LGA’s.
•    The findings of this report builds a case for future feasibility studies and activation reports in
     the following areas of potential competitive advantage for Noosa, including:
           o Green Professional Services
           o Ecotourism
           o ClimateTech

Textile Recovery Program
•   In early June 2022, two Council Business Units (Economic Development and Waste
    Management) partnered with Brisbane-based clean technology company BlockTexx to pilot
    a Textile Recovery Circular Economy event, called “Give a Sheet for the Planet”.
•   Utilising BlockTexx’s breakthrough resource recovery technology, more than 1.5 tonnes of
    linen was donated from landfill. Donations from around 205 cars were converted into raw
    materials and resold as inputs to Australian manufacturers, offsetting 4.5 tonnes of C02
    through diversion of textile waste from landfill (again, based on BlockTexx C02
    methodology).
•   Additionally, local branch of St Vincent de Paul’s (Vinnies) collected 16 cages of donations,
    approximately 1.7 tonnes of high-quality clothing for resale. By spearheading the first textile
    recovery event in Queensland, the event also helped to position Noosa as an early adopter
    of innovative waste management and as a champion of the green economy.
Green Drinks
•    In late June 2022, Economic Development partnered with Council’s Environment business
     unit to revive the Green Drinks networking series as a way of cultivating the environmental
     sector in Noosa and connecting green solution providers with solution seekers. The inaugural
     certified plastic-free event attracted over 40 attendees including a mix of local businesses,
     professionals, and environmental advocates.



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