Business View Oceania

34 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA VOLUME 4, ISSUE 12 leading the way in how state governments can introduce and implement smart city and smart community thinking throughout a range of jurisdictions. The team has also just released a Smart Innovation challenge, which is well worth a look at.” ASCA also recently worked with Maribyrnong city council for the launch of their smart city framework. The council recently rolled out a strategy asking members of the public to identify how they use technology, gaining insights to build a digital ecosystem that uses smart technology in securing better outcomes for the Maribyrnong community. Ms. Baker shares, “We have over 50 members across Australia who are doing things like this. It’s wonderful that we can be a part of these studies in their development. It allows us to build great lasting relationships with committed individuals by promoting their efforts and providing feedback on their frameworks and strategies to help them achieve optimal results.” ASCA operates under a volunteer board of industry professionals who are all passionate about investing in the sector to spur its development throughout the country. Working as a remote team, the board has direct representation in New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia, and Victoria. The association aims to have representation in all Australian states and territories as soon as possible, Ms. Baker says. “We want to have a board member representing all local communities across Australia, so that we have a strong local presence in every major area. We plan to start in Queensland, with Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory to follow.” ASCA developed their first ever strategic plan in 2021 to identify key priorities for the future. Ms. Baker concludes, “Our priorities moving forward are to support our members through knowledge, insights, capacity, resources, and networking, and to influence the sector through education and advocacy. We have worked on our election platform, which outlines documents that state our priorities and the priorities of our members in accelerating smart community development. It also highlights the role that federal government needs to play. Our team are always looking at how we can reshape our value proposition to maximise what we can offer to members in terms of events, education, networking, and more. The next few years are going to be really important and interesting for smart communities all across Australia. At ASCA, there is going to be a huge push for us and our members to think creatively, innovatively, and collaboratively in response to that hyperlocal focus. We are also currently in the process of creating an exclusive content series call Smart Communities in Action, which is a collection of case studies of ASCA members all around the country to showcase the work that they’re doing and their successes. By accessing this content series, our members can have a look at what has or hasn’t worked for other community leaders as they role out pilots and design new innovative ventures. Overall, we are excited to continue pushing ourselves to support our sector, and we believe that the best is yet to come.”