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Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities

DECEMBER 08 – JANUARY 09

CSHC NEWS

Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities workshop

: Jude Munro opening the workshop

Following on from the Recognition of local government in a climate of change! recognition breakfast, hosted by ICLEI Oceania during the ALGA Local Government Constitutional Summit, Foundation Councils involved in ICLEI Oceania’s Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities initiative met to progress action and planning to enhance local government’s role in addressing the burden of alcohol on our local communities.

The day-long workshop focused on the role local governments can play in reducing alcohol harms, and on identifying the most useful data that can aid planning, reporting to communities, and monitoring actions.

Jude Munro, CEO of Brisbane City Council, opened the workshop, noting that urgent action is needed to reduce the impacts of alcohol on local communities.

Ms Munro, who is also the Chair of the National Local Government Drug and Alcohol Advisory Committee acknowledged that, 'Day in and day out we are seeing the dreadful impacts alcohol is having on the streets of our cities and towns across Australia.'

'The human cost is tragic, the financial costs woeful and the cleaning costs are downright disgusting,' Ms Munro said.

The workshop created a buzz amongst the Foundation Council participants, including feedback from one enthusiastic council officer who reflected that, 'This work makes my job easier and clearer, establishing my role in council with a higher profile.'

ICLEI Oceania thanks all participants for their time and focus throughout the day, and councils' feedback will enhance the development of the program over the coming months.

: CSHC Foundation Council representatives

Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities responds to national policy

ICLEI Oceania has recently prepared a submission to the Federal Government’s National Health Prevention Taskforce discussion paper Australia: The Healthiest Country by 2020.

The submission focuses on recognising that local government can play a key role in preventative health and that local governments are already working in this area across Australia. We highlighted some of the best practice examples of our Foundation Councils and have recommended a stronger focus on building local governments' capacity to be a preventative health platform working with their local communities.

Copies of our submission are available on request from Mark Boyd, Director Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities.

Join the new Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities initiative

It's not too late for Councils to join our exciting new initiative in social sustainability.

The Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities is a capacity-building program focused on identifying local government’s role in building safe and healthy communities, and in ensuring it has the tools, technical expertise and political will to play that role effectively.

We have prioritised five domains for health and wellbeing requiring local government capacity to plan and act:

Alcohol, tobacco and drugs harm minimisation
Physical activity and food access
Community wellbeing
Local economies and affordable housing
Climate change and health.

An overview of the initiative is available from Mark Boyd, Director Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities, and will be on our website early in the new year. To find out more about how your council can join, contact Mark to discuss further.

2008 HIGHLIGHTS

ICLEI Oceania is expanding its traditional work on resilient ecosystems with a new approach to thriving communities, the Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities initiative.
Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities is designed to help local governments foster healthy, safe, resilient and sustainable communities.
Foundation councils in 2008/09 from across Australia will participate in the initiative’s establishment phase, designed to create opportunities for their input as well as provide outcomes of immediate benefit to their councils.
Supported by the National Local Government Drug and Alcohol Advisory Committee and Brisbane City Council, the initiative is utilising ICLEI’s established processes to build capacity to effectively plan to meet the social sustainability goals of communities.

CONTACT CSHC

If you have any questions or comments please contact Mark Boyd, Director Cities for Safe and Healthy Communities, Ph: +61 (0)3 9660 2224.

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