Economic Development Australia Limited ABN 18 123 776 394
13 Tiranna Place, Oyster Bay NSW 2225 Ph: 02 9528 7864 Fax: 02 9528 9965
1
Media Release – (STRICTLY EMBARGOED UNTIL 10 PM WED 8th OCT 2008)
National Economic Development Awards for innovative ED
organisations
Queensland played host to the national Economic Development Awards for Excellence last
night, with Brisbane showcasing the nation’s best and brightest working to shape the economic
future of Australia.
Local congratulations went to Logan City Council for its Berrinba Wetlands project, winner of
the Economic Development Australia (EDA) national award for Economic Environmental
Innovation.
Winning entries for the remaining categories were announced as:
Strategic National
Wangaratta Rural City Council (Wangaratta Rural Skills)
Strategic Regional
Cities of Whittlesea and Hume (Plenty Foods Cluster)
Marketing Strategy
Greater Shepperton City Council (Shepparton Show Me)
Partnerships
Port Macquarie Hastings Council (Building a high performance business
community)
Leadership –
Elected
Ian O’ Loan OAM (Regional Development South Australia)
Leadership –
Employee
Jeff Bothe (City of Greater Bendigo)
Indigenous Economic
Development
City of Onkaparinga (Aboriginal School Based Apprenticeships)
Including Logan’s winner, Queensland had finalists in 7 of the 8 award categories:
Tourism Queensland (Strategic National)
Sunshine Coast Regional Council (Strategic Regional)
Gold Coast City Council (Marketing Strategy)
Logan City Council (Environmental Economic Innovation)
Ipswich City Council (Indigenous Economic Development)
Ipswich City Council – Mayor Paul Pisasale (Leadership – Elected Member)
Sunshine Coast Enterprises – Gerrie Carr-MacFie (Leadership – Employee)
In congratulating award winners, the Hon. Desley Boyle MP, Queensland Minister for Tourism,
Regional Development and Industry (DTRDI) said she was especially pleased to be sponsoring
an award this year after DTRDI won the 2007 national strategic award for excellence (in
partnership with the Local Government Association Queensland (LGAQ) and Ergon Energy)
Economic Development Australia’s Chairman, David Keenan said
“This is the third year that we have run these awards and the judging gets more difficult every
year. The strong quality of submissions highlights the diverse network and innovative nature of
those working across the profession”.
Economic Development Australia Limited ABN 18 123 776 394
13 Tiranna Place, Oyster Bay NSW 2225 Ph: 02 9528 7864 Fax: 02 9528 9965
2
Cr Paul Bell AM, President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) and Local
Government Association Queensland (LGAQ) joined the congratulations. He added “Its great to
see such a strong representation from local government again in this year’s awards, particularly
in Queensland. Despite the significant challenges of Queensland local government reform,
sustainable community growth remains high on our agenda. EDA continues to assist many of
our members to excel in this field.”
Addressing the conference, Minister Boyle spoke about the key Queensland regional
development initiatives; including the Sustainable Resource Communities Partnership - bringing
together State and Local Government with industry to develop sustainable liveable communities
and the Centres of Enterprise strategic industry development program.
Last year Queensland won the lion’s share of awards highlighting the strong commitment and
achievements of those working to advance and sustain communities across the State.
Economic Development Australia is the national professional body for economic development
practitioners employed in local government, regional development agencies, State Government
economic development departments, and private sector consultants and companies involved in
economic development.
Contacts:
Economic Development Australia : Richard Walker, Executive Director Mob: 0419 617510
Peter Dowling, Deputy Chair Mob: 0409 349375
NEWS 
