Nearly 100 regulators descended upon Larrakia land (Darwin) last month to attend the AELERT WA, SA & NT Regulators Event hosted at the George Brown Botanic Gardens on February 7-8.
Hosted by AELERT & the Northern Territory Government, this event united practitioners and senior leaders from 11 agencies operating in fields such as impact assessment, onshore and offshore gas, energy and mining, natural resource management, wildlife and biodiversity, environmental protection, organisational maturity, and regulatory capability.
AELERT hosted four face-to-face events in four months on Gadigal (Sydney), Muwinina (Hobart), Tarrbul and Yuggera (Brisbane) and Larrakia (Darwin) lands. The 2023-24 state and territory conferences saw over 250 regulators from local, state and territory, and Commonwealth agencies attend representing each jurisdiction in Australia.
“Each event had the same intention, to facilitate collaboration and innovation between regulators and shape how we approach regulation in 2024 and beyond,” explains Gregory Abood, AELERT CEO.
“AELERT is an established framework that regulatory agencies and practitioners have been using for over 20 years to build the collective regulatory strength and capability of its members and we are pleased to see that our Regulators Events have succeeded in providing a space for learning, sharing and networking with fellow regulators across the nation.”
Attendees of the recent Darwin event participated in a comprehensive series of plenary sessions including presentations from DCCEEW’s National EPA Transition Taskforce and Head of the Compliance and Enforcement Branch, Graeme Grosse, both using this opportunity to engage with the cross-section of stakeholders at the event.
“The Darwin conference provided a valuable opportunity to reach out to our AELERT partner agencies in SA, WA and NT to update them on DCCEEW’s compliance roles and responsibilities and the work being undertaken for the future transition to Environment Protection Australia” Mr Grosse said.
“Sharing information at AELERT conferences and working groups enhances our ability to work together collaboratively and learn where we can leverage one another’s’ capabilities to maximise compliance and environmental outcomes.”
Networking and breakout session discussions were also a highlight, exploring the common regulatory problems practitioners face and how to overcome them through greater collaboration between state and territory teams and their Commonwealth counterparts such as DCCEEW.
“The breakout sessions highlighted the critical need for greater engagement between agencies and AELERT provides the means to do so through its Communities of Practice groups, events, and products like the Interagency Twinning Program,” AELERT CEO Gregory Abood explains.
“Particularly right now as the Western Australian Local Government Association (WALGA) has joined the network bringing its 137 Councils and the opportunity for greater local government engagement.”
In times of change and reform AELERT provides the opportunity to gain insights into common and emerging issues facing regulators across Australia and in the greater Australasian region including New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.
On November 6-8, 2024, AELERT will host the Global Summit on Implementing and Enforcing Environmental Law delivered alongside AELERT’s international environmental law and regulatory partner networks.
We would like to thank all of our National Council and network members who organised, spoke at, and attended the 2023-24 regulators events and we look forward to hosting the next series in your state or territory in 2025!
