Jo-Anne Everingham

What makes a community age-friendly: A review of international literature

This paper undertakes a comprehensive review of the growing international literature on age‐friendly communities. It examines a range of approaches and identifies the key attributes associated with creating a sustainable environment for seniors. The authors critically evaluate emerging policy trends and models and suggest directions for future research attention. The discussion provides important information and insights for the development of ageing policy and planning in Australia.

Examining Corporate-sector Involvement in the Governance of Selected Mining-intensive Regions in Australia

Abstract Mining companies are increasingly urged to contribute to the long-term economic and social well-being of host communities in regional Australia and are attempting to respond to such calls as part of a commitment to corporate social responsibility. Yet the nature and extent of their involvement in local affairs is not fixed or given, but is influenced by a host of factors including the kind of mine in operation, the remoteness of the local area, the presence or absence of other governmental stakeholders and the legacy of prior modes of mining industry intervention. This paper explores these issues in three different contexts: a company town considering normalisation; a mixed-economy region in which mining companies are required to play a greater role in local affairs than previously; and a fly-in, fly-out mine in a remote and sparsely populated region in which such opportunities to contribute to local life are limited. These studies illustrate the shifting responsibilities between public and private sectors, the changing expectations of each actor, and the ambiguity surrounding the responsibility of mining companies to participate in local governance.

Regional renaissance? New forms of governance in nonmetropolitan Australia

Since the Second World War, Australian governments have adopted various approaches to governing nonmetropolitan Australia. The authors profile three distinct approaches to governance characterised as (1) state-centred regionalism; (2) new localism; and (3) new forms of multifaceted regionalism. Although recent policy initiatives have been justified by the argument that the region is the most suitable scale for planning and development in nonmetropolitan Australia, in practice the institutional landscape is a hybrid of overlapping local, regional, and national scales of action. The authors compare this new, multifaceted, regionalism with the so-called ‘new regionalism’ currently being promoted in Western Europe and North America. It is argued that new regionalism differs in quite important ways from the regionalism currently being fostered in Australia. In Australia, the centrality of sustainability principles, and the attempt to foster interdependence amongst stakeholders from the state, market, and civil society, have produced a layer of networked governance that is different from that overseas. It is argued that there is a triple bottom-line ‘promise’ in the Australian approach which differs from the Western Europe/North American model, and which has the potential to deliver enhanced economic, social, and environmental outcomes.

Seniors’ motivations for participation in local governance: evidence from an Australian study

Increasing expectations of citizen involvement as well as demographic changes brought by population ageing make evidence about the factors impacting on seniors’ participation increasingly important for local governments. In particular, knowledge about motivations for involvement can assist local governments in attempting to attract input from more than just the usual suspects, and to determine whose interests are represented. This article reports on an Australian study exploring seniors’ motivations for participation in governance processes, using a two-phase mixed method approach. Findings from this study suggested that seniors’ participation was motivated by both self- and other-directed, and both practical and abstract factors. Comparison of the sources highlighted nuances in the data which reflect questions about representation, representativeness and inclusion. Findings are discussed in relation to these questions, and implications for local government engagement practices are addressed.

Australia's Regions Congested Governance or Institutional Void?

The article uses the example of a region in the Australian State of Queensland to illustrate the emergence during the 1990s of a plethora of regional organizations including Catchment Coordinating Committees, Regional Development Organisations and Regional Organisations of Councils. Some have regarded this profusion of sub-national bodies as diminishing the role of the state. Certainly one result was ambiguity in the roles and responsibilities of different bodies and different levels of government. Weaving together these disparate initiatives into a coordinated system of regional governance is a significant challenge. A case study of the Central Queensland region supports recent sociological accounts of changes in governance notably those of Fung and Wright (Empowered Participatory Governance), Healey (Collaborative Planning) and Sorensen and Torfing (Network Governance). The analysis identifies institutional features and normative principles of an emerging, multi-layered and multi-stakeholder, form of governance where a network employing deliberative practices coordinates formal political institutions and other actors from non-state sectors. These offer a potential model of regional governance suggesting the network form (with a role for state actors, but not state-dominated) and deliberative decision-making practices may provide coherence and coordination in policy-formulation and administration at a regional level.

“The beast doesn't stop”: the resource boom and changes in the social space of the Darling Downs

A resources boom and the incursion of large scale coal mining and coal seam gas projects has precipitated environmental conflicts and other social struggles in traditionally agricultural communities of the Darling Downs. These relate to control of economic resources, cultural practices and, more generally, regional identity. This paper examines the social space where these struggles are taking place using sociologist Pierre Bourdieus analytical concepts. Data was collected through interviews and photographs in two local government areas of the region – Toowoomba and Western Downs – using changes to physical landscape as an indicator of changing relationships in social space. With the advent of the new industry, agricultural communities are experiencing the pervasive presence of the resources industry and a systematic loss of control of resources. This prompts a struggle as they try to maintain their traditionally dominant power position.

Regulation of resource-based development: governance challenges and responses in mining regions of Australia

Extractive industries have significant social, economic, and environmental impacts on the communities in which they operate; and, if well governed, the sector can contribute to sustainable local development. With this paper we analyze public sector dimensions of efforts to manage the development pressures associated with mining in Australia by examining the legislative and policy framework of various levels of government. We outline recent legislative trends and variations across jurisdictions. We also identify gaps and inadequacies in the regulatory framework and the implications of these with respect to emerging governance challenges and practices in mining-intensive regions of Australia—particularly for local governments. We identify forms of networked governance in mining regions involving initiatives of and relationships between local governments, state governments, mining companies, and other stakeholders. These governance arrangements are characterized by (1) variety of institutions, (2) attention to mining-specific impacts, and (3) dispersal of resources, responsibilities, and authority.

Steering Social Outcomes in America’s Energy Heartland State and Private Meta-Governance in the Marcellus Shale, Pennsylvania

This article argues that analysis of meta-governance purely in terms of the actions of the state can obscure the significant, but less apparent, ways in which private actors may influence the choices and interactions of individuals within various modes of governance coordination. We investigate the networked governance of affordable housing impacts in the Marcellus Shale gas region of the United States to empirically illuminate the dynamics of state and private meta-governance. Drawing on a qualitative research approach, we identify public authorities as exercising what seems to be predominant responsibility for meta-governance, with state government having strong influence over the structure and resourcing of a networked governance response, and county government directly facilitating the collaborative engagement of actors at the local level. Although private oil and gas companies demonstrate little involvement in network governance, the presence of private meta-governance in the alternative form of the design of market governance is shown to have a number of countervailing implications for the form and function of network governance. We suggest that expansion of the concept of “framing” to account for strategies that structure how key governance actors understand a particular problem provides valuable insights for understanding private meta-governance in relation to network governance.

Rhetoric to action: A study of stakeholder perceptions of aging well in two local communities

This qualitative study of local perceptions of policy goals and action in relation to aging reports 31 stakeholder interviews within 2 Australian communities exploring (a) the meaning of aging well; and (b) preferred policy actions to achieve positive aging outcomes. Findings suggest that community perceptions of aging well are broadly consistent with the goals of national and international policy frameworks in focusing on 3 dimensions—health, social engagement, and security. Further, participants believe that achievement of positive aging outcomes requires a mix of self-help, community action, and government intervention—particularly government support and encouragement for aging well initiatives.

Collaborative Governance of Ageing: Challenges for Local Government in Partnering with the Seniors' Sector

Abstract This paper considers the role local government plays in the formation and effectiveness of local collaborative partnerships in ageing well. Collaborative processes are central to emerging models of local governance and have received considerable practical and theoretical consideration with respect to many policy domains. Such collaborations require local organisations and actors from various sectors to work together in partnerships and networks to achieve policy goals. This paper reports research from two collaborations in southeast Queensland municipalities, and shows that joint efforts between local government and community organisations pose challenges. These relate to the political context and specifically to the tensions between flexibility and coordination; and tensions between harnessing community resources and investing resources. We highlight the value of a framing role for local government to ensure that such governance models for local action on ageing realise a collaborative advantage. In particular, the findings highlight the need for local government to invest in these processes and build social infrastructure and assets in order to develop improved ways of facilitating collaborative governance.