First RCCIWA Members Forum of 2021 – Dates Confirmed
Planning is already under way for the first Member Forum for 2021. Whilst all of the details have not yet been set, we can confirm the dates. Once we have all of the logistics set, we will send you all of the information and the booking link.

Thursday June 17th – Parliamentarian Day

Thursday June 17th – Business After Hours

Friday June 18th – Operational and Strategy day

We have already spoken with several Members of Parliament, have secured a sponsor for our BAH (to be announced soon) and have our host Minister in place. For now, we are seeking your feedback on the speakers and content you would like to see over both days. Suggestions for particular topics and recommended speakers are encouraged.

We can confirm that The Ibis Styles Hotel in East Perth will be our co-host for our BAH and also where we will be holding our meeting on Day two. They are a non-quarantine hotel and have offered an amazing deal for our delegates of $109 per night. To book your accommodation, please contact the Hotel directly on 08 7099 3400 and use the code RCCI to get the special deal. Thanks Accor Hotels WA and the Ibis Styles East Perth.

Telstra Regional WA – Practical Response to Cyclone Seroja
Getting communications back up and running as fast as possible was a priority for the cyclone affected areas. Thank you to Boyd Brown from Telstra Regional WA for keeping us informed as to what they have been doing. See below from Boyd:

· The recovery activities are taking place across an area of approx. 112,000 sq km. In context the cyclone path is an area of distance equivalent to a trip from Melbourne to Sydney and 35km wide on each side

· Impact to approximately 90% of the mobile coverage area across the cyclones path

· Physical mobile sites with no service at 113 on Monday, this has decreased by 101 and now sits at 12

· Network sites without AC power peaked at 196 at the start of the week, this has decreased by 122 and now sits at 74 (note that the remaining sites are impacted by transmission and power)

· 8 communities in isolation have been restored, with the final task requiring a technician to make the 1300km round trip to Gascoyne Junction yesterday to affect repairs on a network radio site.

· Feedback from local sources now prioritising the restoration of smaller pockets of customers who would remain without services

· 53 of our sites are currently being supported with 70 generators

· 21 remaining sites require transmission restoration and generator support

· 38 Power & Facility techs are currently installing, maintaining and refuelling these generators 24/7

· 34 additional generators, 5 large fuel pods and 5 staff are in transit to increase our resource capability over the weekend

· Corporate affairs and Regional Australia continue to communicate with local and Incident control teams, community stakeholders, the Prime Minister was also updated on progress during his visit to the area on Friday

· One of our technicians in Geraldton still is without power at his home, the remaining team members had power restored Thursday. They are now enjoying the simple pleasures of washing clothes and hot showers.

· 45 Technicians in the area are covering around 23,000km a day collectively as part of the restoration effort

Dowerin Do-Over on Next Week
Our fab member the WBN in partnership with Town Teams are hosting the Dowerin Do Over next Friday. This promises to be a fantastic event and we would encourage anyone who is interested is seeing how working with Town Teams can benefit their community.

The Dowerin Do-Over is a regional showcase event and street party finale that will explore what can be achieved when local leaders and government partners collaborate with the aim of creating great places.

The ‘Do-Over’ is part conference, part hands-on placemaking, and will include 1.5 days of interactive activities along Dowerin’s Mainstreet. Get involved and learn more about new ideas to re-activate your regional town, including pop-up activations, presentations, demonstrations, funshops, community interventions, public space and amenity improvements and other knowledge sharing activities.

This event is targeted at regional local & state government staff, elected members, community resource centre representatives, community and business organisations and absolutely everyone keen to find new and innovative ways to create great regional towns. Find all the details here or book your tickets here.

FACET Workshops - Connecting The Tourism Industry With Local Government
A series of three workshops at Tourism Western Australia, Perth and via Zoom. These workshops are designed to provide local government Economic Development Officers with an understanding of tourism opportunities, link them with key contacts and share case studies. Small businesses, visitor centres and anyone wanting an understanding of how WA's tourism industry works will also gain valuable knowledge and connections from these workshops. These workshops will be in person and also delivered via zoom. If this is of interest to you, please find more information here.