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Noosa Biosphere Association Inc. |
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Greater Noosa Alliance ALLIANCE FORMED BETWEEN NOOSA BIOSPHERE ASSOCIATION, NOOSA PARKS ASSOCIATION AND EDV RESIDENTS GROUP Committee members from Noosa Parks Association, EDV Residents Group and Noosa Biosphere Association have formed a loose coalition dubbed the Greater Noosa Alliance. This partnership will work together for the benefit of the Greater Noosa Area to promote the values of the Biosphere Reserve. Between them the three community organizations enjoy a membership counted in the thousands. The first project was to make a joint submission to Noosa Biosphere Ltd (NBL) regarding its Draft Management Plan. NBL, as you may be aware, is the company established by the Sunshine Coast Regional Council to “govern” the Noosa Biosphere Reserve. Public submissions on its first Draft Management Plan closed on June 26th 2009. Two public meetings held by the NBL to discuss the Plan were extremely poorly attended, plainly indicating that they have thus far failed in the primary task of engaging effectively with the wider Biosphere Reserve community. Members of the Greater Noosa Collective, representing NBA, NPA and EDV Residents Group, held discussions with every member of the NBL Governance Board of Directors. The basis of our joint submission, and the focus of these meetings, was to suggest a new action plan for NBL. This included practical community-based projects as well as a more philosophical agenda. Amongst other things, we are arguing for a possible extension of the Noosa Biosphere Reserve to include the Eumundi-Doonan-Verrierdale region; identifying ways for members of the NBL Governance Board to be democratically elected by the Greater Noosa community; and an acknowledgement that the debate over de-amalgamation is an essential component of the future of the Noosa Biosphere Reserve. You can read the initial joint submission by clicking here. More recently, this Alliance has been active in promoting the concept of a new, larger Noosa Council to include the Eumundi, Doonan and Verrierdale areas. Members of the Alliance are meeting regularly to formulate ideas about what a new, leaner, greener Noosa Council might look like. We envisage a genuinely sustainable Council that builds on the foundations generated by the Playford-led Noosa Council. Discussion papers will be presented to the community in the near future. Meanwhile, the Alliance has also established liaison with Friends of Noosa.
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