Thanks to the talents of three CQUniversity students, our region will be promoted in its best light in a showcase of regional photographs presented to Regional Economic Development Corporation.  The photos were taken by CQUniversity students Hayley Bull, Adam Lloyd-Jones and Melissa Arnold as part of their assessment for a Contemporary Photomedia course after REDC approached the university about forming a partnership to update their regional photo collection.

REDC Economic Development Officer, Laura Sorensen, said the quality of the photos was exceptional.  “We were very impressed by the outstanding talent and professionalism of the students”, she said.  “These photos will be a real asset to us in promoting the region”. 

This series of photos is the second time REDC and CQUniversity have partnered to create a showcase of regional images.  REDC Economic Development Officer, Laura Sorensen, said that the success of the first photo collection in 2007 prompted REDC to seek out the services of the CQUniversity students again.  “We have just launched the new REDC website and wanted to update our collection of images.  The calibre of work from CQUniversity students is just exceptional,” she said. “We were really keen to work with the university again.”

CQUniversity Program Coordinator Bachelor of Multimedia Studies, Dr Ashley Holmes stated that working with organisations such as REDC illustrated the commitment that the university has towards incorporating Work Integrated Learning (WIL) into its programs.

“Many of our programs seek to provide students, employers and community organisations with opportunities to interact in meaningful collaborations with potential to provide win-win for both parties.”

“Such hands-on project-based learning enables students to graduate ‘work ready’ which makes them highly sought after by employers.”

"Within our Bachelor of Multimedia Studies degree this may mean student teams work with real briefs to provide creative applied communication solutions and resources. In other degrees it may mean placement of individual students in real, temporary positions.”

“We constantly seek projects for students to work on over a 24 week period and encourage local organisations to follow REDC’s lead and engage with CQUniversity. Suitable projects often have a community development benefit.”

Launched in July 2009, Coal to Coast Jobs was designed to make life easy for both employers and jobseekers. The site provides an easy-to use search function and a simple registration process provides access to a selection of additional features including job alerts, job-candidate matching, pre-filled job applications and easy uploading and storage of resumes.  In addition, a job-candidate matching feature allows employers to search a database for candidates matching their requirements.

As of February 2010, there are 128 jobseekers and 53 employers registered on the website.

Coal to Coast Jobs is free to use – click here to visit the Coal to Coast Jobs website and take advantage of this fantastic opportunity!

In February 2010, REDC launched their new Facebook page called….REDC!  The page will provide a great way for REDC to share information with members and interested individuals on upcoming events and issues of interest.

The new-look REDC website will be launched in the next few weeks (yes, another website!). The new improved website will include many helpful features including a members-only section, online registration for events and payment facilities.

Visit the current REDC website at www.mwredc.org.au

The Regional Economic Development Corporation today announced a significant increase in the region’s Gross Regional Profit (GRP) bringing the estimated total value of the economy to $17.3 billion in the past 12 months.

New figures indicate that the GRP for the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region has increased by 12% for the year 2008/09, defying the trends predicted by the global financial crisis.  

REDC CEO Narelle Pearse, said that she was not surprised that the region had grown, but the extent of the growth was a bit of a surprise.

“Throughout last year we continued to stress that our region was showing strength in an economic climate that was potentially bordering on a recession.  The figures released today support our assertions, and underpin the notion that Boom 2 is just around the corner.”

Information media and telecommunications experienced a major increase of 40.4% in annual change for the year.  The mining industry has also experienced a 29.4% annual change with a contribution of over $8 billion.  The full regional profile will outline growth across all industries and per individual local government area.

“The increase in mining in the region was obviously due to expansions undertaken at our local Ports and the increasing demand for good quality coal.  Our region is now 50% reliant on mining, which means that diversification to protect our economic base is important.”

“Our region has proven its resilience time and time again and these figures continue to demonstrate this.” 

GRP for the year 2007/08 was $15.4 billion.

REDC will be releasing the full regional economic profile at the end of February.  Non-members can purchase the reports at www.mwredc.org.au.

The Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region is set to shine again, with a regional investment conference to be held in May 2010.

The Invest Mackay Whitsunday Isaac 2010 Conference, hosted by the Regional Economic Development Corporation (REDC), will highlight the investment opportunities within the high growth Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region.

The conference to be held from the 19^th- 21^st of May 2010, aims to bring together representatives from all around Australia, Asia and the US to view firsthand what the region has to offer.

REDC’s Investment Attraction Manager, Martin Homisan, said that the conference will have a range of high-profile guest speakers who will provide insightful information regarding the regional economy and current and future investment opportunities.

“Professionals interested in learning more about investment opportunities in the Mackay Whitsunday Isaac region should not miss this conference.  Topics will include a regional overview – the benefits of investing in the region, understanding foreign direct investment, the specific investment opportunities in the region and other investment related information.”

More information on this exciting event soon!

Lunch with the Mayor As part of a new REDC venture, we are now hosting monthly networking functions which will feature a director scheduled to speak at each luncheon.  As our directors either represent a section of the region or a particular industry, the topics being discussed will be of interest to many.  Our first networking luncheon ‘Lunch with the Mayor’ is to be held on 19th March 2010 Mackay Mayor, Col Meng, will be the guest speaker for this event.

REDC hosts lunch with Savanth Sebastian In an exciting joint venture with Commonwealth Bank Corporate Financial Services Central Qld, REDC will host a lunch on the 15th April 2010 (venue to be advised).  The guest speaker will be Savanth Sebastian, regular presenter on the Channel 7 Sunrise program.  Savanth is responsible for analysis of economic trends in the Australian and global economy as well as the likely impact on equity markets.  More information on these exciting events soon!

Did you know that REDC produce a range of comprehensive reports?  Reports are free to members and are published on the REDC website.  Non-members are able to access the summary page for each report on the website and the full reports are available for purchase.

·         Regional Economic Profile – released February and August each year

·         Regional Development Register – released February, May, August and November

Visit the REDC website Publications page to download your copy today!

The Regional Economic Development Corporation (REDC) is calling for residents to take part in first of the Resident Confidence Surveys for 2010. 

In 2010 the surveys will be used to monitor the change in resident confidence in the Mackay Whitsunday region.  With this information, REDC is able to gain a holistic view of how the economic downturn and consequent changes in the region affects residents.

REDC CEO Narelle Pearse considers the surveys as the most effective way of gauging the change in confidence that has occurred within the region.

“It is important for residents in the region to be able to express their change in circumstance, which then allows REDC to observe the changes over the previous six months to get a good understanding of how people have been affected by the Global Financial Crisis (GFC).  Now the focus is more on how residents are recovering from the GFC”.

REDC will collate this information and provide statistics to key stakeholders so that decisions can be made to assist those struggling with the economic changes and provide information for funding and programs for the region.”

This survey was initially undertaken early in 2009 and has been used to monitor the change in confidence of people within the region.

Click here to access the survey and have your say!