AIDA’s newly framed Aims and Objectives, unanimously approved at this year’s Annual General Meeting, are a reflection of what our members have been communicating, in meetings and through our surveys, about the many facets of action needed to preserve the character of the district. There is clearly great support for AIDA’s’s activities – continuing our involvement in planning issues and liaison with local and state governments, addressing future challenges such as tourism, the development and management of the Great Ocean Road, issues of coastal erosion, floods, fires, the Painkalac estuary, social housing and so on.
In responding to those wider set of issues for the district, AIDA has and will pursue action directly – recent examples being the Dark Sky program and speed limits on roads – in other areas we will just offer support to established interest groups.
Whilst we hear from our members a desire for greater involvement, we recognise that becoming a member of the AIDA committee may require commitments beyond the capacity of individuals at different stages of their lives. Our plan for the future is to offer members a simpler, less onerous path for some engagement in our activities. We will be writing to offer members an opportunity to support the committee by providing knowledge and skills, as well as critical feedback, in areas in which they have particular interest or expertise. This involvment would be coordinated through members of the committee. Look out for that invitation if you would like to support and help shape our work in the coming years.
Chris Ryan