- Posted on 25 Mar 2026
- 4-minute read read
Before policies, strategies and economic indicators, there is something more human at stake: whether a place can still hold its people. It’s felt in the choice to stay or leave, in whether young people can see a future for themselves and in the quiet strength of belonging. Across regional communities, this question shapes not just population trends, but identity, connection and the hope that places don’t just endure, but truly thrive.
On 4 March 2026, the Centre for Local Government (CLG) and The Japan Local Government Centre (CLAIR Sydney) hosted an interactive panel session on strengthening long-term regional resilience through council-led initiatives.
The panel included three speakers from Japan and two from Australia:
Ryosuke Tabuchi (Assistant Director, CLAIR Sydney / Ehime Prefectural Government), Natsuki Nishizaka (CLAIR Sydney / Okayama Prefectural Government) and Yuki Miyauchi (CLAIR Sydney / Hokuto City Council of Yamanashi), alongside Daniel Cove (Bathurst Regional Council), and Brendan Shipley (Parkes Shire Council), to explore future-focused strategies, shared challenges and local innovations shaping resilient communities in Australia and Japan.
“Communities are unique; therefore, the factors that lead them to thrive sustainably are unique.” - Daniel Cove (Bathurst Regional Council)
Central to discussions were the relative definitions of what it means to have a ‘sustainable’ and ‘thriving’ community. All panelists emphasised that these definitions must be grounded in community consultation, alongside a strong understanding and appreciation of a region’s values, assets and unique qualities. These understandings are what permit and underpin the development of a strong regional ‘place’ brand: the distillation of what ultimately makes a place that might be nice to visit uniquely ‘liveable’.
The session investigated the role of local government in harnessing the identity of a place to deliver authentic future-oriented regional growth strategies. Perhaps the most common element of these strategies was the leveraging of existing assets and qualities of the region. Ryusoke Tabuchi (Ehime Prefecture) explained how local residents’ need for safe transportation routes led to the region becoming a premier global sport tourism destination, as well as earning domestic recognition as Japan’s ‘best place to live in the countryside’ four years in a row. Ryusoke characterised the local government as a ‘momentum-builder’, detailing how public initiatives can stimulate private investment and enduring value for regions.
Parkes Shire Council’s Brendan Shipley added to this sentiment, highlighting council’s role in identifying and amplifying opportunities that can provide multiple avenues of value to a diverse range of stakeholders, including and especially, the local community. This enduring value for the community and stakeholders is what encourages the sustained commitment towards and shared responsibility for regional resilience – it’s what keeps local event volunteers coming back each year and stimulates private investment in local infrastructure and services, as well as what creates strong ‘place’ branding grounded in the region’s identity.
During the Q&A, the importance of attracting and retaining young people within regional communities was discussed. Yuki Miyauchi (Hokuto City Council) explained that one of the guiding principles of Yamanashi’s regional development strategy is to help youth rediscover the value of their own region. Again, this was grounded in initiatives that leveraged a unique local asset – agriculture. Natsuki discussed Okayama Prefecture’s targeted strategy to assign young students to interactive volunteer roles during the Okayama marathon, so that they can directly see the positive impacts of their involvement and feel empowered by their engagement in an event that showcases regional art, food and business. Daniel Cove (Bathurst Regional Council) also noted the importance of ensuring the youth are represented in decision-making and have a voice within the community. While the successes of many youth-targeted strategies were shared, there was an acknowledgement from Australian and Japanese panelists of the ongoing difficulty of youth retention in regional areas.
What ultimately binds Australian and Japanese regional experiences is a shared conviction that resilience is a collective process. It grows not from singular projects but from a sustained pattern of relationships, experiments and feedback loops, where councils cultivate the conditions for communities to adapt and grow.
The enduring lesson of the CLG–CLAIR Sydney forum is not about specific programs or policies but about ways of thinking. Resilience begins with recognition of what makes a place unique, of the assets already in motion and of the people—especially younger generations, whose ideas and energy will carry it forward.
About Professor Carol Mills
Carol Mills is a highly respected chief executive with unrivalled experience across the public, private, non-profit and university spheres. Her leadership career has covered a diversity of public policy and public administration areas including social and affordable housing, sport and recreation, arts and heritage administration liquor and gaming regulation, disability services, ageing, children's services and Aboriginal affairs.
Prior to being appointed as Director, Institute of Public Policy and Governance at UTS, Carol had over 20 years' experience in a range of executive roles in the public sector. This included the Chief Executive positions of Director General, Communities NSW and Department of Arts, Sport and Recreation in the New South Wales public serctor and Secretary, Department of Parliamentary Services, Canberra. She was also Deputy Director General in the Department of Housing and Ageing, Disability and HomeCare, and the inaugural head of the Office of Community Housing.
Written by
Adjunct Professor, DVC (Research)
This article was developed by the Institute for Public Policy and Governance at the University of Technology Sydney, which provides evidence-based advisory services, research and professional development in social planning and community development.