From 14 to 19 Nov, Mr Yuta Watanabe, Assistant Director at CLAIR Sydney, visited Surf Coast Shire Council in Victoria for his study tour on local governments’ regional promotion policies.
Surf Coast Shire Council has a population of approximately 30,000 people, and is located 20 kilometres south of Geelong, the second largest city in Victoria. The area is lined with beautiful beaches and boasts large stretches of natural areas. In addition, as the council name implies, the area is a famous surfing spot where two of the biggest surf brands, Rip Curl and Quiksilver, were founded in the council area. Various water sport championship competitions are held in the area. Torquay, the main town in the council area, is the starting point of Australia’s National Heritage, the Great Ocean Road.
During his visit, Mr Watanabe had meetings with Mr Keith Baillie, Chief Executive Officer; and the three General Managers of the council, Ms Anne Howard, General Manager of Governance and Infrastructure; Mr Ransce Salan, General Manager of Environment and Development; and Mr Chris Pike, General Manager of Culture and Community. Mr Watanabe also met with Mr Matt Taylor, Manager of Economic Development & Tourism, to talk about the council’s policies and initiatives regarding regional revitalisation. Furthermore, he was also able to talk with Ms Liz Price, Chair of the Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism, to discuss the present state of tourism promotion of the Great Ocean Road regions and its prospects in the future.
Mr David Bell, who is a Councillor and a former Mayor of the council, graciously accepted Mr Watanabe’s study tour request when he was the Mayor, and drove around to different districts in the council area to show Mr Watanabe all the wonderful spots in each district. Additionally, Ms Lisa Thomason, Executive Assistant to the Mayor and Councillors, kindly assisted Mr Watanabe with his itinerary and arranged all the meetings with staff members of the council.
CLAIR Sydney would like to express our deepest gratitude to everyone at Surf Coast Shire Council who kindly accommodated Mr Watanabe during his study tour.
From the 3rd to the 13th of December, eight selected swimmers from the Fukuoka Swimming Association visited NSW, where they participated in joint training sessions with a local school and competed in the 2024-25 Speedo NSW Senior State Age Championships.
