The world is changing around us. Digital technology has become a core part of our everyday lives. Advances in technology impact everything, especially the world of work. Entire job sectors are emerging or disappearing, and workforces are rushing to keep up with change.

Automation and globalisation are changing the way we think about, and define, careers. Employment is becoming fluid, and people will go from having one profession to several in their working life. These may be entirely different roles, across entirely different sectors.

As the world of work changes, we will need to change our skills to match. The gap between the knowledge generated in the education system and the skills demanded by employers and individuals is widening.

Overcoming these limitations requires a priority focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), including the development of workplace skills in STEM.

Virtual Contact Centre Limited (VirtualCC) was created to benefit unemployed older Victorians (50+) by employing them to provide outsourced support functions to Business and Government. VirtualCC is a Not For Profit Company Limited By Guarantee.

In the future, we intend to extend this criteria to include those disadvantaged by their cultural background, long term employment status, or gender. In providing these services we aim to increase self respect and improve the mental health outcomes for disadvantaged regional Victorians.

Apollo Care brings best-practice frameworks for care provision and governance, staff culture, quality and compliance oversight and technology development to deliver exceptional resident experiences and improved business performance. Our communities enjoy the benefits of large-scale efficiencies and specialist expertise at a local level.

Apollo takes on the governance, compliance, administration and financial support for each facility that joins the Alliance, while aiming to ensure that each operator preserves its not-for- profit status, brand and connection to the local community – in effect, ‘de-risking’ the business of residential care.

In an Australian first, The City is also creating an advanced Innovation Hub for the blue economy to test and develop new marine practices and technologies that could help sustain vibrant blue economies across the globe.

Our research forecasts an exponential growth in Cockburn’s defence sector over the next decade.

Like many industries, there is a genuine skills gap within the defence sector, and it’s expected to grow as demand does. Without hubs like the one we’re proposing, this will only become a bigger issue.
Joining us in the world-class Innovation Hub will be researchers collaborating across four major universities. Specialised registered training organisations will provide training and upskilling, while PhD students from UWA will deliver research opportunities and help bring products to market. Finally, equity investor group Perth Angels and not-for-profits Business Station and Business Foundations are also onboard with a focus on providing business advisory support.

Up to 40 Blue Economy businesses will be guided to bring their ideas into commercial reality, with access to services which will build capacity and capability.

As an advanced research hub for the Blue Economy, Cockburn will test and develop new marine practices and technology.
This Innovation Hub was designed to help the City of Cockburn grow local jobs, all of which will increase the wellbeing and quality of life for our communities.

The Western Australian Government has committed to positioning the Western Trade Coast as a global advanced industries hub, and an investment and trade destination for new and emerging industries.

The Western Trade Coast is a major industrial complex in Perth’s south metropolitan area.

Covering 3,900 hectares between Munster and Rockingham, the Western Trade Coast includes the Australian Marine Complex, Kwinana Industrial Area, Rockingham Industry Zone and Latitude 32.

The Kwinana and Rockingham areas are home to a range of strategic and advanced industries, including existing critical minerals processing, chemical manufacturing, energy generation and most recently, large-scale ammonia and hydrogen production and export. Combined, the Kwinana and Rockingham areas contribute $20 billion to the State’s total gross output and support more than 13,000 jobs.

The Western Trade Coast will become even more significant with the progress of Westport, Western Australia’s new container port at Kwinana. Westport will unlock further industrial development, technology innovation and local jobs – linked directly to our export markets.

“We have five universities in the world’s top 100 and our university sector is our fourth largest export industry, bringing in about $18 billion per annum,” he said.

“In 2014, The Global Creativity Index ranked Australia fifth in the world; this year we came first.

“The Bloomberg Innovation Index rates Australia 13th in the world, and the Global Innovation Index rates Australia 17th, with our human capital and research capabilities ranked seventh in the world.

“But our innovation efficiency – that’s our ability to take new discoveries and turn them into economic benefits – is ranked at 81st in the world.”

Peter Klinken: Chief Scientist

Our start-up economy is on the rise, with the Gold Coast ranked fifth in Australia for new business starts. Our innovative business culture positions us among the top six cities in Australia for lodging patent applications on a per capita basis.

Our support for start-ups has never been stronger with funding and grants designed to turn great ideas into commercial reality and take them to the world.

The Gold Coast is moving to establish our city as an entrepreneurial hub that is globally recognised as a place where knowledge, innovation and commercialisation are the key drivers of growth in the local economy.

Sport is part of the cultural identity of many Australians. Sport isn’t just a favoured pastime for Australians. It is a significant contributor to the Australian economy.

In Australia, sports and recreational organisations attract more volunteers than any other type of organisation.

Major sporting events – grand finals, international cricket, grand slam tournaments, surfing competitions and cycling challenges – as well as less watched events – weekend matches, morning and afternoon training sessions and amateur competitions – fill calendars and recreational time.

Sport is part of the cultural identity of many Australians. Sport isn’t just a favoured pastime for Australians. It is a significant contributor to the Australian economy.

In Australia, sports and recreational organisations attract more volunteers than any other type of organisation.

Major sporting events – grand finals, international cricket, grand slam tournaments, surfing competitions and cycling challenges – as well as less watched events – weekend matches, morning and afternoon training sessions and amateur competitions – fill calendars and recreational time.

The world of sports won’t escape this trend and actually is already integrating robotics. Whether you are a trainer, a player, a club, fan, viewer, stadium owner or groundsman, you too will be affected by present and future robots (most of them equipped with AI).

Most robots in sports currently assist or help humans practice rather than replace them. The robots performing actual sporting activities are for now showcased examples, proof of concepts, part of researches

The Hunter region has a rich history of innovation and ingenuity, of reinvention and resilience, of gritty creativity and industry.

As the largest regional economy in Australia (larger than Tasmania, Northern Territory, or the ACT), the Hunter region boast world-class manufacturing capabilities and attracts the brightest talent from leading innovators, sustainability experts, progressive manufacturers, and technologists.

Being immersed in this environment fuels our innovation, complements our expertise, and drives optimum outcomes for our clients.

NTDC is tasked with validating and actioning the valuable strategic planning work that has been undertaken in recent years to underpin effective and sustainable economic transition in Northern and North-East Tasmania whilst continuing to place the importance of education and health in our communities.

The Tasmanian Council of Social Service (TasCOSS) is the peak body for the community services industry in Tasmania. We advocate to challenge and change the systems, behaviours and attitudes that create poverty, inequality and exclusion, to ensure all Tasmanians have the same opportunity to live a good life.

General purpose artificial intelligence technologies such as ChatGPT, are quickly transforming the way AI systems are built and deployed.

While these technologies are expected to brin benefits in the coming year, their disruptive nature raises questions around privacy and intellectual property rights, liability and accountability, and concerns about the potential to spread disinformation and misinformation.

Anyone can have a great idea or come up with an innovative solution to a problem. The hard part when you’re in a region can be getting access to the help you need to turn ideas into a business and a business into a global success story. Advance Queensland is helping Queenslanders to grow their business and build an innovation economy.

The Whitsunday Climate Innovation Hub, an initiative of the Whitsunday Regional Council, is aiming to improve the resilience of the Whitsunday region in the face of increasing climate change hazards, such as storm tide and coastal erosion. The Hub acts as a think-tank, bringing together national and international experts in law, climate adaptation, finance, insurance, tourism and agriculture, and provides climate information to the wider community.

The economy of the Greater Whitsunday region offers diverse investment opportunities with a proven track record for growth and prosperity. The Isaac region is home to the Bowen Basin, housing the largest coal mining deposits in Australia. Most of Queensland’s prime coking coal reserves are mined here, including the highest-grade metallurgical coal in the world.

Mackay is the centre of one of Australia’s most developed Mining, Equipment, Technology and Service (METS) industries and has enormous bio-futures potential. The Whitsundays is not only a world-class tourism destination, attracting more than a million visitors annually, but is a highly developed food producing region with sugar cane, horticulture and aquaculture.