A number of festivals are held in the Hume region offering something for everyone. The Bright Autumn Festival, Euroa's Show n Shine, Wangaratta Festival of Jazz, Rutherglen Winery Walkabout, APS Head of the River in Nagambie, the Australian Superbike Championship in Winton and SheppARTon Festival are just a few to add to your calendar.

City of Melbourne is proud to be part of a local and international movement of cities that will act to reduce emissions and to address climate change impacts.

The greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming are generated from electricity, gas, transport, and waste produced in our city. They are also generated by food and agriculture, goods and services, and the resources that go into packaging, clothes and building materials. Too many greenhouse gas emissions act like a blanket around the earth, causing temperatures to rise.

To reduce greenhouse emissions, we need collective action by customers and businesses, commuters and transport companies, tenants and building owners, investors and government regulators. By taking action together, we can generate health and social benefits and reduce the cost of environmental impact.

We are already investing in renewable energy, urban forests, green buildings, waste innovation and in better pedestrian and cycling infrastructure. Through such creative initiatives, we can deliver better health for our community together with economic, social and environmental benefits.

We are doing this because we want our city to remain a great place to live, work and visit, but climate change is threatening that.

As Melbourne feels the effects of climate change it threatens the liveability of our city through heatwaves, flooding, drought and poor air quality.

High value manufacturing is one promising prospective growth sector for the region, particularly in Geelong. The sector provides an opportunity to retain the depth of Geelong’s manufacturing know-how and use those skills for different applications, such as automotive and aeronautical parts design and production, clean technologies and advanced fibre manufacturing.

Creative industries are an evolving mix of sectors spanning arts and culture, screen and design. They cover disciplines as diverse as game development and graphic design, fashion and filmmaking, media and music, comedy and craft, and include activities that are both commercially-driven and community-based, experimental and export-intense.

Creative industries are important to our prosperity. They drive new approaches to job creation and industry innovation. As the economy transitions and jobs of the future emerge, creative industries will be increasingly important to the future of the next generation.

Victoria is the national leader in visual and performing arts. Melbourne hosts 62,000 live music concerts each year and Victoria has three times more live music performances than the national average, and the state is home to leading libraries, galleries and museums

The region has gold, mineral sand and rare earth mining, and renewable energy sectors.

The region is home to Fosterville Mine – the largest producer of gold in Victoria. Since commencing exploration in 2005, it has produced over 3.5 million ounces. Simulations by the Geological Survey of Victoria predict significant gold deposits in the vicinity of 75-million ounces, with multiple million-ounce occurrences, still to be unearthed.

Antimony is the second-most valuable metallic commodity in Victoria after gold, and on Australia’s critical mineral list. Loddon Mallee is home to Australia’s largest antimony producer located in the City of Greater Bendigo. The mine is estimated to contain 17,800 tonnes of antimony – a mineral essential for hardening lead in storage batteries and producing semiconductors.

VHM Limited has exploration tenements in the region for zircon and other rare earth minerals critical in the manufacture of industrial permanent magnets and high energy density batteries required in production of electric vehicles and essential for the renewable energy market.

The Region has irrigated dairy and horticulture in the local government areas adjacent to the Murray River as well as large-scale cropping and grazing throughout the Region.

Intensive animal husbandry is of growing importance in certain locations in the southern part of the Region.

Agriculture and food production play a major role supporting the economy of rural communities, small towns and regional centres.

The extensive food processing industry adds value to the agricultural produce within the Region, creating jobs and increasing the economic output from the Region.

Often described as Australia's heart of culture, Melbourne's attractions include sporting events, art galleries, live music, festivals and fashion events that are popular with tourists and locals alike.

Explore the National Gallery of Victoria, Australia’s oldest and most renowned public art museum. The Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne offers a mix of diverse plant collections and tranquil lakes.

Melbourne’s Luna Park is renowned as the city’s oldest amusement park. From roller coasters to motion simulators, the park offers classic family entertainment with its state-of-the-art attractions.

Featuring the highest observation deck in Melbourne, the Eureka Tower offers surreal views of the entire city.

Tourism in Barwon South West represents a significant opportunity for future growth. While it was not identified by the Victorian Government as one of the future opportunity industries, it is a major economic driver for the Barwon South West region, particularly in coastal areas.

The regions’ strengths are predominantly in its nature-based attractions, such as rugged coastline, natural parks and reserves, wildlife, water, beaches and recreational fishing. The Great Ocean Road is of particular importance to the whole region, as it intersects the Barwon and Great South Coast regions, and is one of Victoria’s most iconic tourism assets.

The Great Ocean Road attracts more than 6 million tourists each year. This will rise to more than 8 million tourists in the next decade.

Agriculture is still an important component of the Hume economy but its contribution is declining. The service economy has experienced the strongest employment growth in the last decade. Viticulture has grown as an industry, supported by fine-food areas, particularly in Milawa, Oxley and the Kiewa, Ovens and King Valleys.

The Goulburn Valley has a strong rural economy based on irrigated and dry land agriculture, grazing, viticulture and forestry. The region is widely regarded as the food bowl of the Murray darling Basin. In other areas particularly in Strathbogie Shire, there is a significant equine industry.

The Goulburn Valley region is of national significance for dairying and horticulture and supports a large fruit and vegetable processing industry. The dairy and beef industries account for a high proportion of this value, although wool and meat dominate in Strathbogie Shire. Major food-processing companies are located in the region, including SpC Ardmona, Campbell’s Soups and Unilever.

The main primary industries are horticulture, dairy, cropping, viticulture, wool, forestry and grazing (sheep and beef).

Grazing is the dominant agricultural land use and the proximity of the region to Melbourne accounts for the relatively high value of production, particularly from the poultry industry. Pockets of horticulture also exist, including nurseries, cut flowers, cultivated turf, tomatoes and berries produced primarily for the Melbourne market. The region also has viticulture and aquaculture industries (trout and salmon).

The Barwon region has an array of renewable energy assets, including wind, solar and bioenergy. Solar power is the most prominent source of renewable energy in the region, and along with wind is the communities preferred technology for renewable generation

The current renewable energy landscape in Barwon includes wind and solar generation in the inland northern areas of Colac Otway as well as solar farms in Geelong and near Torquay.

Viva Energy’s Geelong Refinery began operations in 1954. Today it’s one of two refineries remaining in Australia, employing around 700 people and supplying over 50 percent of Victoria’s and 10 percent of Australia’s fuel.

The Barwon Renewable Energy Partnership (B-REP) of Barwon Water, Barwon Health and Geelong Port has collectively taken a big step towards using 100% renewable electricity and producing net zero emissions having secured a power purchase agreement (PPA) with a local wind farm.

Barwon Water has drawn on its 110-year knowledge of managing water and wastewater to partner with local councils to transform organic waste into valuable resources.

The Regional Renewable Organics Network (Regional RON) would process 40,000 tonnes of household, commercial and industrial organic waste each year, diverting waste from landfill and concentrating it into 8,000 tonnes of products that improve soil quality for agricultural uses, as well as generating renewable energy.

Manufacturing is the largest employer in the Central Hume region, followed by retail, health and community services. Wodonga has an important manufacturing base, with many national companies established in the area as well as a significant defence force presence.

Hume is a fast-growing region in Victoria with a social and cultural fabric and heritage to match its natural beauty. Renowned for world-class wines and gourmet food, the region is woven together by the Goulburn, Broken, Ovens, Kind and Kiewa Rivers – all vital to sustaining a rich environment, lifestyle and business. The Strathbogie Ranges represent the gateway to Victoria’s High Country and integral to the region popularity for nature-based tourism and cycling.

Hume is extremely varied in its industry and employment make-up, with a strong concentration of agriculture in the west and the alpine, wine and gourmet food areas in the region's east making tourism a strong contributor to regional employment.

Two of Australia’s nationally important transport routes – the Hume and Goulburn Valley transport corridors – traverse the region, providing an exceptional competitive advantage by linking supply chains to national and international markets through Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Canberra.

The Goulburn Valley area is a long-established agricultural region, which is at the forefront of global food production. Traditional broad acre farming combined with dairy, viticulture, orchards, olives and aquaculture endorse the 'food bowl' label, and various large and international companies call the region home including SPC Ardmona, Uncle Toby's, Mars Petcare and the Woolworths Distribution Centre.

Geelong has several growing and thriving industries - including advanced manufacturing, clean technologies, transport, warehousing and logistics, research and innovation, professional and advisory services, creative industries, the visitor economy and major events.

The Greater Avalon Industrial Precinct is one of several locations to attract a range of innovative industries and will soon be home to Hanwha Defense Australia’s $170 million Armoured Vehicle Centre of Excellence, as well as Recharge Industries $300 million lithium-ion battery cell production facility.

Hanwha Defense Australia will manufacture self-propelled howitzers and armoured ammunition resupply vehicles for the Australian Army. Recharge Industries will create thousands of jobs supplying new generation batteries to defence and commercial customers.

Geelong companies with defence industry capabilities include Air Radiators, Automotive Research Centre, BullEx Australia, Chemring, Cross Laminated Offsite Solutions, Deakin University, Flaim Systems, Hanwha, IXL Group, Marand, McHugh & Eastwood, Quickstep, RAPP Australia, Recharge Industries, RPC Technologies, Sykes, Winchester, UMS and XTM Performance.

As chair of the Grampians New Energy Taskforce (GNET) Mr Benjamin oversees working groups to maximise the economic and community benefits of investment and innovation in new and renewable energy.

Mining at Ballarat Gold Mine aims to maintain a production rate of 40,000 to 50,000 ounces of gold per year from underground drilling programmes targeting resources adjacent to existing workings and which have significant additional potential for mine life extension.

The Region is home to the prosperous and vibrant regional cities of Bendigo, one of the State’s largest and fastest growing regional cities, and Mildura, the major regional city for the north of the Region and the largest urban centre on the edge of the outback. Echuca, Swan Hill, Castlemaine, Gisborne, Kyneton and Maryborough are also important centres, offering employment and lifestyle services.

Big ideas and extraordinary talent drive our creative sector, which spans the performing and visuals arts, music, design, digital game development, film and television, fashion, literature and publishing, and more.

We’re proud of our local artists and creative professionals and support them to develop and maintain thriving careers here in Victoria.

From solo practitioners, grassroots collectives and small businesses to major organisations and institutions, we support the sector at all levels. We do this through a range of programs and initiatives that raise the profile, reach and impact of Victorian creatives, and by investing in a strong creative ecosystem.

Initiatives that lead to planning and development of tourism infrastructure and services that increase visitation and spend across the Region and attract investment.

This will include initiatives that increase opportunities for Aboriginal people through cultural tourism in areas such as Gunbower Forest, as well as other initiatives that leverage projects already undertaken to improve tourism in the Region, such as the Ports of the Murray River strategy, our arts, cultural and recreational precincts, and other iconic natural and cultural heritage assets such as our significant Goldfields heritage.

These initiatives will help improve the quality of assets and customer satisfaction thereby leading to increased tourism, more jobs and, ultimately, protection of our culture, heritage and natural assets.

The creative and entertainment sector is diverse, consisting of a mix of artistic and non-artistic sectors, commercially driven businesses, start-ups and microenterprises, individual practitioners, not-for-profit and community organisations, and cultural institutions.

The creative scene in East Gippsland is strong, but there is a lack of arts infrastructure and an under celebration of the region’s heritage and culture.

The state-of-the-art Gippsland Performing Arts Centre is set to electrify the region’s performing arts scene and create world-class professional training opportunities for artists across Gippsland.

Stretching from the western edge of Melbourne to the South Australian border, the Grampians region includes the major townships of Edenhope, Nhill, Warracknabeal, Horsham, Stawell, Ararat, Beaufort, Ballarat, Bannockburn, Daylesford and Bacchus Marsh.

Steeped in gold rush history the Grampians is home to Sovereign Hill, the Silo Arts Trail and natural attractions including the Grampians National Park, Mt Arapiles and the Little Desert National Park.

Agriculture and food production are major industries across the Grampians, with extensive dryland farming in the Wimmera Southern Mallee sub-region. Opportunities across the region include artisanal food and beverage production, broad acre intensive cropping and diversified agriculture.

The Grampians region is positioned to capitalise on renewable energy, manufacturing, tourism and intensified agriculture production.

Melbourne has a highly diversified economy with particular strengths in finance, manufacturing, research, IT, education, logistics, transportation and tourism.

Melbourne houses the headquarters of many of Australia's largest corporations, including five of the ten largest in the country (based on revenue), and five of the largest seven in the country.

It is the Australian base for a number of significant manufacturers including Boeing Australia, truck makers Kenworth and Iveco, Cadbury, Alstom and Jayco.

It is also home to a wide variety of other manufacturers, ranging from petrochemicals and pharmaceuticals to fashion garments, paper manufacturing and food processing.

The city also has a research and development hub for Ford Australia, as well as a global design studio and technical centre for General Motors and Toyota

CSL one of the world's top five biotech companies, and Sigma Pharmaceuticals have their headquarters in Melbourne. The two are the largest listed Australian pharmaceutical companies. Melbourne has an important ICT industry, home to more than half of Australia’s top 20 technology companies.

As Loddon Mallee’s business ecosystem expands, so does its workforce needs. The region envisions growing its tertiary offerings to keep up with industry demand, while building a reputation for innovation. Initiatives like SuniTAFE’s SMART Farm training hub, or the reputed La Trobe School of Rural Health are prime examples of a region invested in ‘growing its own’.

Centres like Mildura and Bendigo are large enough to attract marquee tertiary institutions and global businesses, yet small enough to be able to foster meaningful relationships between the two.

The Fraunhofer Initiative uniting La Trobe University, the City of Greater Bendigo, and Bendigo Regional Manufacturing Group is one example of many.