Blog
Notes on local government issues
Working with consultants – 15 ways to reduce the risks and maximise the benefits
Working with a consultant for the first time carries some risks. There’s a lot of trust involved – you discuss your project and they disappear, leaving you to hope they produce what you need, on time. Commissioning assistance is an important decision, and the outputs...
How to write excellent council reports
Three obstacles you might face when sitting down to write a council report are: resistance to getting startedfear of writing a boring reportnot knowing exactly how to go about moving your report from 'okay' to excellent'. Here’s how you can overcome these obstacles to...
Review: Navigating Critical 21st Century Transitions
A report on Navigating Critical 21st Century Transitions outlines five transitions we all need to make to: low emissions livingbe better prepared for living in a disrupted climatebe a low waste societybe more connected as a communityadjust to the need for life-long...
How to summarise and report on submissions
I’m the first to admit that summarising submissions is not glamorous work … but it is an essential element of consultation. When submitters can see their views are included in the feedback to councillors, and that they are being taken seriously, they will have more...
Viable options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
The Climate Change Commission's 2021 report includes a number of recommendations for central and local government to work together on reducing New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions. These improvements to legislation, funding, and public engagement will be...
Audit New Zealand advice on LTP consultation documents and community engagement
Over the next couple of months New Zealand councils will be releasing their Long Term Plan (LTP) consultation documents, so it’s timely to review Audit New Zealand’s advice on how to make these documents as effective as possible. In ‘Long-term plans: Our audits of...
How to write an interesting consultation document
One of the challenges of writing a concise, interesting resource management or Long Term Plan consultation document is that the starting point is a much larger, more detailed source of information. Councils need to transform the key elements of detailed analysis into...
How to write a submission on a council plan
Last week I edited a submission for a client (Ian McComb, of Small Time Developments Ltd) which includes some really good practices. That experience inspired the following checklist which you may find helpful if you are writing a submission on a council plan. (This...
Five ways to avoid OOS when working at home
Thanks to Covid-19, this was a year where working at home became normal. As well as the global benefit of lower emissions from vehicles, we also enjoyed: less traffic on the roadwearing soft pants at workhanging out with the dogbeing trusted to deliver on timehaving...