Kia ora and welcome to the April edition of our monthly eNews, featuring the following:
- Q & A with WRLC Chair, The Honourable Tracey Martin
- Regional Housing Action Plan – Final version published
- Climate Change Impacts Assessment Consortium announcement
- 12-month contract: Project Lead – Regional Emissions Reduction Plan
- WRLC Work Programme Year 1 Timeline
Q & A with WRLC Independent Chair, the Honourable Tracey Martin
Behind every work programme, amazing people are committing much time and energy to build better for others.
The Honourable Tracey Martin is one such person. Tracey Martin is The Independent Chair of the Wellington Regional Leadership Committee, and she has lived up to a key lesson of her upbringing, to “get involved” throughout her life.
Most recently Martin has served as Minister for Children, Seniors, Internal Affairs and Associate Minister of Education from 2017 to 2020. She now holds various board roles, and is currently leading the Establishment Board creating a new public media entity. On 9 November 2020, Martin was granted the title “The Honourable” for life, in recognition of her term as a member of Te Komiti Matua o Aotearoa – the Executive Council.
What is your ultimate vision for WRLC?
“I’d like members to be confident that they can articulate with honesty and be straight up, that they can say, “this is something our area needs, that we want support for, how does this fit into the bigger picture”.
I want each of them to be able to see themselves Inside what the success plan is for this region, and I want government to always think, when they need to know what the Wellington region wants or can do, “we’ll go to the WRLC”.
~ Hon Tracey Martin, Independent Chair, WRLC
Read the full interview here
Regional Housing Action Plan (RHAP) – Final Version Published
The final version of the Regional Housing Action Plan (RHAP) is now available to view on our website, it’s vision is, “everyone in Aotearoa New Zealand lives in a home and within a community that meets their needs and aspirations.”
The RHAP sets out key moves to take over the next five years, to address housing-related growth challenges in the Wellington-Wairapara-Horowhenua region, and is now in the implementation stage.
The Regional Housing Action Plan project’s four deliverables are:
- Issues and opportunities paper
- Regional Housing Action Plan 2022 – 2027
- Interactive regional housing dashboard and updating process
- Housing Delivery Model Options Paper
Consortium to Deliver Regional Climate Change Impacts Assessment Announced
A key project in the WRLC work programme is the Wellington Regional Climate Change Impacts Assessment (WRCCIA). This project exists to develop a regionally consistent methodology to assess the impacts that climate change will have on mana whenua, communities and local government of the Wellington-Wairarapa-Horowhenua region.
In early April the regional project team announced they will be working with a consortium of many of Aotearoa’s experts from Beca, NIWA, GNS Science, and others including Judy Lawrence, Ilan Noy to undertake the Wellington Regional Climate Change Impact Assessment.
This consortium will take on one of the most complex climate change risk and impact assessments in Aotearoa to date.
This project brings together councils, mana whenua and central government agencies to collaborate on better understanding the “so what” of our exposure to climate change, for local government, the ecosystems, the economy and the community.
The consortium will bring together a huge range of existing data sources, and will design an assessment methodology and tools that will build the capacity of partners and regional stakeholders long-term, to better understand climate change risks and impacts, informing their everyday decision-making.
The findings will be used to support a wide range of local and regional initiatives to adapt to climate change, including the Growth Framework’s vision for climate resilient development over the next 30 years.
Stakeholder workshops are planned for later this year, with findings due in December 2022.
Stay updated and register your interest to be involved in the WRCCIA here.
12-month Contract: Regional Emissions Reduction Plan – Project Lead
Join our team and contribute to making a positive difference the the region’s future.
The purpose of the role is to deliver the Regional Emissions Reduction Plan – a collectively-owned emissions reduction plan which directs the transition to a low-no carbon region.
View the job description here.
To find out more about this opportunity please contact WRLC Programme Director Kim Kelly via email at: Kim@wrlc.org.nz.
The WRLC Work Programme
The WRLC’s work programme focuses on five key areas; iwi capacity, housing, climate change, transport and economic development and recovery. There are currently 10 live projects active in year one of our three year programme.
You can find more in depth information on each project on our website project page.
About the Wellington Regional Leadership Committee
WRLC is a joint regional partnership which brings together Iwi leaders, Mayors, Ministers of Government, and an independent chair, to support better integration and alignment across councils, government agencies, iwi and mana whenua in the Wellington-Wairarapa-Horowhenua region.
WRLC brings a solution-focused approach to finding better ways of working together to positively shape our region’s future, ensuring it is a place where people want to live and work.
If you have any questions or are interested in getting involved, you can contact us at hello@wrlc.org.nz
