1 July 2013

20 years of sustainability and the environment

| johnboy
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The Office of the Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment (OCSE) is noting its 20th birthday today:

Commissioner Bob Neil today led celebrations as the Office of the Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment (OCSE) celebrated its 20th birthday.

Since its inception in 1993, the Office has delivered 531 recommendations, with 279 of these deriving from the State of the Environment reports.

Neil was joined by Simon Corbell MLA, Minister for Environment and Sustainable Development, as Bill Wood AM, Minister for Land, Environment and Planning in 1993, launched “Leading the Way”, a history of the Office of the Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment.

The current Commissioner, who was joined by inaugural Commissioner Dr Joe Baker and former Commissioner Dr Rosemary Purdie, reflected on the significant achievements of the Office.

“We have come a long way since the organisation’s early beginnings,” Commissioner Neil said. “It has taken a lot of hard work and a tremendous amount of commitment from a large number of people to achieve everything that we have to date.

“Canberrans place a high value on the city’s reputation as the bush capital and the Office aims to share its vision of ‘living sustainably’ by advancing sustainability and environmental security through advocacy, independent scrutiny reporting and advice.”

The independent role of the ACT environment Commissioner was the first in Australia and the third in the world, established in 1993 with full bipartisan support in the Legislative Assembly.

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Have a read of their book. They did a lot in the early years under a very independent commissioner.

breda said :

“Since its inception in 1993, the Office has delivered 531 recommendations, with 279 of these deriving from the State of the Environment reports.”

Interesting KPI. So, they deliver about 23 recommendations a year, and that is their measure of achievement.

Immediate savings option for the Budget, IMO. I guarantee that no-one except themselves would even notice if they vanished.

yeah that seems like “Sweet Fanny Adams” over two decades, considering the emphasis on environment and sustainability in that period.
Is that including the plastic bag ban? That’s a good one.

“Since its inception in 1993, the Office has delivered 531 recommendations, with 279 of these deriving from the State of the Environment reports.”

Interesting KPI. So, they deliver about 23 recommendations a year, and that is their measure of achievement.

Immediate savings option for the Budget, IMO. I guarantee that no-one except themselves would even notice if they vanished.

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