Board meeting 25 March 2021 Communique

Last updated: 7 August 2023
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Today the Sustainability Victoria Board held its second meeting for the year. We continue to look forward to meeting in person, however are learning the benefits of Zoom, especially for our regional board members.

Given significant growth with Sustainability Victoria doubling its delivery portfolio over the past 12 months, the Board is focused on uplifting organisational capabilities, with the meeting including:

  • a workshop to develop Sustainability Victoria’s strategic plan – SV2030 – we are looking forward to working with stakeholders and partners across Victoria to bring this plan to light – stay tuned!
  • new Terms of Reference for its new Performance and Culture Committee to further strengthen oversight of Sustainability Victoria’s organisational performance – we think culture is key to our success.

Following 12 months of staff engagement, the Board was briefed on the new SV Operating Model which will take effect on Tuesday 6 April. This is a new first for SV, and will position us to support the government and all Victorians to build a net zero waste and net zero carbon future.

The Board is proud of the achievements of Sustainability Victoria over this time particularly:

  • the Detox your Home program delivered a blitz of 17 events in Q2 of FY20-21, attended by 1,794 householders. 40 tonnes of hazardous waste were collected at blitz events, removing it from people’s homes – that’s the equivalent of around 20,000 2L containers of household bleach.
  • the $3.37 million Community Power Hubs program was launched by Minister D’Ambrosio on 1 March. The program follows a successful 2017-20 pilot program, enabling not-for-profit and social enterprise organisations to apply for funding to develop and deliver community-owned renewable energy projects in their region. This delivered environmental, social and economic returns valued at more than $14.5 million. This is the equivalent to generating $13 of value for every dollar of the Victorian Government's investment.

We were also very fortunate that John Bradley, Secretary of the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) presented to the Board at this meeting. Mr Bradley thanked the Board for delivery of a significant program of work throughout FY2020/21, maintaining momentum throughout the COVID pandemic. There was clear agreement on the pivotal role of Sustainability Victoria in the delivery of the Recycling Victoria policy.