Go-getter and head of think tank Regional Australia Institute, Su McCluskey, has driven a truck, worked in the Tax Office and run a cattle farm. Last year she won the Australian Financial Review and Westpac regional women of influence award.
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In an interview with The Canberra Times, Ms McClusky she is calling on Canberra's regions – which she says are already vibrant – to look beyond their backyards and be more open to change and development.
"A third of the population lives in the regions, so it's important we think about how we can develop them," she said.
On potential
The think tank of which Ms McCluskey is chief executive, Regional Australia Institute, is a government-funded body established in 2012 that researches how to make Australia's regions sustainable.
Ms McCluskey said she sees "huge potential" in Canberra's regions and that they have a lot to learn from towns like Orange and Collector, as well as the southern highlands.
Orange is "very confident and outward looking" and has "really marketed itself well to Sydney in terms of tourism and weekend getaways", she said.
Ms McCluskey, who travels to country towns almost every week, said regional development works best when it starts from within.
Under her oversight, Regional Australia produced the first online interactive index mapping the competitiveness of Australia's regions, based on measures like access to technology, human capital and infrastructure.
She said the more information regions have about what has worked in other places, the more likely they were to be able to improve their own economy.
On wind farms and development
Ms McCluskey said fear of the unknown can get in the way, however.
"There is a bit of 'not in my backyard'," she said. "I think people are scared of change and we have a bit of this 'It's fine to build a wind farm if it’s down the road but don’t put it near me'."
She had been impressed by regional New Zealand from what she had seen on a recent trip, she said. "New Zealanders just get on and do it. They say, 'Oh, yeah. This is going to be good for the country, so let's just do it.' We seem to get caught up in protests and objections," she said.
On infrastructure
Ms McCluskey, who knows the value of a good road from her daily commute to Canberra from Yass, said infrastructure was important but faster internet speeds may be more important to the regions.
"You have to weigh up what's the cost. Infrastructure is really expensive and we can't predict what the future is going to look like," she said.
"If some of the ways we are going to deliver things is through knowledge and the internet, maybe it's making sure connectivity through the internet is just as important as physical connectivity."
On consultation
However, Ms McCluskey stressed that clear and honest consultation was vital to the success of any regional development project. "[Regional communities] need to be more informed and say, in their own language, what it means for them," she said.
"A lot of the work we do, we think about how we are going to communicate it, because there’s no point doing the research if you don’t know how you’re going to communicate it," Ms McCluskey said.
Since quitting her job as a delivery driver, Ms McCluskey got a degree at university and has since worked for the then Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources; the Business Council of Australia, the National Farmers' Federation and the Australian Taxation Office.
Ms McCluskey said she is keen for more regional leaders to put their hands up to be recognised in this year's women of influence awards, nominations for which close on Sunday.
