Initial Insights - Ballina Shire
The Imagine Northern Rivers workshop series was held in Ballina Shire in August and September 2025. In total, 55 people participated representing the civic, business, not-for-profit, government, resilience and cultural sectors, as well as general residents. Workshops were held in these four localities: Ballina, Lennox Head, Alstonville and Wardell. Participants responded to a series of questions designed to elicit an understanding of what a regenerative, safe and adaptive future could be like within the lifetime of a child born today.
So far we have collated the following findings from 4 workshops across the Ballina Shire:
1. What does a safe, regenerative & adaptive future look like?
Possible Future of Learning (2030)
Participants generated 500 responses to this prompt: "“Imagine… It's 2030 and a child born today is turning 5 years old, beginning their formal learning journey alongside the world of play… What does learning look like in a world where children feel safe, loved and nourished at all levels of their being? … How are children developing resilience and building the skills, values and qualities they will need to live and contribute in a changing world?”
Possible Future of Climate Adaptation (2035)
Participants generated 473 responses to this prompt: "Imagine... It's 2035 and a child born today is turning 10 years old. The outcomes of 10+ years of work by government and community to adapt to climate change and strengthen resilience is becoming visible around them. What has changed in the design of our built environment and our relationship with the natural environment, that is strengthening our resilience to an increase in temperature, severe fire weather, sea level rise & changing rainfall patterns? ... What changes do you notice in how your child's family is living and moving around in the world, that is contributing to shared resilience and regeneration?"
More data to be published soon.
Detailed reports are available at the bottom of this page.
2. What do people want to retain from the present?
Participants generated 224 responses to the question “what do you value most about the present, and want to retain in to the future”. The following are the top themes / ideas.
3. What do people want us to stop doing or let go of?
Participants generated 200 responses to the question “what do we need to let of or stop doing, in order to help our region regenerate as we move towards the future?” The following are the top themes / ideas.
Reports for each of the above themes are available here:
THE PRESENT
THE FUTURE