A new era for Geelong

In honour of his recent appointment to Mayor of Geelong, Ad Astra caught up with Trent Sullivan (OGC 2010).

Can you tell us about your experience at Geelong College and how it shaped your personal and professional journey?

All of my education has been in Geelong, across all levels and different sectors of the education system. This includes Fyans Park Primary, Geelong High, The Geelong College, and Deakin University.

The Geelong College was instrumental in developing the discipline and the work ethic that is required as we enter adulthood and the workforce.

It helped sharpen my attitude, gave me the maturity to see the bigger picture, and instilled the confidence I needed to fully pursue my educational and professional goals.

As a Geelong local, what are some of your favourite things about the city and what do you see as its key strengths and assets?

We’re a thriving city, with diverse natural assets such as the bay, a range of beaches, bushland and a great food and beverage scene.

We’ve seen an acceleration, especially in the past few years, of people being drawn to Geelong for affordability and lifestyle reasons.

The key is to maintain our sense of community, of people being connected to the area they live in, while providing access to the services and facilities that people expect from a metropolitan city.

Geelong’s proximity to Melbourne; its road, rail, air, and sea connections; and a growing skilled and diversified workforce, means we are attractive to new and expanding businesses. Our incredible business growth and major investment are backed by a booming visitor economy; and a creative culture that is headlined by our UNESCO City of Design credentials.

The region’s future is very bright, and there’s so much to look forward to.

As Mayor, what are your key priorities for the City of Greater Geelong and what initiatives are you currently working on to achieve these goals?

I am really keen to see us maintain the qualities that have made Geelong such an attractive region to invest and live in over the past five years.

To help us do this, it is critical that we get our transport network right.

Both from a congestion point of view and in reducing our carbon footprint.

How we move in and around Geelong – especially in the CBD and our new growth communities, to the south, north and west – will really dictate whether we can maintain our standard of liveability.

The quality and frequency of our public transport system needs to improve, as does the reach of our rail network.

We also need to put a lot of work into planning for an environmentally sustainable future.

In the waste sector, we’re progressing our circular economy.

In conjunction with Barwon Water and other councils, we’re developing a facility to process food and garden waste.

And we’re pursuing a regional hub to better recover and reuse waste, which will improve recycling rates and reduce what ends up in landfill.

These projects form part of our netzero carbon emissions plan, which sets ambitious targets for both the Council and the wider community to pursue.

Geelong has enjoyed some of the strongest economic growth in Australia in recent years.

Unemployment has reached record lows; our job numbers have soared; and our Gross Regional Product has hit new highs.

We need to continue to:

• Attract and facilitate public and private investment

• Promote and leverage the competitive strengths and attractiveness of our region, globally, nationally and locally

• Support entrepreneurs, start-ups, innovation, research, and digital connectivity

• Attract businesses with a carbon neutral and circular economy focus; and

• Work with stakeholders to prepare our workforce for the jobs of the future.

Can you tell us about any particular challenges or obstacles you’ve faced in your role as Mayor, and how you’ve worked to overcome them?

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a number of challenges.

We had to be very responsive and agile in responding to the lockdowns.

Council came up with targeted and direct support packages, aimed at alleviating the impacts for a wide range of sectors and community members.

We ran deficit budgets to enable us to provide that support, and invested heavily in capital works projects while interest rates were low.

We’re now dealing with a very different economic climate.

Inflation, higher interest rates, and our rate-capped environment means we are having to balance our spending with remaining financially sustainable in the medium-term.

What advice would you give to young people who are interested in getting involved in politics and making a difference in their communities?

Through the Youth Council and advisory committees, the Council is very keen to elevate and support more young people to have their say on the issues that affect them.

I know, quite often, the hardest step to take is the first one.

But our young people should all feel supported and encouraged to provide input into their community.

Once you have participated in the conversation, and you’ve connected with people who share common interests or values, it becomes a lot easier.

Find something you are passionate about, no matter how big or small, and pursue it. Everybody has the ability to have a positive influence.