Thresholds for resilience in regional cotton communities

Rural Innovation Research Group

Man standing in cotton field with two children

Overview

This project was completed in June 2020. The research was funded by the Cotton Research and Development Corporation (CRDC) to understand what makes regional communities adaptive and resilient, and how the sector can contribute to supporting community resilience and adaptive capacity in cotton-growing regions.

The project team worked together with the cotton sector (Cotton Research and Development Corporation, Cotton Australia, Cotton Grower Associations) and with three regional communities in Goondiwindi (QLD), Warren and Walgett (NSW). The project drew on a community-based perspective to develop and test a Resilience Assessment Workbook designed to build regional adaptive capacity, and in making recommendations for potential cotton industry contributions to improving regional community resilience.

Project summary

The project took an action research approach with community and industry stakeholders to:

  • better understand the hard-to-measure social aspects of community resilience by drawing on a community perspective;
  • conduct community-based resilience assessments to:
    • identify current and future challenges affecting the resilience of the cotton sector and communities;
    • identify response options together with communities, and enact opportunities for adapting to change impacts;
  • develop a Resilience Assessment Workbook as a capacity-building tool that assists regional communities and other groups in developing adaptive responses to complex challenges and become more resilient;
  • provide guidance for potential cotton industry contributions to improving the resilience of regional communities.

Key results and recommendations

The resilience assessment processes helped to define potential roles for the cotton industry, local and state government, and other regional bodies in supporting community resilience. Opportunities for cross-sectoral action that were identified included:

  • improving networks, communication, and opportunities for new partnerships and decision-making at regional community, cross-industry and local government levels;
  • establishing local/regional think tanks and forums for community organisations, cross-industry groups and business owners;
  • pursing full-time grant writing and project management positions located in councils to assist with attaining funding for and managing regional resilience-building initiatives;
  • pursuing funding for and running capacity-building training for grant writing; marketing; leadership, advocacy, community-level governance skills;
  • strengthening local/regional cross-industry agricultural skills training capacities;
  • environmental groups working with council and education institutions to raise profile of environmental assets and environmental education opportunities.

The community-based resilience assessment processes delivered strategic-level recommendations to the cotton industry, including a concept plan for extending the Workbook to other regional communities and groups (councils, state government agencies, regional NRM, and cross-sectoral partners). By progressing these recommendations, the cotton industry will be better placed to build on existing strengths and capacities to improve industry social licence and support community resilience.

Key research recommendations to the cotton industry are:

  • Proactive engagement of cotton sector organisations with a diversity of local, regional and inter-regional stakeholders to enable the industry to:
    • better understand stakeholders,
    • lead conversations and build trust, and
    • strengthen the industry’s advocacy and influence at policy level through direct representation of stakeholder perspectives and needs.
  • Conduct a stocktake assessment of internal industry capacity in diverse stakeholder engagement and relationship building, networks and knowledge brokerage, and strategic and internal industry communication, to expand training and capacities. This can advance the industry’s existing engagement and broker roles.
  • Further support the resilience assessments begun in Warren and Walgett. While resilience action needs to be community-driven, it requires coordination, facilitation and ongoing engagement. It will be important for the industry to maintain momentum and trust in the emerging community relationships by:
    • building on the action research of this project, and
    • continuing regional conversations around community resilience and what type of intervention may be needed at higher levels.
  • Share and broker a handover of the resilience workbook (CRDC assisted by Cotton Australia and Cotton Info) with other communities, councils, industry and regional bodies, for example by building on interest and networks generated by progressing the resilience assessments in Warren and Walgett. This will assist the cotton industry to:
  • Strengthen existing and build new partnerships. Joint strategic investments around shared interests and pursuing collaborative grant opportunities with regional and state-level bodies will position the cotton industry as a community-engaged industry and leader in regional resilience.

Project Duration

1 July 2018 – 30 June 2020

Resources/Links

Faculty researchers

Collaborators

  • Professor Bernice Kotey, University of New England

Funding

  • Funded by: Cotton Research and Development Corporation.
  • Grant number: UM1902
  • Managed by: The University of Melbourne
  • Funding period: 2018-2020

Image courtesy of Carly Donnelly and Cotton Australia.

11 Jan 2021