East Gippsland Shire Council candidate, Joanne Eastman, is a long term resident who has raised her four children here and has, over the years, been an enthusiastic sportsperson and community volunteer with an interest in making things better for the now and the future.
Joanne taught accounting, legal studies and business management at Bairnsdale Secondary College for a number of years and is proud to see her past students doing well in East Gippsland and elsewhere.
Joanne ran successful Indigenous training and employment programs across Victoria before more recently working in community engagement.
In addition to being a life and executive coach with the International Coach Federation, she delivers personal and team development programs through Wiley’s renowned Everything DiSC Workplace Program.
Joanne said she will be pushing for greater transparency in decision-making, improved financial accountability, prioritisation of works and programs that improve the lives of residents and a freeze on the relentless increases in rates and charges.
Farming families have been particularly hard hit with average farm rates increasing by more than 30 per cent over the last council term – far outstripping the cost of living increases over that time – despite so many being so deeply affected by the drought and subsequent natural disasters.
“Good governance and better financial and project management are the keys to improving outcomes across the shire” she said.
She says they are essential to stop the ubiquitous trend of project variances going well over budget and money being stripped from services to, or programs for, ratepayers more generally.
“It’s not about finger-pointing, or naming and shaming, it’s about acknowledging the issue and being willing to put a genuine effort, upfront, into realistic feasibility studies, proper project costing, decent project planning with comprehensive risk assessment, merit based procurement, ongoing monitoring and evaluation and comprehensive and truthful reporting,” she said.
Joanne said she will support innovative and sustainable industries across the region that do not negatively impact existing businesses and industries or soils, water and groundwater.
She also wants to see equitable service delivery and timely and genuine involvement of communities in the decisions that impact them.
Joanne firmly believes councillors should be a solid link – not another barrier – between council and the community.
Joanne is also keen to see more support for businesses who currently lack the confidence or familiarity with the processes involved to be supported to register their businesses and services with council and to be confident that they will have equal opportunity to be successful with tenders or applications.
As well as phone, email and social media, she has set up a website where people can start or join discussions about issues that affect them.
While she knows her position in the draw makes her candidacy a lot more challenging, she says she is hoping to be “last on the ballot paper but first on their mind”.
