Foundation Member Roundtable - September 2019

The Victorian Cleantech Cluster (VCC) hosted its first Foundation Member roundtable on Wednesday 11th September, bringing together representatives from its membership base to seek ideas and feedback to understand the needs and priorities of its members.

Hosted at RMIT’s City Campus, the session was facilitated by Nigel Murphy, Chair of the VCC board and Managing Director of Earth Systems, who set the scene for the session and provided a forum for open discussion on the priority directions of the VCC to focus on in its early days. It was easy to see the breadth of experience and expertise from the VCC’s early members with members - backgrounds in renewable energy, IP protection, hygiene product manufacturing, waste management and circular economy, and environmental management were just a few of the skills present among the group.

Some repeating messages was clear throughout the session:

• To effectively map and understand the state of play in Victoria’s cleantech sector;
• Focus on facilitating capital investment and access to finance, including inviting venture capitalist to join as members and involving them early in conversations; 
• Host regular high-quality workshops and events, with cutting-edge speaker including problem-solving sessions for new and emerging issues; and,
• Build linkages across different industries. 

By using the outcomes of the day to inform the focus of activities over the next few months, the VCC board now has some guidance from its membership base on what is important to them and where to direct its resources.

There was also a conversation around fostering a mentality among members of wanting to contribute to the cluster. The strength and success of the VCC also rests with the engagement, enthusiasm and shared voices of its membership base, as well as an effective volunteer Board and Cluster Coordinator, which will be recruited for soon.

Some additional priorities for the VCC Board to deliver before the end of the calendar year including:

• Confirming membership categories 
• Recruit a ‘Cluster Coordinator’ to assist with the day to day management of the cluster including admin, membership management and events
• Exploring innovative funding models to build a sustainable cluster
• Prepare Cluster Calendar of events for the next 6 months
• Growing the VCC membership base and building a strong brand

The VCC Board has a lot to do over the coming months but they’ve delivered a lot since the VCC’s inception back in February 2019 and it’s launch in June. It’s an exciting time to be involved in Victoria’s transition to a more sustainable economy and with the skills and energy present in the room during the Roundtable, there’s no doubt the VCC are on the way to building a stronger, more coordinated sector.