about us

 

Why this blog?

We simply want to share some of our interesting adventures and insights with you.  And introduce you to our worldwide network of friends. 

What do we do?

Our day job is investment attraction, industry clusters, regional development, hard and soft infrastructure, innovation policy, scoping and realising your ideas – and accessing government grants.  We walk the talk on collaboration! People tell us we are very good at this.

We talk a lot about ‘iconic projects’ and ‘best practice’. This is our mantra because there is no point in accepting second-rate outcomes. We also reserve the right to make political comment – but we tread warily because some of our members are significantly involved in political spheres.

We also manage a global network of collaborators with an interest in the above. My monthly newsletter is called ‘Cockatoo’  – it updates our members on the latest research projects, business opportunities, and new policies, programs, government grants etc. 

We also have a ‘Cockatoo Connect’ service, which is a daily service that brings urgent information to the attention of members, and connects people with people. 

Where are we? Our base is Canberra, Australia’s beautiful capital. We have members in all states of Australia, and in 33 countries – so we get around! Our members include company executives, government officials, academics, industry association executives, farmers, regional development practitioners, students, retirees etc.

‘Cockatoo’ is a non-profit initiative, but subscriptions for Australian and NZ readers ($A100 per year – 12 issues) help us meet administration costs.  If you wish to join the Cockatoo fraternity and keep abreast of exciting agendas, please contact us at apd@orac.net.au. 

Note – membership for readers outside A/NZ is FREE! Simply email us to subscribe. 

Rod Brown, Cockatoo Network