Some of the brightest minds in the Queenstown Lakes District met for the second time on 29 April to kick start the
Community and Economic Recovery taskforces.
The taskforce steering group was announced by Queenstown Lakes District Mayor Jim Boult in early April as a way to bring
together some of the community’s leading thinkers. It is one facet of a wider approach to the district’s recovery
programme.
A range of people from diverse backgrounds form the steering group, which is shaping the terms of reference and
membership of both taskforces. This group consist of the Mayor and individuals with a broad range of expertise. This
includes business and community leaders and those with experience in strategy development, sustainability and our
environment, central and local government, arts and culture, finance, start-ups, and Iwi. Steering group members are
representative of the whole district, ensuring perspectives from both Queenstown-Wakatipu and the Upper Clutha are
included.
Together the team will assemble big thinkers, innovators and experts in their field to set a course for achieving the
aspirational goals of Vision Beyond 2050, while also working on some short term initiatives. Of key importance will be
ensuring alignment with the Climate Action Plan and its initiatives, and providing opportunities for the community to be
actively involved in shaping our future economy.
Mayor Jim Boult said the inputs from the steering group to date had been excellent, and although it had needed to
navigate some complex situations a way forward was emerging.
“The steering group represents a wide range of backgrounds from across the Queenstown Lakes. Discussions to date have
generated some excellent ideas and the vast experience of the collective will bring forward Community Recovery and
Economy Recovery Taskforces, which will be instrumental to ensuring the district restores and enhances its pre-Covid
community and economic wellbeing.”
“Once formed, the work of the taskforces will be to explore and provide innovative ideas for the future of the whole
community.”
“We expect to be able to announce the steering group’s findings and recommendations in the near future, as well as
membership and the objectives of the taskforces,” said Mayor Boult.
Once established, the taskforces will be supported by Council but led by the community. They will reflect the holistic
wellbeing of the district’s communities including social, economic, environmental and cultural aspects.
So far, Council has received hundreds of ideas for community and economic recovery which the taskforce, once developed,
will have a hand in evaluating.
“There have been many ideas suggested to the Mayor, and via other channels, and we know there are other groups looking
at similar ways of generating innovation here. We are thankful for the enthusiasm and commitment being shown and are
working to respond to the suggestions we’ve received,” said QLDC Economic Development Manager, Peter Harris.
“At the same time we are working on how best to gather, funnel and evaluate these ideas to combat the challenges our
community faces.”
An update on the taskforce and how ideas will be managed will be released as soon as more information is available.