This webinar is for Australian Local Government Staff only.
Making information available is one thing. Making it easy to understand is another.
Council meetings are where some of the most important decisions affecting our communities are made. But too often, the way information is presented makes those decisions difficult for residents, and even elected members, to follow.
As New Zealand councils navigate significant reform, community expectations around transparency and accessibility have never been higher. Join Tasha Paladin, Executive Manager Community, Governance and Resilience at Ruapehu District Council, as she shares how her team reimagined the council meeting experience, moving beyond lengthy agenda packs to create a more connected, accessible way for communities to follow decisions, understand the context behind them, and engage with local democracy.
Through practical stories and real examples, discover how rethinking council meetings can strengthen trust, improve engagement and support better governance during times of change.
In this short, practical session, you’ll learn discover:
- Why transparency means more than publishing information and how accessibility shapes community trust.
- The hidden barriers created by traditional governance processes, and why councils should design information for their communities - not just for compliance
- Ruapehu District Council's transformation, including lessons learned from moving beyond lengthy PDF agenda packs to a more connected, searchable experience.
- How better access to information empowers elected members and communities by making decisions easier to follow across meetings and over time.
- Simple ways to assess your own council's transparency, including practical steps every council can take to improve the community experience - regardless of the technology they use.
- What true transparency looks like in an environment of increasing public scrutiny and significant local government change.
Real insights. Real experience. Practical ideas you can take back to your organisation.
About the Presenter:
Tasha Paladin
Executive Manager Community, Governance and Resilience
Ruapehu District Council
Tasha Paladin is Executive Manager Community, Governance and Resilience at Ruapehu District Council, with ten years across governance, electoral administration, events, community leadership and emergency management. She led Ruapehu's move away from 600-page agenda packs towards council information communities can actually follow. At the heart of it, she believes true transparency isn't about making more information available, it's about making it usable - and nobody should need to be a council expert to take part in decisions about their own lives.
Sara Drury
Head of Marketing and Engagement
Redman Solutions
Sara Drury is Head of Marketing and Engagement at Redman Solutions, where she works closely with council teams to share their experiences and insights on governance, strategic planning and performance. With a background in marketing and communications, Sara enjoys bringing people together for practical conversations that help councils learn from one another.
