WE NEED ‘FORWARDS’ AND ‘BACKWARDS’ PERSPECTIVES

Over the years, I have heard criticisms of Indigenous Australians for being insufficiently focussed on the future. I have heard criticism directed at the fact that the past – ‘dreamtime’ – is too occupying of their thinking and reasoning.

While agreeing that future focus is necessary, my feeling is that we need to learn from the attitudes and thinking of the First Australians.

People, particularly political and organisational decision makers, become so focussed ON the future that they discount the past, the circumstances that have lead to the present in which we find ourselves. There is the future, future, future – as far as the eye can see and the mind’s eye imagine.

There is today, and yesterday. But before yesterday – nothing, at least nothing that counts or is worth remembering. And certainly, past actions do not impact upon and inform future decisions. That is part of the reason decision makers and leaders keep revisiting and making past mistakes.

The PAST, present and future should ALL play roles in establishing societal direction. The three perspectives of time are like a tripod. Only when all three are grounded, is balance achieved.

LOCAL GOVERNMENTS SHOULD UNITE ON CANE TOAD CONTROL

We largely rely on the vagaries of weather and climate to somehow environmentally monitor cane toad movements. In dry times, toads somewhat disappear or at least confine their activities to permanent waterways. During the wet, the toad population propagates, explodes, spreads and invades ever wider territory areas.

Thanks to Frogwatch and the endurance of many of its members, notable Graeme Sawyer, toadbusting excursions help when it comes to physical management of these amphibian scourges. However, there is very little if any government money offered to Frogwatch and the organisation is largely on its own.

I believe that the City of darwin Council, the Palmerston City Council and the Litchfield Council should each provide an annual grant to Frogwatch. This would help support the organisation with the defrayment of costs and support its development of educational materials. Some of the money might well go toward controlling the pestilential creatures which have become the blight of our lives.

A government minister several years ago, likened the toad issue to that of controlling flies. That analogy was drawing a long bow. There is no way flies and toads can be compared in this way. Toad management support is needed.

NEW INITIATIVES TOO OFTEN ‘OLD HAT’

I came to the Northern Territory in 1975 and was active in school based education until retiring from my position in January 2012. During my time as an educator, it became apparent that we tend in overall organisational terms, not to consider sufficiently what has gone before when planning future directions. We tend to operate circularly, reinventing the wheel.
In order to inform the future through awareness of and examination of the past, I wanted to suggest that consideration be given to establishing a network that captures those who have ‘been there and done that’ in historical terms. Consultation involving those with prior knowledge and experience would in my opinion be most worthwhile.

In many instances ‘new’ policies are not new but a reinvention, re-work or revisitation of past agendas.

Many people in major decision making and policy setting roles are relatively new to the Northern Territory. This development could be particularly useful for them.

My suggestion would be that those involved should be drawn from those who worked at the coalface, because there is ‘distance’ between them and those in superordinate support management positions.

It would be more than useful to identify a group of people who could be asked to offer feedback on policy and initiatives being considered. They could provide information on the possible history and previous implementation of those initiatives.

The creation of a data base identifying these people, the background to their organisational engagement and their areas of expertise might be a management strategy. Methodology by which input could include email, phone or face-to-face conversation.

There would be many who if asked, would give of their time and recall quite voluntarily. The desire to be paid is not a universal motivation, particularly from those who have the good of the NT at heart.

‘INTEGRATED HOUSING’ POSES ISSUES.

Following from my comment about Darwin’s public housing juxtaposition, I wanted to comment on the policy of integrated housing as it seems to be applied.

Integrated housing does not seem to be a matter that impacts on newer suburbs, but is noticeable for the changes it is introducing to Darwin and Palmerston’s older suburbs.

It is into the newer suburbs (Lyons, Muirhead, Bayview, and the more established up market areas (Cullen Bay, Larrrakeyah, parts of Fannie Bay) in Darwin that key decision makers and policy setters week to be moving or living. They make policies and establish procedures that introduce the full gambit of integrated housing into the older suburbs. This is changing the character of those suburbs.

In the 1980’s 1990’s and the early 2000’s, older suburbs were generally cleaner, neater, tidies and better kept in terms of appearance than is now the case. A slow and studied drive around older suburbs returns vision of overgrown and unkempt nature strips, poorly maintained trees, ‘dead grassed’ parks, and an ugly array of security fencing around houses. There is much more nighttime noise from many residences. The proliferation of some integrated housing has to be reducing property values for nearby well maintained dwellings.

While the policy is understandable, indeed laudable, practical issues and patent problems need to be recognised and addressed.

HOUSING IN DARWIN … I DO NOT UNDERSTAND

MAYBE someone in Lands and Housing can help me understand a perplexing juxtaposition.

. On the one hand, there is a waiting list of up top eight years for public housing in Darwin and its suburbs.
. On the other hand, there are vacant houses EVERYWHERE in the suburbs.

In our area alone, and that is within 400 metres of where we are, there are three vacant houses. Public Sector housing. One of the houses had, in my estimation, $35,000 spent on renovation after it had been unoccupied for many months. A family moved in. After six or seven months they moved out. That was close to eighteen months ago. The house is still vacant.

The other houses have been vacant for less time but they ARE vacant.

A slowish drive around Darwin’s OLDER Northern Suburbs reveals many, many houses are vacant. Unoccupied housing quickly deteriorates and yards go to rack and ruin. That is precisely what is happening.

Surely in a small city like Darwin, such issues should not arise.

WHY DOES THIS PROBLEM EXIST?

WHY IS OUR COUNTRY FLOUNDERING?

(The perspective of an old man).
We have lost manufacturing industries to overseas destinations.
We have a Fair Work Act that is strong on rhetoric but in many cases short on practical and sensible expediency.
We have introduced massive red tape and bragged about minimal and prodic easing of paperwork accountabilities.
We have sold residential property to overseas interests in such volume as to price Australians out of the housing market.
We have sold and keep selling massive tracts of agricultural land to overses interests.
We have agreed to free trade agreements which open Australian markets to foreign imports, tenders for goods supply and priority to overseas suppliers to the detriment of domestic interests.
We have offered huge tax concessions to major industry in a way that almost lets them off the tax hook.
We allow mining exploitation and business profits otherwise to generate benefit for overses companies and their foreign shareholder base.
We borrow and spend $100,000,000 each day more than is generated by our domestic production.
We endorse greater and greater percentages of our GDP being spent on offsetting interest accumulating on our government borrowings. We believe that major indebtednes is a wonderful thing.
We discourage workers through increasing tax imposts.
We think that salaries for CEO’s and Government Department Heads should be paid in their hundreds of thousands and millions of dollars each year.
We are overgoverned to glory. We have too many layers of government.
We pay retired politicans benefits that are generous to the point of being almost immoral.
I could go on.

No wonder we have a tattered economy and a fractured economic outlook. The future is bleak.

THE LETTER OF THE YEAR

I read the newspaper quite intensively and always peruse the letters and comment offered by readers. Yesterday’s (10/9/20180 ‘Letters’ in the NT News included the one reproduced below. For mine, a fellow resident of an older Darwin suburb and a person who has lived in the city, it is the ‘Letter of the year’.

Often letters are gripes. Others are exhortations. There are occasional appreciations. This letter from ‘Ed’ of ‘Jingili’ (one of Darwin’s older Northern Suburbs) is one of a kind. It is so inoffensively written, so full of observation and and so true.

Thanks Ed.

I saw a great picture of green ants industriously constructing a nest in a picture belonging to an article in ‘The Conversation’ yesterday. The picture reminded me of the fact that this species, once prolific around Darwin’s suburbs, has all but gone. They were excellent fertilisers of plants. Their nest were visible in many trees in Darwin’s suburbs. Now you have to go bush to find them nd they are becoming scarcer and scarcer.

I haven’t seen green ants in trees in yards, in trees along roadsides and in any other place where they were once so prolific for at least five years.

Green ants are being harvested to go into Green Ant Gin, exotic cheeses and other foods. Green ants are fodder for this industry that is drawing accolades because of its niche market appeal. People go out, knock nest out of trees, gather up the nest and ants into bags and take them away for processing. Hundred and thousands of any colonies are being decimated for the sake of human taste buds.

But unless there is a breeding and replacement program put in place, the food and beverage industry they support, may well decimate this species of insect. And that will be the end of an industry more intent on consuming rather than replacing its primary source of ingredient.

9/9/2018

THE ‘STATE’ OF DARWIN

We came to Darwin at the beginning of 1987 and moved into our home in Leanyer. During the ensuing years I’ve had the chance to observe the way in which the Northern Suburbs in particular and other suburbs in general have evolved and developed.

The nature and the appearance of most Darwin suburbs has changed significantly in that time. Sadly, most of those changes have not been for the better.

In recent years, the spotlight in terms of suburban development has been on Lyons, Muirhead, and new developments at Berrimah. There are pockets of development occurring elsewhere but more generally as enclaves within already established suburbs.

While development and opening up new residential areas is to be lauded, it’s a shame that maintenance of environment, visual appearance and general upkeep in older suburbs has been seemingly neglected.

I am not commenting on security and the need people have to protect their homes which has surely delivered us the reputation of being the most fenced city in Australia. That goes with unfortunate social developments in this place. However there are significant issues that really need to be looked at.

Nature strips, verges and the state of vegetation adjacent to properties in the majority of cases is deplorable. There is very obviously a distinct lack of care about the way in which these areas are looked after.

While homeowners and occupiers need to take some responsibility for this “common” land, scarcely any maintenance is undertaken by the council. It would be good if some priority could be given to home owners/occupiers and the council working in conjunction to uplift nature strips.

I would suggest a recognition of home owners maintaining well kept verges. The offer of plants and topsoil as a council contribution of homeowners for taking pride in their nature strips might help. So too might some competition top recognise the efforts of people going the extra mile in care and maintenance.

Cyclone Markus revealed the poor management of vegetation in our city. It’s become obvious the treeplanting in past times has not been carefully undertaken with the growth of plants in mind.

The result has been “canopy crowding“ with trees being forced to grow into each other. The result has been deformed canopy development and trees pushed out of a proper growing perspective. The many ‘leaning’ trees with unnaturally shaped canopies confirm this to be the case.

When trees are planted they should be spaced in a way that will cause them not to grow into each other as they mature. This obviously hasn’t been considered in the past. Regular pruning is necessary to shape the trees and thinning should be undertaken if they have been planted too closely together.

The difference between Darwin. and some other cities (Adelaide is the best example) is that once they are planted and initially watered to encourage growth , no further care of these trees is undertaken. The state of vegetation all over the city and suburbs confirms this to be the case.

Many palm trees in public places have grown to the point of being totally unsightly. The program to replace palms after a given number of years would be worthwhile.

Not only are many of these palms unsightly but in time will break off in strong winds and become a hazard. This already happens periodically but the problem will worsen as the palms are allowed to grow to excessive heights.

Another matter that should be considered is that allowing trees to take over in the way that is happening, is a potential threat to suburbs through possible bushfire danger. While our fire control procedures in the Northern Territory, particularly in relation to urban areas are second to none, there was always a chance of a fire getting away and creating havoc. The green canopy over many of Darwin suburbs could well result in a catastrophic fire event of the future.

The management of vegetation is overdue for attention. It needs to become a major item for budget consideration and ongoing funding.

A matter of concern in the older, more established suburbs has to be the number of vacant houses that seem to be proliferating. A casual drive around confirms this to be the case.

While housing ownership and allocation is not a prerogative belonging to the City of Darwin Council, the impact of vacant and deteriorating properties impacts upon the area under local government control. Many of these properties are highly visible and look absolutely awful.

One of the things I cannot understand is why on the one hand there is talk about long waiting lists for housing, when on the other, vacant properties exist in quite large numbers. While the matter may be one not openly canvassed it poses an interesting juxtaposition.

These are issues that deserve consideration and attention.

WILL THE CENTRE HOLD

Many year ago and talking in educational terms, Peter Wirt cautioned that as we look at development, growth and expansion, we do well to consider the need to maintain what is already in place. To keep on expanding and expanding ad infinitum might build a facade, but that can be detrimental if we forget to maintain and respect what is already in place. If expansion takes place in a reckless manner, organisations, like balloons being inflated can go ‘pop’. What then remains is a sad shambles. In stock market terms you would call it a ‘bull to bear’ crash.

Wirt’s paper was titled ‘Will the Centre Hold’. Organisations that commit to reckless expansion can collapse and take everything with them. We need governments at all levels to demonstrate that care and responsibility that goes with considered growth and building on what has gone before.

Australian, state, territory governments and local councils take note.