Susan Freeman-Greene is the chief executive of Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) – which champions local democracy, connects local government to the wider ecosystem and builds capability so councils can excel.
Susan will be talking about some of the challenges that local government in New Zealand is currently facing - as it navigates through multiple infrastructure needs ranging from local roads, parks, water, housing, transport and climate change – with a focus on both financial sustainability and the performance of these assets at a community level.
With both Australia and New Zealand sharing many of these concerns, Susan will discuss what some of the opportunities are for local government in her country; what needs to be done now and, in the future, to build for growth and make sure we have resilient infrastructure. As part of this conversation, Susan will explore how regional deals, which the NZ coalition government is progressing, provides a platform to take a localism approach to the delivery of infrastructure.