Reference Reports
RDA Northern Rivers regularly reviews government and other reports and articles that provide insight and information about trends that affect regional Australia.
NSW Digital Skills and Workforce Compact 2023-30
The NSW Digital Skills and Workforce Compact 2023-30 combines the resources, knowledge, and expertise of the NSW Government, employers, digital industry groups, and the education and training sectors. It brings a collaborative, integrated approach to address the...
Recruitment Experience Outlook Survey Report – Jobs and Skills Australia
Jobs and Skills Australia surveys around 1,000 employers each month to find out about their experience when recruiting staff as well as whether they are expecting to increase staffing levels. This feedback provides insights about labour market conditions and helps in...
Beyond City Limits: Unveiling Income Premiums in Regional Australia
New analysis by the Regional Australia Institute (RAI) has found you can earn a higher net income across more than 80 occupations by being based in regional, rural and remote Australia, rather than a major city. Beyond City Limits: Unveiling Income Premiums in...
Environmental Sustainability Report & Toolkit for the NSW Arts & Cultural Sector
This comprehensive resource investigates ways to integrate environmental best practice into arts and cultural organisations’ strategic planning, operations and artistic programming, focusing on public museums and galleries. It includes a detailed report on the current...
An Essential Ingredient: The Food Supply Chain Workforce
Jobs and Skills Australia have released a the report An Essential Ingredient: The Food Supply Chain Workforce in January 2025. While there are many activities vital to the food supply chain, the primary focus of this study was to explore the production, manufacturing...
Northern Rivers Regional Economic Development Strategy
In 2018, the NSW Government and local councils developed a series of Regional Economic Development Strategies (REDS) for 38 Functional Economic Regions (FERs) across regional NSW. FERs are made up of one or more Local Government Areas (LGAs) that work together to...
Rebalance the Nation: 2024 Year 2 Progress Report
Just over two years ago, the Regional Australia Institute led the development of a holistic framework to better plan for and invest in the growth of regional Australia – the Regionalisation Ambition 2032: a Framework to Rebalance the Nation. Spanning five pillars, the...
Better Together – The Jobs and Skills Report 2024
Jobs and Skills Australia’s establishing legislation requires us to prepare and provide this jobs and skills report to government on Australia’s current, emerging and future skills and training needs and priorities. The Better Together – The Jobs and Skills Report...
Circular Economy in Action: Regional Perspectives
In October 2024, the Regional Australia Institute released the report Circular Economy in Action: Regional Perspectives. The report aims to empower regions to realise the potential of a circular economy. A key recommendation is that governments at all levels continue...
North Coast Regional Plan 2041
The North Coast Regional Plan 2041 sets a 20-year strategic land use planning framework for the region, aiming to protect and enhance the region’s assets and plan for a sustainable future. As a 20-year plan, it applies to the Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Ballina,...
NSW Visitor Economy Strategy 2030 Review
Millions of extra airline seats, tens of thousands of hotel rooms and a focus on experience-led tourism will transform the NSW visitor economy into a $91 billion powerhouse as set out in a government review of the NSW Visitor Economy Strategy. The NSW Government will...
Northern Rivers Resilient Lands Strategy
The NSW Recovery Agency released the Northern Rivers Resilient Lands Strategy in August 2024. The Strategy outlines the direction for the NSW Reconstruction Authority’s $100 million Resilient Lands Program. You can download the Northern Rivers Resilient Lands Strategy...
Early Childhood Education and Care Study
The Australian Government commissioned Jobs and Skills Australia to undertake a capacity study on the workforce needs of Australia’s Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) sector. This study provides critical evidence and insights to support current and future...
The Value of Tourism to the North Coast
New Report: The Value of Tourism To The North Coast Destination NSW, with Tourism Research Australia (TRA) have provided updated North Coast region data for the year ended December 2023. The report is a summary of economic outcomes and impacts for the tourism sector...
Cultural Tourism in Regional NSW
In 2024, the NSW Regional Arts Network commissioned Patternmakers to produce a new analysis of cultural tourism in regional NSW. In light of the NSW Government's focus on 'experience tourism', this report provides insights into the scale of cultural tourism and...
Northern Rivers Rail Trail Tweed Section Economic Impact Assessment Report
Key findings of the Northern Rivers Rail Trail Tweed Section Economic Impact Assessment Report show: The Tweed section has attracted significant visitor spending, driving a 15.7% average increase in monthly spend compared to the previous year and stimulated growth in...
Startup Muster 2023 startup report
Startup Muster was founded in 2013 with a mission to measure and publish the progress, challenges and opportunities in the Australian startup ecosystem. They aimed to demonstrate and accelerate the ecosystem's progress through this. The Startup Muster 2023 Report has...
Improving Australian climate change adaptation strategies: learning from international experience
This research explores climate change adaptation practices, strategies and policies implemented internationally that could be adopted to support the sustainable development of cities and towns across Australia. Adaptation strategies focus on reducing the impact of...
