People power can make a difference
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Rob Stokes |
Have you ever thought about becoming involved in local decision making? By getting involved you could prompt change that will make a real difference in your community, state or country.
People power saw the world's first green ban placed on a patch of bush in Woolwich during the 1970s, and has kept Mona Vale Hospital open in the face of sustained bureaucratic efforts to close it down.
"Decisions made at a local level can influence all the way to the top of the political spectrum and have a huge impact on environmental and planning conflicts," says Macquarie University Law Lecturer, Rob Stokes. "It's not just the politicians that wield power; community groups have the power to make major changes to policy and procedure."
Before working at Macquarie, Stokes was employed as a lawyer and a government policy adviser. "During my time in politics I became excited about the opportunities out there to change things," he explains.
Saving bushland
"A good example of local decision making that comes from the environmental movement is the green bans from the 1970s," says Stokes. "These bans were initiated over a patch of bush on the Woolwich Peninsula. Basically, a group of middle-class women was upset that this land was going to be used for a multi-storey development. They recognised the intrinsic value of the bush and contacted the unions."
This contact saw an unlikely alliance formed between these women and the Builders Labourers Federation. Ultimately, the first green ban in the world was placed on this site. Today, more than 30 years later the bush is still there, now preserved.
"A similar thing happened with The Rocks redevelopment," says Stokes. "It was just a local group, which started the action that saved the area from high-rise re-development. It was not polished, not PR-savvy or eloquent, but it forced the Government to change direction. It was resident groups like this that forced Parliament to introduce strong heritage laws and environmental planning controls in the 1970s. Their action helped to conserve the environment we enjoy today."
Saving a hospital
According to health officials a decision to close down Mona Vale Hospital should have been made a decade ago. Yet, locals have played a huge role in saving this facility by bringing the issue into public focus through the establishment of community groups as well as conducting petitions and rallies.
"An institution has been kept alive just through community activism," Stokes says. "Jobs have been kept, lives saved. It's a pretty amazing thing to do. The community wins in the end, I'm excited about it because it shows that local democracy is working."
"It's messy, it's rowdy and often disorganised, but civil society is still there, and planning law is one of its most dynamic forums," says Stokes. "It really pays for people to get involved in decision making. They really do, and can, make a difference."
Rob Stokes teaches in the Department of Business Law and is currently researching his PhD on how public participation in urban planning can be managed to avoid conflict between residents and developers.
For further information contact Rob Stokes on: robert.stokes@mq.edu.au or visit the Division of Law website: www.law.mq.edu.au/