The Annual General Meetings for 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 were held In the Norfolk Island Knowledge and Learning Centre, 70 Taylors Road, Norfolk Island, on Friday 13 September, from 5:15 PM Norfolk Island time. (PaRC Inc. is incorporated and regulated under Norfolk Island law). Attendance was in person, by Teams and by Zoom. President Nick Arthur was in the chair. All but one member (in Canada) were in attendance.
Secretary’s Report
Highlights of the Annual Report:
The twin websites aim to bridge the gap between impermanent social media and traditional libraries; in other words, they are a response to the tendency of the current generation of practitioners to rely on the Internet for finding technical information.
During the period the Narratives website (established in April 2021) has been stable and fit for purpose, although the email address parc AT parcaustralia.com.au was hacked and was terminated to avoid further spamming. The email address secretary AT parcaustralia.com.au has not been affected by the hacking.
During the period, Parks and Leisure Australia (PLA) restructured the Document Library in WordPress, abandoning the previous proprietary software. This opened the prospect of closer integration of the two sites, at least by merging the search functions if not the entire sites. This is being negotiated with PLA.
In August 2023, senior practitioner Neal Ames established a LinkedIn account. At 30 June 2024, there were about 160 “followers” and many of the posts had received more than 60 “impressions”. This cohort of followers, active in sharing knowledge, could include the next generation of practitioners who will take PaRC forward. Further, the LinkedIn feed may be useful for identifying documents that could be extracted and given a more durable status by loading into the twin websites’ archives.
The results of a mail out to all local governments in Australia (>500) in February 2023 was remarkably disappointing, only 4 substantive responses, one a rebuff, two in New South Wales and one in Queensland. Clearly a different method is necessary to reach practitioners in public authorities.
The 50th anniversary of the foundation of the Trust Fund was 8 February 2024. This should justify some promotion, not least to prepare for the centenary of AIPR/PLA in 2026.
I believe that PaRC won’t achieve its potential without a remunerated executive officer, together with some younger people willing to volunteer. The foundations are firmly cemented in place, but we need a few builders to capitalise on this “knowledge infrastructure”.
Finance Report
Funds in hand at 30 June were about $450, with no liabilities. The meeting resolved to seek an exemption from the Registrar from auditing the Finance Report so long as the total income for the year remains at less than $5000. (This was subsequently granted).
The project has exhausted the funds accumulated by the former Trust over 50 years. A substantial injection of funds will be required to achieve the initiative’s potential. The AGM considered two prospective budgets, one minimalist requiring $10,000 over three years; and an aspirational budget of $300,000 over three years.
Election
The incoming Committee for 2024-2025 is Nick Arthur, President and Public Officer; Geoff Edwards as Secretary and Treasurer; and Gillian Shelley as Committee member. PaRC Inc. is not a membership organisation and does not intend to establish a membership roll with all the administrative overheads that that implies. In particular, it does not wish to compete with Parks and Leisure Australia (PLA) as the peak membership body representing the parks and leisure sectors. PaRC Inc. is a knowledge-sharing platform. Membership is by invitation.
Summary
PaRC needs some additional personnel willing to invest some time in advancing the knowledge capacities of their profession, but is in good health and serving a valuable purpose.
