01/09/2026
Last Friday, we put the Lower Clarence economy around one table- actually around one very LARGE table!
Business, Agriculture, Manufacturing, Health, Education, Construction, Finance, Tourism, Infrastructure, Government, Professional Services, Community organisations, and Regional development.
Different sectors with different experiences, and different views about what this region needs next.
And that was exactly the point.
The Amplify Our Voices Changemakers Maclean Regional Economic Forum wasn’t designed to produce unanimous agreement or another wish list of things someone else should fix.
We wanted to understand where the economic opportunities actually are, what is getting in the way, how those things connect and, importantly, what deserves our collective attention.
Economist Warren Hogan opened the conversation by putting the Lower Clarence into a much broader economic context. His no nonsense and to the point style was a breath of fresh air in today's political climate.
Our Conversation Leaders **Mick Corbett, Lindsay McLennan, Haley Hodgson and George Bennett then brought four very different perspectives into the room before we handed the conversation over to everyone else. Kevin Hogan MP also contributed his thoughts on and experiences with the Lower Clarence
There was plenty to talk about.
We explored the opportunities we may be overlooking, the constraints limiting investment and growth, the issues with the greatest flow-on effects across the economy, where this region actually has influence, and where organisations could achieve more together than separately.
Some views aligned, some definitely didn't. Meaningful regional economic conversations shouldn't require everyone to agree. They should help us understand the system better, challenge some assumptions and identify where there is enough common ground to actually move something. Yet on the whole, there was certainly a concensus around the priority of education and training for Maclean.
The best take away from the day is that our future requires collaboration, shared goals and a desire to achieve it and it's fair to say this event was certainly the start of that.
A huge thank you to Warren, our Conversation Leaders, our sponsors Judo Bank, NRMA Parks and Resorts, Simplicity Funerals Maclean, Helix Planning and SFE Loans and every person who gave their time, experience and perspective to the conversation.
The ideas generated in that room belong to this region.
What happens with them next is the interesting part.
