In a time of crisis it is often difficult to know where to apply our energy. Our instinct can be rightly to protect and defend, to limit hurt and to ultimately survive. Solidarity with an alliance of partners can help us to build resilience to shocks and to limit harm.

Our increasing sense at Regen Melbourne is that we should also meet this moment of disruption with an equivalent level of ambition for systemic transformation; for projects that lift our collective ambition beyond survival and towards a truly regenerative Melbourne. It is only by working together that we are able to articulate what these projects could be, and then to collectively hold onto this level of ambition.

Regen Melbourne is developing a portfolio of projects based on thematic clusters in the network (e.g. healthy waterways, citizen agency, regenerative streets, and many more). Drawing on the work of Mariana Mazzucato around Mission-Oriented Innovation (or Challenge-Led Innovation in the Australian context) and Collective Impact models, RM serves as a nervous system (not the project manager) for each project.

As the host for each project, our role is to be the active backbone function that increases collective ambition and deepens systemic impact. We (re)organise the actors, resources and relationships to enable each project to be successful. This involves:

• Strategic convening

• Catalysing collective innovation

• Active communication between actors

• Collective measurement

• Policy engagement

• Designing funding architecture

• Public campaigning

Each project has a dedicated Lead Convenor who works closely with the broader RM team, and with our university partners through the RM Lab. These talented humans work across systems to unlock and build collaborative partnerships in service to the project.

Below are some of the elements of what makes a Regen Melbourne project.

We’d love your thoughts and feedback on this as we embark on this work together.