PLACEnews June 2010 Issue 7
Community Connection at the Heart of a Great Place
In the original design brief for Federation Square, it was envisioned that it would become a place for cultural celebration, community events and public gatherings; a place for the people of Melbourne. In the early stages of development a Civic and Cultural Charter was established to do just this. This founding document is used to guide daily operations at Federation Square and informs the way in which we engage with stakeholders across the site.
While we work closely with a broad range of groups, including government bodies, tourism agencies and precincts, cultural institutions, businesses, artists and event clients, Federation Square has a particularly strong focus on working with the community. As part of our Civic and Cultural Charter we have a responsibility to ensure that that a diverse range of groups can access the venue and are represented in this public space.
This is achieved by working closely with local community groups, particularly multicultural groups to support initiatives and events that allow people to share their views, culture, traditions, food and language with the rest of Melbourne. Federation Square hosts approximately 20 multicultural festivals each year and extends support to more than 30 consulates to raise their flags on national days and celebrate their identity. In 2007 Federation Square also established an annual mid-winter program called The Light in Winter which involves more than fifteen multicultural communities in a celebration of light and its cultural significance. We also work closely with Indigenous communities through education programming; close collaboration with community elders and ongoing support for events such as NAIDOC Week and Reconciliation Week.
Federation Square provides in excess of $1 million annually in direct and “in kind” support to these kinds of community activity. This includes heavily reduced or totally waived venue hire charges for community and charity events; marketing and promotional support; management and production support; and direct financial support for event seeding and establishment. In December 2008, Federation Square was recognised for its work in this area with the inaugural ‘Premier’s Award for Community Harmony’ in Victoria’s Multicultural Awards for Excellence program.
As Melbourne’s civic square, we welcome and support diversity of expression and are non-judgmental in hosting rallies and events onsite. We are also able to respond quickly to community sentiment and in times of great celebration or of grief, as demonstrated by the Victorian Bushfires last year, provide people with the opportunity to share in the event as a community.
The Light in Winter by Marcel Aucar
