New online forum for water sensitive cities

The CRCWSC is trialling a virtual water sensitive cities community of practice using Basecamp.

The forum provides an online space for WSC practitioners to build their networks and profile, propose ideas, ask questions and share resources. The CRCWSC is moderating this forum as part of its adoption activities, to ensure it remains active and relevant.

The forum fills the need for a national community of practice to support the ongoing use and application of WSC knowledge and outputs. It allows users to tap into WSC networks no matter where they are located.

Initially, the forum is being trialled with the CRCWSC's Victorian partners, but it is quickly gaining broader interest. It isn’t a direct response to COVID-19 restrictions forcing most Australians into a digital work environment, but its creation is timely for connecting people during these unprecedented times. We see the forum continuing once restrictions have lifted.

The forum enables:

• wider interaction between people from CRCWSC member organisations (rather than the one or two representatives usually involved in RAP meetings)
• more frequent interactions between users than the RAP meeting schedule currently allows
• new members to the industry to quickly tap into industry networks and knowledge
• users to participate in, or start, discussion topics that are relevant to them.

The Basecamp platform is easy to use. There is nothing to download and users can choose how frequently they receive updates.

The forum is already have an impact. Some examples of recent uses include:

• sharing learnings from stormwater treatment and harvesting schemes for sports field irrigation
• sharing ideas for designing adjustable outlets to biofiltration systems
• seeking suggestions for contents of an industry guidance document on synthesis and translation of CRCWSC's urban heat research.

More than 150 members have already signed up to the forum and new members are always welcome. So far, membership is from across the CRCWSC itself, and users include state government agencies, water retailers, local government, and consultants.

If you’re in Victoria and would like to join the general water sensitive cities discussion forum, simply follow this link.

If you’re from outside Victoria and keen to get involved, please contact your CRCWSC regional manager.

For more information, contact CRCWSC Victorian Regional Manager, Georgie Wettenhall at georgie.wettenhall@crcwsc.org.au.