Success in innovation: Alex Waldron

Upper Lachlan Shire Council may be small in population, but this rural region south-west of Sydney is making a positive impact on the lives of its residents – and beyond. Leading the charge is Council CEO Alex Waldron, whose innovative leadership has ensured the Shire packs a significant punch, for which it has recently been officially recognized across the state of New South Wales.

With a strong background in working with local council in Australia and the United Kingdom, Waldron took on the role of CEO at Upper Lachlan Shire Council in May 2023, having previously worked as its Director of Environment and Planning.

"As CEO, my goal has always been to continue to improve on the livability of the Shire, and that includes building on infrastructure and providing services," she says. "Ours is a large geographical area, but we only have a population of around 8,500 people and about 6,500 rate payers, which makes financial stability a really big issue."

Its small population means the Council is unable to rely on rate revenue alone, and for this reason it relies significantly on receiving government grants.

"This means I’ve had to make some tough decisions around improving costs and efficiencies to ensure Council continues to be financially sustainable," she says.

While the challenges are many, Waldon appears to be taking it all in her stride.

"You have to be nimble and dynamic, to think outside the box and be open to changing how you do things, because if you’re not being innovative in this space, you’re not going to survive," she says.

Rainbow storytime

Waldron and her team are also laser-focused on increasing the region’s population sustainably while also developing exciting new infrastructure for the community.

"We’re delivering a significant amount of community infrastructure, including the construction of a new aquatic center to replace our old, condemned community pool. The costs associated with the project are significant and have gone up over recent years by 30–40 percent," she says.

"So far we’ve made great progress with grants and, alongside our project manager and partner, Colliers, who are just as passionate in making this vision a reality, we’re committed to securing the additional funds necessary to complete the aquatic center project for our community."

Innovation and inclusivity play a fundamental role at Upper Lachlan Shire Council, and this progressive approach was recently highlighted when it received the Judges Recognition Award in the category of Community Development at the Local Government Excellence Awards.

In 2023, Waldon invited drag storyteller Betty Confetti to present the children’s literacy program ‘Rainbow Storytime’ at the Shire’s local library, despite neighboring councils being forced to cancel their events amid threats across the country.

As a proud LGBTIQA+ woman and mother herself, Waldon persevered, determined to not only encourage literacy but to also send the region’s children a strong message: that it’s OK to be different.

"It’s a fantastic lesson to teach the next generation about inclusivity," she says.

"We should all welcome each other in our communities, as our differences are what makes Australia such a special place to live. I’m proud of who I am, and I think other people need to see leaders that are proud of who they are, too, and who are attempting to create safe spaces for everyone."

Waldron credits her amazing staff for their unwavering support of the initiative and its ultimate success.

"The library staff were so fantastic and they really got behind it," she says. "To receive a Local Government Excellence Award is the highest honor in local government. It was also our first ever award and I’m very proud of that."

The Clean Green Shire

The Upper Lachlan Valley region hosts several wind farms, which has earned it the nickname ‘The Clean Green Shire’.

"The clean energy our shire produces is significantly higher than any of the emissions that we could possibly produce, so we’re actually not just net zero, we’re at minus-minus," Waldron explains.

As CEO, Waldron’s innovative leadership approach has seen much progress throughout the Shire, and there’s still a lot more to come. Ultimately, she says, resilience and collaboration are key to its success.

"What sets us apart is that we’re punching way above our weight for a small council with very little money," she says.

"We are working instead with innovation and trying to think outside the box. Our people – some who have worked here for many years – have absolute passion for what they do and the community that they live in.

"That definitely pulls through into the culture of the organization, and I believe resilience plays a fundamental role in that."