David Hood

Local Food Launchpad: Concept Development Labs

By David Hood| 2016-06-20T02:05:37+00:00 November 3rd, 2014|

Healthy food systems are the foundation for healthy lives, communities, economies and ecosystems. In order to build a future for Melbourne in which we can all thrive, we need a food system that is healthy, sustainable, resilient and fair. A thriving local food economy is not only good for business, it’s also good for people and planet. Growing, exchanging, eating and sharing local food connects local people to each other, to their health and wellbeing and the land, creating shared value financially, socially and environmentally. We believe that connected networks of thriving local food systems not only provides a solid foundation for Melbourne’s future, but also for the future of all Australians. A LAUNCHPAD FOR LOCAL FOOD PROJECTS Doing Something Good (DSG) are working with City of Melbourne, the Food Alliance and Open Food Network to support the development of individuals, communities and organisations working toward a thriving local food economy for Melbourne and it’s surrounds. Over the last year DSG have been running a series of events as a program for those interested in making a better food future. We’ve designed this Local Food Launchpad program as a platform for building shared understanding of key issues, challenges and opportunities, and to grow our collective capability to work together and make change. Following on from the EcoCity Food Forum in 2013, the Going Local Forum in February, and the Big Ideas Jam in June, we are very pleased to announce that we will be running a series of Concept Development Labs in February and March 2015 to develop concepts for campaigns, products, services, events, programs and other initiatives that will contribute to a thriving local food economy for Melbourne. JOIN US FOR THE FIRST CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT LAB TUESDAY 24 FEBRUARY. […]

VicHealth Innovation Challenge – Alcohol: Ideas Jam

By David Hood| 2014-10-28T11:30:54+00:00 October 27th, 2014|

Most Victorians drink. Alcohol is a part of most social occasions. The problem is, the more you drink the more likely you are to suffer from an injury, accident or aggression, and the more likely you are to do or say things you may later regret. If you drink heavily and regularly, your chance of getting a disease increases too. Almost half (46%) of all Victorians drink in a way that increases their risk of injury, with this rising to two-thirds (67%) for young people aged 16-29. It’s no wonder that over ¾ of Australians think alcohol is a serious issue facing our community. The VicHealth Innovation Challenge If you want to see a better drinking culture in Victoria, one where people can say no to a drink when they feel like stopping, and where drinking to get drunk isn’t seen as acceptable or normal, you should join us for the VicHealth Innovation Challenge – Alcohol. VicHealth are looking for bold new ideas for campaigns, programs, services and other initiatives that help change Victorian drinking culture by either: 1. reducing the amount Victorians drink, particularly those who already drink heavily, or 2. increasing the acceptability of saying no to a drink, or drinking a bit less. The most promising submissions will receive a share of the Innovation Challenge investment pool of $300,000 to test their ideas over the following 12 months. […]

VicHealth Innovation Challenge – Alcohol: Discovery and Insights Forum

By David Hood| 2017-02-01T14:35:54+00:00 October 13th, 2014|

VicHealth Innovation Challenge – Alcohol: Discovery and Insights Forum VicHealth wants to see a better drinking culture in Victoria. One where people can say no to a drink when they feel like stopping and where drinking to get drunk isn’t seen as acceptable or normal. > Almost half (46%) of all Victorians drink in a way that increases their risk of injury, with this rising to two-thirds (67%) for young people aged 16-29. > Alcohol-related harms requiring police or medical attention appear to be increasing in Victoria, with hospitalisations involving alcohol up by 33% > Alcohol is one of the top 10 avoidable causes of disease and death in Victoria. It’s no wonder that over ¾ of Australians think alcohol is a serious issue facing our community. VicHealth thinks it’s time to do something about it. […]

Social Media and Strategic Outcomes Workshop – 22 & 27 October 2014

By David Hood| 2014-10-13T02:34:15+00:00 October 2nd, 2014|

Social media and online platforms have transformed the way we connect, learn, work, create, and make change. They provide us with a low-cost [...]

Collaboratory Melbourne Meetup August 2014 – Collective Impact: could this change everything?

By David Hood| 2016-06-20T02:06:39+00:00 August 13th, 2014|

Collective Impact is not just a fancy name for collaboration, but represents a fundamentally different, more disciplined, and higher performing approach to achieving large-scale social impact. – John Kania & Mark Kramer Over the last three years Collective Impact has grown from an emerging practice in the United States into a global movement. With the implementation of the Collective Impact framework, communities around the world are experiencing significant and measurable improvements with some of their biggest challenges, where previously – despite decades of funding and a great deal of program level activity – they were seeing very little change. Introduced by John Kania and Mark Kramer in 2011, the Collective Impact framework provides an approach to tackling complex issues – one that is innovative, and structured to make collaboration work effectively across government, business, philanthropy, not-for-profits and community. Implementation of the Collective Impact framework has been shown to mobilise both the financial and human assets and resources within a community, and align them to achieve significant and lasting change. […]

VicHealth Innovation Challenge – Getting more Victorians physically active.

By David Hood| 2016-06-20T02:08:22+00:00 August 1st, 2014|

Less than a third of Australians are getting enough physical activity to benefit their health. This can lead to increased risks of chronic disease and mental ill health, and has been estimated to cost the Australian economy a total of $13.8 billion each year. While many of us play traditional club sport to keep active, it’s not the answer for everybody. The Victorian Health Promotion Foundation (VicHealth) is a pioneer in health promotion — the process of enabling people to increase control over and improve their health. – and they are looking to invest in innovative ideas to get more Victorians physically active. Ideas that take advantage of emerging trends in sport and recreation, and the latest research in to what is driving participation in sport and physical activity for adults and children in Australia. What’s the Challenge? If you are a sport and physical activity provider, community organisation, local council, social innovator, schools, entrepreneur or changemaker you could share in a pool of $400,000 in start-up funding to test your big idea and make a big impact. You are also invited to join David and Julian from Doing Something Good, for a series of workshops to explore emerging trends and the latest research, hear from pioneering entrepreneurs, innovative activity producers and design professionals, learn about innovative approaches to creating products and services like design thinking and Lean Startup and discover the latest theories on behaviour change to help you develop your idea. […]

The Search: Bringing $1M in support to Australian communities tackling society’s big issues

By David Hood| 2014-08-22T15:51:19+00:00 July 7th, 2014|

For most Australians life is good. By a measure of average wealth, we’re among the wealthiest in the world. Our cities regularly top global lists for livability, and our nation has recently been named as one of the happiest places to live on the planet. But while most Australians enjoy a high standard of living by international standards, many are facing serious social and economic problems that are proving tough to resolve, and in many cases becoming worse. Once the domain of government or not-for-profits, it has become clear that the complex nature of many of these issues means that no single program or organisation, however innovative, influential, well managed or well funded, can successfully address them singlehandedly. In fact, if we are to make the large-scale societal change required to tackle these big challenges, then we need to adopt collaborative, community-driven, data-based approaches and ensure better cross-sector coordination, rather than rely on the usual isolated intervention of individual organisations. […]

The Search: Bringing $1M in support to Australian communities tackling society’s big issues

By David Hood| 2014-07-09T11:44:47+00:00 July 7th, 2014|

For most Australians life is good. By a measure of average wealth, we’re among the wealthiest in the world. Our cities regularly top global lists for livability, and our nation has recently been named as one of the happiest places to live on the planet. But while most Australians enjoy a high standard of living by international standards, many are facing serious social and economic problems that are proving tough to resolve, and in many cases becoming worse. Once the domain of government or not-for-profits, it has become clear that the complex nature of many of these issues means that no single program or organisation, however innovative, influential, well managed or well funded, can successfully address them singlehandedly. In fact, if we are to make the large-scale societal change required to tackle these big challenges, then we need to adopt collaborative, community-driven, data-based approaches and ensure better cross-sector coordination, rather than rely on the usual isolated intervention of individual organisations. […]

Hume Food Summit 2014

By David Hood| 2014-07-14T11:38:50+00:00 June 23rd, 2014|

Healthy Together Hume want to explore with you what a better food future might look like for Hume. Hume has a vibrant, multi-cultural and abundant food history. But our growing population, rapidly changing environment and fast-paced lives have significantly reduced our ability to produce and access healthy affordable food. In order to build a future for Hume in which we can all thrive, we need to ensure that healthy and sustainable food is accessible and affordable for all. In cities and towns all around the world residents, local businesses, community organisations, government and social entrepreneurs are coming together to build better food futures. By setting up community gardens, farmer’s markets, food hubs, school programs, food swaps, social enterprises and other innovative initiatives, they are building stronger communities, improving the health and wellbeing of residents, growing the local economy and laying solid foundations for the future. […]

Local Food Project Big Ideas Jam

By David Hood| 2014-06-13T07:59:00+00:00 June 3rd, 2014|

All the forces in the world are not so powerful as an idea whose time has come. – Victor Hugo Do you believe that Melbourne can have a food system that is healthier, more sustainable and fair for all? We do. We also know that there are ideas out there that could transform the way we produce, distribute, prepare, share, sell or consume food – contributing to a local food system that would enable Melbourne to thrive, now and well into the future. WHY WE’RE GOING LOCAL Local food systems play a pivotal role in strengthening the local economy, help build stronger, more resilient communities, provide much needed jobs at a local level, and give consumers access to healthy, fresh food at affordable prices. Localising the food economy also returns diversity to land that has been all but destroyed by chemical-intensive monocropping, reduces the cost and environmental impact of shipping produce over long distances, and means farmers are able to make a decent living. With a growing interest among Australians in the quality, provenance, freshness and price of food, and an increasing demand for food that is locally produced and seasonal, we believe that there is a unique opportunity in front of us to come together and build a healthy, sustainable, resilient and fair local food system that will support all of Melbourne to thrive, now and into the future. […]

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