Pain

The Climate Change Authority (CCA) was required under the Climate Change Act 2022 to undertake regional consultation to inform national climate recommendations and Annual Progress Reporting. The consultation needed to be delivered across five geographically dispersed regions within a compressed timeframe. Each location presented different demographic profiles, stakeholder dynamics and varying levels of confidence in the net zero transition.

While the CCA had a clear mandate and policy direction, the scale, pace and public sensitivity of the engagement required a structured and defensible approach to ensure consistency, transparency and evidentiary integrity. The Authority required a delivery framework that could manage consultation risk, maintain quality across regions and translate community input into credible policy insight.

Solution

Drawing on our deep regional engagement experience across rural and remote Australia, Struber deployed a structured, delivery focused consultation framework designed for consistency across varied regional contexts. We commenced with detailed stakeholder mapping and regional data review, applying our engagement toolkits to develop a clear Implementation Plan on a Page that set out objectives, engagement sequencing, roles and reporting pathways. This ensured alignment between on the ground consultation activity and the CCA’s statutory obligations.

Two teams mobilised nationally to deliver coordinated drop-in sessions, stakeholder meetings, roundtables and pop ups across all five regions. Engagement formats were adapted to local conditions while maintaining a consistent governance structure and evidence capture methodology. All inputs were systematically recorded, validated and analysed using structured thematic analysis. We translated more than 900 pieces of feedback into clear regional profiles, priority themes and actionable insights, consolidating these into a comprehensive Consultation Outcomes Report aligned to policy and reporting requirements.

Result

Within five weeks, Struber delivered a nationally coordinated regional consultation engaging more than 260 stakeholders and capturing 960 discrete feedback items across five regions. The Consultation Outcomes Report provided the CCA with a clear, defensible and evidence based understanding of regional perspectives on decarbonisation and adaptation. The findings directly informed the CCA’s Annual Progress Reporting and strengthened the policy narrative underpinning federal climate advice.

Beyond the immediate engagement, the project established a structured regional consultation model and reporting framework that can be replicated for future statutory reviews, strengthening the CCA’s governance approach to regional evidence gathering and long term policy readiness .