2025 Melbourne Summit Program
All times are AEST
Wednesday 14 May 2025
Karstens Melbourne
Please note: This event won’t be livestreamed, but some presentations WILL be recorded and videos available to all registrants (both Summit and Development Program) for a limited time.
9:00 am – Trust Under Pressure: How to ensure your Council is believable, dependable and reputable in a shifting world
The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer identifies what many of us are noticing; a shift in public thinking beyond polarisation to “aggressive advocacy for self-interest”, fuelled partly by a sense of grievance and low trust in government and business.
As a local government communicator, you don’t have a magic cure for everything going on in your community. What you can do is what you do best, including:
Give fearless advice to help your Council’s leaders communicate with credibility
Make sure every piece of communication you’re involved in is building trust, not further eroding it
Be an expert resource to enable people across your Council to increase trust with their audiences
This session will give you new insights and practical ways to further sharpen your effectiveness so that your Council is a trusted voice in a world of increased negativity and cynicism.
Dr Neryl East - Summit Convenor and local government communication specialist
10.00 am – CASE STUDY: Redeveloping your intranet for staff connection and engagement
Intranets get a bad rap in many councils, yet done well they can be the communication lifeblood of the organisation.
In this case study, you’ll learn how the City of Melton redeveloped and launched its new intranet, SPOT (Single Point of Truth).
It’s a mobile accessible platform aimed at bringing Melton’s team together, with featured including a news feed, staff noticeboard, knowledge base and council-wide calendar.
Hollie Heales - Internal Communications Project Lead, Melton City Council
10.30 am – Morning break
10.50 am - Managing the monster: How to prepare for and respond to toxic online behaviour
The social media landscape is way wilder than the Wild West - yet it’s an essential platform for your Council to reach the many audiences within your community.
As toxic and uncivil behaviour increases online, what’s the best way to respond? How can you set your Council’s leaders up for success amid a barrage of criticism and hostility?
You’ll walk away from this expert session with fresh ideas and strategies to address online toxicity and mitigate communication risks, so your Council is better prepared and armed with practical ways to exert positive influence in a very challenging environment.
Felicity Cull - Head of Digital Content, Pesel & Carr
12.00 pm - Facilitated discussion: AI (and other) communication tools that work
With the generative AI genie well and truly out of the bottle, how is your Council responding to the accelerating rush of new communication technology?
Whether you’re now embracing some “official” AI tools or experimenting under the radar, this session will provide the space for a warts-and-all discussion on which AI platforms are useful in 2025, which are time-wasters and how to steer a grown-up conversation about AI in your Council.
We won’t just stick to AI; this is a chance to share and ask about any other tools and platforms that help you do your job with more efficiency and fewer hassles.
Get ready for some light-bulb moments - and bring your own ideas too.
12.30 pm – NETWORKING Lunch
1:15 pm - The ART of selling your community back to itself: How to use the power of the word to influence hearts and minds inside and outside your Council
Robyn Moore enthralled attendees at our 2024 Sydney Summit. Now it’s Melbourne’s turn to experience her highly entertaining, inspiring and empowering presentation that will draw you into the privilege we all have to be highly effective communicators.
Not only will you discover a "New Point of View” around informing, engaging and inspiring your community, you’ll find renewed inspiration to empower your Council colleagues, so their Vision for a thriving community can be realised.
On a personal level, you will gather valuable tools to enable you to be bigger than the challenging circumstances you often face…providing you with more professional satisfaction, access to work-home balance and your well-being.
A passionate storyteller, Robyn’s talk will be “experiential”…you will laugh, be moved, challenged and left feeling more enlivened by your gift to be a communication professional!
Here’s what last year’s Sydney participants said about Robyn’s session:
“Like breathing a new kind of air!”
“I laughed, cried, and reflected. I walked away feeling stoked with what I learned but also proud of my team and what they already do.”
“What an incredible experience.”
“I’m leaving feeling energised and excited about how I can bring the learnings to life in my role.”
Robyn Moore AM - Renowned speaker, actor and voice-over artist
2.15 PM Facilitated discussion with Robyn Moore
Does this sound familiar?
You mop up everyone’s problems and have to do more with shrinking resources.
You don’t feel listened to by others in your Council – everyone thinks they’re a communication expert.
You’re often excluded from important conversations – you find out at the last minute about major projects that affect the community.
You don’t have time for planning or high-level tasks because there’s too much operation work to get through.
Local communities seem to be expecting more and more from their council
You have to communicate across a growing number of communication channels, with no more resources – and now AI is changing everything again.
Navigating the politics is an ongoing challenge.
AND YET…
Think of everything you and your communication colleagues achieve.
Delivering amazing projects, often on the smell of an oily rag.
Being instrumental in your community making it through the extreme challenges of the last few years.
Showing up to do an unpredictable and job in a volatile environment – and not for the pay or glamour!
In this discussion, Robyn will lead you through new ways of appreciating your value and the significance of what you do every day. You’ll be ready to return to your role with renewed energy, enthusiasm and self-belief so you can step up your positive influence and make an even bigger impact in your Council.
3 pm - Afternoon break
3.20 pm - CASE STUDY: Restoring reputation when a Council issue hits national headlines
As council communicators, we’re on constant alert for negative media coverage – but sometimes seemingly small complaints can quickly erupt into a public storm before we’ve had time to catch our breath.
The City of Port Adelaide Enfield found itself on front pages, breakfast radio and national television over bin fines that impacted only a handful of people but created fallout on an unexpected scale.
This compelling case study will take you through what happened, how the Council responded and what you can learn as you plan your own issues strategies.
Ed Garner - Senior Media and Communications Advisor, City of Port Adelaide Enfield
3.50 pm - CASE STUDY: Enhancing community safety through effective emergency communication
With natural disasters impacting communities more frequently, clear and effective communication is essential to ensuring residents can take life-saving action when it matters most.
The First 72 Hours Program was developed by Kate Goldsmith (now with Campaspe Shire Council) and Karen van Huizen (Alpine Shire Council) in their roles as Local Government Emergency Management Coordinators. Designed to empower residents with a clear and actionable plan for the critical First 72 Hours after a disaster, the program has now been successfully implemented by Campaspe Shire Council.
Join us for this insightful case study, where we’ll explore how the campaign was developed, implemented, and received by the community, along with the key lessons learned that can help shape future emergency communication strategies.
Speaker - Kate Goldsmith and Rebecca Burns – Campaspe Shire Council
4.30 pm – The final word
Where will your communication journey take you as we move to the middle of the 2020s?
This final discussion will give you a chance to reflect and digest your insights from the Summit and consider your next steps in transforming your role, yourself and your Council’s approach to communication to meet the needs of a shifting world.
Bounce ideas off new friends from other councils, get clear on your next actions and feel re-energised by quality conversations.
For those who wish, we’ll find a bar nearby to continue the debrief and connections.
5.00 pm – SUMMIT close
Venue - Karstens Melbourne
123 Queen Street Melbourne.
With its central location, Karstens Melbourne is a short walk from Flinders Street and Southern Cross stations.
For those travelling from regional Victoria or interstate, Karstens is also easy walking distance from a variety of hotels.
Meet Our Speakers
Dr Neryl East, Local government communication specialist
Neryl is Australia’s leading authority on local government communication, having spent many years in senior council communication roles after an extensive media career.
As well as partnering with councils around Australia to elevate their communication skills, she coaches government leaders at the highest level on communicating high-stakes messages with credibility and connection.
Neryl has a PhD in Journalism and is the author of five books including an Amazon best-seller on media and reputation. She is a Past National President of Professional Speakers Australia and convenes the Local Government Communication Professionals Network.
Felicity Cull
Felicity is the Head of Digital Content at Pesel & Carr, a Melbourne-based communications agency specialising in strategy and issues management, and co-founder of FeBa, knowledge and communications training that shines.
With a strong background in research and practical expertise in content marketing and social media, Felicity has worked across diverse industries, including higher education, entertainment, and telecommunications. A standout moment in her career was leading the Victorian Health Department's social media response during the first 18 months of COVID-19, where she used audience-driven insights to shape impactful, meaningful communications. Prior to that, she faced challenges like managing the fallout of a failed Game of Thrones stream on her second day managing customer experience on social media at Foxtel.
As a 2024 IABC Gold Quill Winner in Issues & Crisis Management, Felicity thrives on navigating tricky comment sections and helping others moderate and manage online communities while maintaining balance. Felicity is driven by the challenge of crafting stories that resonate and connecting with audiences that care.
Hollie Heales
Hollie is an experienced senior communications and digital specialist with over 10 years of experience in digital, strategy and corporate communications.
Having worked across local government, higher education and not-for-profit sectors, Hollie has successfully managed multi-channel campaigns, website and intranet projects that drive real impact for customers and community.
As of 2024, Hollie has led internal communications at Melton City Council where she was responsible for the development of the organisation's new intranet and staff engagement strategy.
Robyn Moore
Robyn Moore has had a long career as one of Australia’s most in-demand female speakers.
For more than 45 years Robyn has worked in education, advertising and the communication/entertainment Industry. She has unique skills with “the Power of the Word” and her voice has been heard in most homes in Australia and New Zealand and in many other countries.
Her highly entertaining, inspiring and thought-provoking presentations totally captivate her audiences at national and international conferences. Robyn literally “sells people back to themselves” so they recognise old habits and behaviours and take responsibility for choices, which create the outcomes they want in their lives.
Robyn’s presentations are quite often literally described as “life changing”.
