From a quick scan of the Forum I can see that I need to address several posts and I do apologise for not being active last year. I will work through the list over the next week, starting with the most recent and working back in time. I will also upload new posts announcing new member-driven initiatives.
In the interim and for the benefit of new members and established members alike, let me address how BLP works through member suggestions.
The committee encourages members to use the Forum to discuss issues and suggestions both between members and committee members. We may take a discussion thread to a committee meeting for further discussion; we will also respond to member contact through our email address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
It is not uncommon to find that some suggestions have been raised in the past and addressed in one form or another. We will inform you if this is the case and with a short explanation and if we have not done so to date my apology – I will endeavour to address any such posts in a timely manner. When a suggestion is raised, it is logged for consideration and almost certainly placed on the Agenda for the next committee meeting. The suggestion/issue raised will have a priority rating attached to it following that committee meeting. This rating is a function of its overall importance to BLP, that is, where does it fit within our Strategic and Operational Plans, the number of members it will affect, can it be implemented internally and who will be responsible for its implementation and maintenance, does it need funds to implement, does it require external input from BirdLife Australia or a third party, what current initiatives or functions (especially relating to the operation of our website) will it impact etc. More often, than not, a
‘discussion paper’ addressing the major issues will be drafted and placed in our committee Dropbox folder for further discussion. One example of this is the ongoing discussions between BirdLife Australia and BirdLife Photography re: the Australian Bird Photographer of the Year Competition, which we would like to announce at some point this year. The concept of an annual competition was raised by a former BLP member and I took this to BirdLife Australia in 2015. There have been several meetings and discussions over the last twelve months including a discussion paper that has undergone several rounds for comment and we are now in a position, to put together an MOU with a schedule of activities and timelines. We must engage in these types of activities at the same professional level as if we are a business. For instance, there is the requirement to assess the costs associated with such an activity both real and ‘in kind’. In the current example, these include the creation of a dedicated website – design, associated costs, implementation and management, who will control the collection of entry monies and how will this be implemented, who will we approach to form the national and international judging panel, developing marketing strategies to ensure there is sufficient uptake amongst Australian photographers, approaching sponsors, identify the financial risks and apply risk management strategies – forecasting subscriber uptake to formulate entry fees to cover prizes and operational costs, etc. It is not just a matter of saying great idea lets go for it – this project has been a considerable task for the entire committee and one that Glenn Pure has championed with gusto on our behalf. I recently heard a comment that the BLP committee will benefit substantially from the progressing this project – I’m not sure what the thinking is here. The truth is that many of our membership are keen on the idea, BL AUS and BLP think it is a great opportunity to promote our unique birdlife, the conservation issues that need to be addressed and the roles that BL AUS and BLP perform in this arena – and the pleasure that photographers will experience by participating in this competition should not be under-estimated. As committee members, this is our only reward as both BL staff and the BLP committee are precluded from entering this competition.
Perhaps now you can appreciate why some suggestions on the Forum can be dealt with relatively quickly and others take a longer deliberation. Three things you can be assured of are, that the committee appreciates and respects the views of all BLP members, your suggestions are robustly and respectfully discussed and from this day forth I undertake to respond to Forum posts with either my preliminary views or those from committee deliberations, in a timely manner.
