We caught up with one of this year's Emerging Leaders Program participants, David Sboro, Team Leader Environmental Health, City of Marion, to find out how he enjoyed the program.

What made you sign up for the Emerging Leaders Program?

I wanted to stretch myself as a leader, which coincided with starting a new role in leadership. This was perfect timing as I was going to learn whilst on the job! The content for the program looked to specifically build skills within the local government industry. Once I started speaking with previous ELP graduates, it became clear how beneficial the program was going to be for leaders in our sector.

The last cohort-led module focused on sustainability – as an Environmental Health Officer, what were some of your takeaways from this module? 

Circular economies and how little things matter. We all have a role to play, whether it be advocating for regulations or adopting models, It all adds up. I also enjoyed being part of the group that delivered this module. We secured three great speakers presenting a range of topics, including financial sustainability relating to funding models as well as opportunities for innovative, sustainable, and climate-resilient developments.

What advice would you give to someone considering doing the Emerging Leaders Program?

Do it! If you are wanting to build leadership capability, extend your local government knowledge and think more broadly, then this is the program for you. The program has a great mix of theory and practical components which made it easy to apply back at the workplace. Building my local government network was an added benefit, as I’ve been able to connect with counterparts across local government to share resources and ideas for common topics.