CEO's welcome to 'Healthy Country'

Welcome to the latest edition of the Healthy Country Newsletter. In this edition we continue to highlight some of the projects being supported by Cape York NRM and our partners and hopefully this provides some positive news in these trying times.

I know everyone is impacted by the spread of Coronavirus and having to adapt to often stressful changes as a result. Whether that’s changed employment, travel restrictions and family separation, or staying home because you are elderly, or have underlying health conditions, one thing’s for sure –  we have all been impacted, and we are all in this together.

We have:

• supported all those who can work from home to do so
• ensured all staff are informed about, and in compliance with, social distancing rules
• banned all external visitors from our Cooktown, Atherton and Cairns offices
• changed all meetings to phone and video conferencing
• cancelled all non-essential travel
• banned all Atherton and Cairns staff from visiting the Cape, and
• banned all staff travel to remote communities until further notice.

While we are still on a learning curve, staff are adapting to the new arrangements and working as hard as they can to deliver our services in a drastically changed environment. 

‘While this is an evolving situation, and things will have changed by the time this goes to print, I want to outline the steps Cape York NRM has taken to protect staff, stakeholders and remote communities.’

Despite the disruption some things remain the same.

• We are open for business
• We are part of the Cape York community and are working hard to make a positive difference 
• We are changing the way we deliver so we can continue to support the communities and land managers on the Cape

I hope you enjoy Issue 39 of Cape York Healthy Country magazine which showcases the amazing people and places of this special region.

Warm regards

Cape York NRM CEO John Gavin