Matt Hewson
Geelong mayor Trent Sullivan tabled his report on his trip to Portugal for 16th annual conference of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network.
Accompanied by the City’s executive director of Placemaking Tennille Bradley, Cr Sullivan represented Geelong at the event in Braga from July 1 to 5, meeting with delegates of the 350 other global Creative Cities.
While there, Cr Sullivan was one of eight city leaders to make presentations to the Mayors’ Forum.
Cr Sullivan and Ms Bradley subsequently spent two days in Covilhã, Portugal’s only City of Design.
Travel costs for the mayor and Ms Bradley totalled $14,855.46 for the seven-day trip.
Geelong has been a member of the Creative Cities Network since 2017, with the annual conference providing the main event for member cities to meet.
However, last year councillors voted to cancel the mayor’s trip to the network’s conference in Istanbul after facing criticisms from residents angry at budget cuts to services such as libraries, major projects and community not-for-profit organisations.
Cr Sullivan said the trip had brought opportunities for collaboration, economic growth, social connections and sustainable development.
“We see the benefits of being a UNESCO Creative City every day,” he said.
“It’s become part of our core branding as a city, as a city region. It inspires us to be better in all that we do.”
He said one major opportunity that had developed in Braga was the potential to co-host the event in Victoria in 2027 in collaboration with other cities such as Ballarat and Bendigo.
“When we have a convention and exhibition centre opening for late 2026, the opportunity to bring representatives from 350 global cities to our doorstep to see what we’re doing here… is just unparalleled,” Cr Sullivan said.
