The Australia’s Sustainable National Development consultation aimed to focus on Australia’s long-term strategy for the creation of wealth generation and the challenge to create a future compatible with one of sustainability:

Resources, value adding

How do we best organize and plan for the exploitation of our natural resources, that both we and others need? Should we be aiming to achieve greater value-adding of our natural resources?  If so, how? How secure are the supplies of resources that we need and which are held by others, eg. oil? What are the contingency plans if that supply is broken? Are we investing adequately in alternative energy? What are other countries doing?

Environment

What should our stance be on global warming, for our own sustainability, for global sustainability? How will we cope with water shortages? What are the implications of continuing re-distribution of population and agricultural bases from south to north, from centre to coastal strips?  What of the impacts of salinity as well? What is our vision for our environment in the light of the richness of biodiversity that Australia hosts? What are our responsibilities to future generations? What are our responsibilities to others?

Physical infrastructure to support emerging economy, changing population

What are the physical infrastructures needs to support the emerging economy and our changing way of life eg long-term aging of the population? What is the appropriate role for government in planning the distribution of population? What is the future configuration of transport infrastructure – to support domestic population and economically? What should be done to ensure Australia has a world-class communications infrastructure? Social and community infrastructures?