Southeast Asia Clean Economy Workforce Action Plan
RMIT Policy, Strategy & Impact Portfolio — Australian APEC Study Centre (AASC)
Project Leads: Bri Wood-Ingram & Kristen Bondietti
Project Summary
The Southeast Asia Clean Economy Workforce Action Plan Project provided thought leadership on collaborative approaches toward a regional workforce to accelerate the adoption of clean and renewable technologies in Australia and Southeast Asia. It sought to explore the City North Activation Challenge concerned with how Australia and countries in Southeast Asia could work together to mobilise the regional talent that is required to power the clean economy, thereby bringing an international ‘voice’ to RMIT’s City North Social Innovation Precinct.
The Project recognised that when building a clean economy workforce, ensuring mobility of economic activity, skilled individuals, and ideas being shared across borders is crucial. A coordinated and forward-looking approach is needed to address barriers to mobility and enable a workforce to drive the acceleration of clean technologies across the region.
The Project consisted of activities such as an expert Roundtable that brought together various stakeholders. Additionally, two policy papers were drafted by the Australian APEC Study Centre (AASC) to inform and build on the outcomes discussed at the Roundtable.
The Project was undertaken by the AASC, working in collaboration with the Pacific Economic Cooperation (AusPECC) and the RMIT Asia Hub.
Key Project Activities, Milestones & Deliverables
The key activities and outputs of the Project commenced on November 11, 2025, with a Roundtable held in the RMIT Asia Hub which brought together stakeholders from various essential sectors needed for the development of a regional clean economy workforce. The stakeholders were able to share perspectives and knowledge with cities and innovation hubs and played a central role in their connection. It featured participation from RMIT and AASC experts, as well as groups including RMIT Vietnam Smart and Sustainable Cities Research and Engagement Hub, the AusPECC Committee and the Victorian Government.
A background brief was developed in October 2025 and was used to serve as input for the Roundtable. The brief outlined how Australia and Southeast Asia partners can work together to mobilise the clean economy workforce of the future.
A policy article was then prepared by the AASC in December 2025, drawing on key insights from the Roundtable. These outputs were then disseminated via publication on the AASC’s website as well as LinkedIn media posts from APEC and Asia Hub networks.
Project Impact
The Project successfully generated thought leadership and collaborative engagement among stakeholders on the importance of, and possible ways of working together to advance a clean economy workforce in Southeast Asia and Australia. It highlighted City North Precinct and RMIT Asia Hub as centres of excellence for thought leadership related to addressing pressing international challenges facing cities, countries and the region.
The Roundtable brought together representatives from governments, cities, business, and academia which generated meaningful discussions on progressing an action plan for a clean economy workforce. The background brief provided an evidence base for the development of practical and policy solutions, that was useful for informing the dialogue, and broader community. The policy article pointed to key pathways forward, serving as the next step toward further action on this issue. Both documents contributed valuable insights that can be used to form the basis of ongoing or future work.
Engagement and interest in the Project were evident from the social media activity received. All Project dedicated posts achieved engagement rates well above typical LinkedIn benchmarks for education-related content in both academic and industry settings.
Future Planning
While there are no further activities planned for the Project at this stage, the AASC and AusPECC partners are keen to further advance work in this area due to the interest in and success of the Project.
This Project was deliberately designed to be small in scale and act as a ‘conversation starter’ for future programs which are broader in scope and reach. These could be tailored to meet resource and stakeholder needs.
“[The Project] highlighted the City North Precinct and RMIT Asia Hub as centres of excellence for thought leadership on how to address pressing international challenges facing cities, countries and the region.”
Kristen Bondietti, Project Lead — Southeast Asia Clean Economy Workforce Action Plan
Acknowledgements
Arjuna Nadaraja, Chair of AusPECC.