Page 65 - Tropic Magazine Issue 21

TROPIC • OPINION

Shaun Donaldson
Director
Halpin Partners

Diverse economy

One of the things I love about Cairns is the diversity of people.
Thanks to our successful tourism industry and great lifestyle we
are lucky to have a diversity of people from many backgrounds.
This includes holiday makers, short term stayers (such as
backpackers) and people who have chosen to call Cairns home
for good.
This diversity makes Cairns special and can be seen everywhere
from our schools (my kids are lucky to have friends from many
different backgrounds) to the variety of people you bump
into when you head into town for dinner. This is not just my
opinion, just about any mate or business associate who I have
taken out for dinner has commented on the great atmosphere
and mix of people.
Nikki Huddy This also complements our business sector well. It allows
Managing Director tourism businesses to better understand international
Planz Town Planning customers and provides hospitality and agriculture industries
with access to more flexible short-term labour. What would a
bush pub be without a Pommy or Irish backpacker serving you!
Where you’re heading At times I think we take this diversity for granted and do not
push back hard enough when regulatory changes through
unintended consequences threaten to dilute the diversity we
As the old year makes way for the new, I find myself reflecting have built in Cairns over many years. One such recent change
on 2019 and gearing up for 2020. I started this year with was the backpacker tax which levied an additional tax on a
such motivation and a clear set of goals and looking back I’m group who spent every cent they made. This made some cut
surprised to see the highlights and achievements of 2019 were their stay short and others skip Cairns and Australia
not on my radar and I’ve had a couple of ah-ha moments: all together.
1. The things you plan for may not be the things that matter On this front, I am happy to report that sanity may be
2. The highlights were not things ticked off as completed, but prevailing. A recent court challenge against the backpacker
rather the personal connections made tax has been successful with the tax deemed discriminatory
I’m chuffed with the lessons 2019 gave me and I’ve ‘resolved’ to and in breach of Australian tax treaties with several countries
make my New Year’s resolutions less about a wish list of better including Japan, Germany and the UK. The ATO has yet to
behaviours and more about building on these ah-ha moments. formally respond, however here’s hoping this is the catalyst for
I’ve borrowed from some great thinkers to set up my resolutions the government to abandon the backpacker tax.
for 2020. MORE: halpinpartners.com.au
CULTIVATE MEANINGFUL RELATIONSHIPS
The poet Adrienne Rich wrote it’s important to do this because
we can count on so few people to go that hard way with us.
RESIST ABSENTMINDED ‘BUSYNESS’
Many wise people including Benjamin Franklin and British
philosopher Bertrand Russell have said there is a big difference
between being busy and being productive. There is value in
spending quality time doing nothing.
MASTER THE ART OF LOVING
Philosopher Erich Fromm said, “there is hardly any activity,
which starts with such tremendous hopes and expectations,
and yet, which fails so regularly, as love”. He goes on to describe
love as an art form, just as living is an art. So, I am going to
give it a go.
If you have a resolution to share, I’d love to hear it. “If you do
not change direction, you may end up where you are heading,”
as Lao Tzu said.
MORE: planztp.com
Pic: Paul Furse/Centacare FNQ

65 • tropicnow.com.au