ACS-yACS: peer-to-peer mentoring for

coastal professionals

Dedicated to healthy ecosystems, vibrant communities, and sustainable use of coastal resources.

With coastal professionals facing a range of coastal management challenges across Australia, there is a need to facilitate knowledge exchange between younger and more experienced coastal leaders. Feedback at networking events has highlighted a recurring need to establish a coastal management focused mentoring program to foster that crucial knowledge exchange. It is envisioned that such mentoring could bridge knowledge gaps and improve coastal management all round.

To bridge this knowledge gap and ensure inter-generational equity, the Australian Coastal Society (ACS) with the younger Australian Coastal Society (yACS) have developed a peer-to-peer mentoring program for its more experienced and less experienced members to interact. Based on the concept of a ‘developmental network’, there are four central characteristics:*

1. The advancement of professional and collective development 2. The program has multiple developers and is all-inclusive3. Develops an interdisciplinary collective network4. Seeds flexible peer-to-peer relationships

This approach allows for both mentors and mentees to share common experiences and knowledge and utilise the ACS and yACS networks effectively to form more collective networks. Further, promote and support inter and intra-generational engagement within ACS. As a result, individual confidence and personal growth will enhance the social capital within ACS, with the potential of outreaching to external parallel networks, including Engineers Australia and the Planning Institute of Australia. This program will reap benefits for the entire coastal network, by encouraging membership retention, self-efficacy and optimism to act on coastal opportunities – and eventually achieve better coastal management in Australia.

OBJECTIVES:• Peer-to-peer information exchange• Progressive expansion and engagement between all members • Expansion and exploration of communication pathways

and networking

MENTORING:“We aim to up-skill emerging

coastal leaders to raise the national capacity for

coastal advocacy”

“Research supports this developmental network concept, as

it forms individual and collective relationships within a network”1

WHAT IS MENTORING? Mentoring has a longstanding reputation for driving organisational and individual success across a variety of disciplines. In an ACS setting, we have the capacity to enhance existing social capital, transfer knowledge between enthusiastic coastal advocates, and further encourage members to act on their coastal management visions. Mentoring can also maintain and build upon coastal culture to support and open pathways for members to grow leadership capacity.

WHAT MIGHT YOU GAIN?Mentoring can benefit mentees through:• Gaining an understanding of career and professional identity• Career direction• Communication and decision-making experience• Networking opportunities• Develop professional ability, problem-solving, and reflective capacity• Develop cross-cultural values• Access new and exciting learning opportunities Mentoring can benefit mentors through:• Improving leadership skills and recognition in the coastal field• Opportunity to experience new personal and professional challenges• Open new networking opportunities• Provide satisfaction of teaching and legacy contribution•Being challenged by fresh ideas and innovations from mentees

yACS is a younger engagement organisational initiative of ACS. ACS is dedicated to healthy

ecosystems, vibrant communities and sustainable use of coastal resources for Australia’s coast, which yACS

supports. Together, we can achieve this by building opportunities for younger coastal champions to

stand up and work collectively with the wider coastal network to future proof Australia’s coast.

“Each relationship will be different and have something unique to offer”

DETAILS OF THE PROGRAM: The program runs over the course of a year with quarterly reviews guided by initial peer-to-peer agreements. It is recommended for all peers of the program to commit to a one-hour meeting by an agreed method at an agreed frequency minimum of a monthly basis. Through ongoing communication with each other, this will support the development of a mentoring relationship and work towards goals, responsibilities and expectations. Understanding the difficulties of busy workloads and schedules, it is important to set negotiable and realistic time commitments. After the completion of the program, some peer-to-peer mentoring relationships may choose to continue. This would show encouraging results of the program and prove the many benefits of mentoring.

PARTICIPANT CRITERIA: Both mentees and mentors must be current members of the ACS.

A mentee must be:• Actively engaged in the coastal network• Open-minded about their experiences and opportunities • Considerate of their expectations of mentors• Accept and learn from feedback• Take responsibility for their development• Be an open, honest axnd courteous communicator willing to share aspirations• Be objective, non-judgemental and tolerant• Be prepared for any meet-ups with mentors• Show initiative, proactivity and commitment

A mentor must:• Be professional and ethical within the mentoring role• Be aware of and act within boundaries of their role• Help to build confidence, self-reliance and motivation within the mentee• Committed to building trust and encouraging ideas• Be supportive• An empathetic and patient listener• Be objective, non-judgemental and tolerant• Be responsive and willing to share career experience • Challenge and open mentees up to new perspectives

“We hope for innovative, diverse and broaden new approaches to be discovered and support the future of coastal management”

PROGRAM COORDINATION: We understand that people develop relationships in different ways. While the program coordinator will formally match the mentoring relationships, it will be the responsibility of program participants to organise their own meet-and-greet sessions. The program coordinator will be available throughout the year to support program participants, should there be any issues or concerns throughout the process. This will ensure all participants keep their experience on track!

PEER-TO-PEER AGREEMENTS: A simple way to achieve successful mentoring relationships is to ensure both the mentor and mentee share the same objectives and expectations of the program and similar interests in the network. Potential issues should be discussed openly and negotiated within initial mentoring agreements and communicated where appropriate.

*This peer-to-peer mentoring program was developed through a Griffith University’s Community Internship position with the Australian Coastal Society, supported by the Griffith Centre for Coastal Management. Many thanks to Jordan Green for her dedication and inspiration throughout the internship. Please contact yacs@australiancoastalsociety.org for more information about internship opportunities.

1McCauley, C.D. & Young, P. D. (1993) ‘Creating developmental relationship: roles and strategies’, Human Resource Management Review, Vol. 3, No. 3, pp. 219-230.

For more information please contact:

the younger Australian Coastal Society I yacs@australiancoastalsociety.org

australiancoastalsociety.org I youngeracs.org

ACS & yACS supports leading and emerging coastal professionals

Peta Williams Prof. Andy Short & Naomi Edwards Prof. Bruce Thom