Putting locals first? The role of civil society in Victorian rural and regional policy

The resurgence of civil society within Australian policy has resulted from something of a convergence between neoliberalism and communitarianism (O'Toole and Burdess 2004, p.434). However the notion of what civil society is, and the role that civil society performs within the broader Australian society, remains politically charged. This paper contends that civil society is positioned as a service provider within current regional policy of the Victorian state government. To illustrate this point, this paper focuses on the 'Putting Locals First Program', which is an element of the Regional Development Fund, launched by the Victorian state government in 2011. This paper commences by providing an analysis of the relationship between civil society and the state in modern, market oriented societies. Following this, the notion that civil society is instrumentalised by government is examined, whereby the government utilises civil society to "govern through the community" (Rose 1999, p.475). This paper will then provide a brief analysis of the funding guidelines for the 'Putting Locals First Program'.