35 years of advocacy is about to pay off for the entirety of the region. Today, the Australian Government has provided their full support for the Victorian Goldfields to acquire World Heritage Listing! Susan Fayad of City of Ballarat and Trevor Budge of City of Greater Bendigo have worked tirelessly to unite 15 Local Government areas, and the economic benefit for all is extensive. More than 2.5 million new visitors could visit in the next 10 years as a result, bringing a spending increase of more than $500 million. Heritage Victoria have also committed resources and support, and co-patrons the Hon. Denis Napthine AO and the Hon. John Brumby AO have added significant weight to the advocacy. The region is now set for inclusion on Australia’s World Heritage Tentative List, which now allows us to progress submitting a full nomination to UNESCO any time from February 2026. This is an incredible step for the region, and a wonderful reflection of the passionate work that allowed the bid to reach this point.