Melbourne, a UNESCO Creative City of Literature since 2008, recently launched a collaborative project titled “The Road Less Travelled”. In conjunction with the Wheeler Centre of Melbourne, and the City of Literature Office, the project aims to cooperate with a select number of metropolitan and regional Literary Festivals to help them achieve sustainability during the pandemic.

Through the organization of a year-long series of events, the project will support festivals in their programming, marketing, and production, as well as, in organizing one showcase event within their programme. Over 30 artists and 50 professionals from the art sector, are foreseen to be supported through the project.

Events will run until 30 October 2022 and will be showcased on the Wheeler Centre's website. To further broaden the outreach of the various festivals, the Wheeler Centre will also launch a dedicated podcast series soon to be available on its website.

While promoting mentorship and cooperation at a local and regional level, “The Road Less Travelled” provides an opportunity to take a step towards sustainability for the myriad of small literary festivals in Melbourne. The project intends to effectively Promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.