The Regional Australia Institute think tank's Regions Rising National Summit, held last week, was particularly well-attended by Ballarat delegates.

Committee for Ballarat chief executive Michael Poulton said encouraging more metropolitan people to move to the regions will be a positive for the city, and RAI's new ad campaign will support Ballarat's own attempts to attract people to live, work, and study here.

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"The evidence is clear that there's a growing shift amongst metro dwellers towards regional Australia," he said, pointing to the RAI statistics that one in five metropolitan-based people have "seriously considered" a move.

"Ballarat's in a position where we can make the most of that, with our geographical location and abundance of opportunities."

More office workers who would otherwise need to be based in Melbourne have used time spent working from home to reconsider where they are and where they want to be, he added, which Ballarat needed to make the most of, while also ensuring crucial infrastructure was keeping up.

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That was the strength of the conference - it was a chance to "pause and reflect" on how rapid growth, he said, and lobby the federal government to support it.

Speakers included deputy prime minister Michael McCormack and opposition infrastructure spokesperson, Ballarat MP Catherine King.

"There was absolute recognition that regional Australia needs to share the opportunities for population growth, and it requires infrastructure spending and good policy," Mr Poulton said.

As well as representatives from Regional Development Australia Grampians division and the City of Ballarat, the Committee's Future Shapers leadership program participants also attended, giving them a chance to engage with decisionmakers from across Australia.

One participant, Kasey Cornwell, said it was exciting to see the passion and commitment to regional areas.

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"The conference has opened my eyes to the issues in other areas which may be ones we are yet to uncover in Ballarat," she said in a statement.

Another participant, Owen Harris, said it also highlighted the "frustrations, hurdles, and structural issues" that need to be faced.

"It has shown me the importance of leadership both now and into the future to bring people together in the Ballarat region and beyond - to activate ways to improve our region's weaknesses as well as showing and expanding its already great features," he said in a statement.

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