Better buildings can help beat climate change

Upgrading the walls, windows, roofs and insulation of our homes and buildings and using smart software to control heating, cooling, lighting, and ventilation could slash carbon emissions.

Planning Darwin’s future as a “resilient city”

Darwin’s development of its own resilience plan would strengthen the city’s importance as a viable, vibrant and secure state capital.

A patchwork of City Deals or a national settlement strategy: what’s best for our growing cities?

The Commonwealth government has a long history of intervening in cities, from addressing housing shortages to funding urban infrastructure, but is a more formal national urban planning process required?

Planning the “20 minute” cities of tomorrow

Melbourne is growing fast, and planners hope it will become a network of connected “20-minute cities”, where people will be able to walk or cycle to shops and services, reducing traffic while increasing population density.

We subscribe to movies and music, why not transport?

For Australians, “Mobility-as-a-Service” may still be on the distant horizon, but subscription scooter services may be a sign of how we will soon approach urban transport solutions.

Protecting Australia’s critical infrastructure

Critical infrastructure is an area where the cyber and physical worlds are converging. Compromise of digital systems affects our physical world too and so the authorities must safeguard both to protect Australia from malicious attacks.

Affordable rental housing policy not delivering for low income earners

A report by UNSW’s City Futures Research Centre finds planning policy is delivering micro-apartments for students and young professionals rather than affordable housing for low income families.

Driverless buses could boost suburban public transport

Automated services in the form of expanded and frequent fixed-route services feeding major transit hubs, or flexible mobility-on-demand door-to-door trips could stop the downward spiral of suburban public transport.

Faster railways could halve inter-city travel times

Air travel between Sydney and Melbourne is increasingly congested. High speed rail links could cut the travel times, but despite many studies, these plans remain stuck on the drawing board.

Helping plan for hotter cities

As Australian cities heat up, local governments and planning practices will increasingly have to address rising temperatures and urban heat island effects. A new tool, incorporating scientific models, case studies and broad guidelines, has been released to help.

The global problem of thirsty cities

500 million people already experience water shortages around the world but better governance and smart water management could lead to collaboration rather than competition and manage our dwindling supplies more efficiently.

Floating cities – fact or fantasy?

The concept of floating cities has long fascinated engineers and speculative authors, but will fantasy turn into reality to combat the ravages of sea level rises caused by climate change?