Global sustainable urban development leader to help inform Australian policy direction

Urban development and renewal expert, Dr Joan Clos, Under Secretary-General and Executive Director of the United Nations’ Habitat Program, will visit Australia in May.

Australia is a signatory to the New Urban Agenda (NUA), the UN’s 20 year road map for sustainable urban development.

The NUA sets a new standard for sustainable urban development and is designed to help countries rethink how they plan, manage and live in cities.

Compass Housing, in association with RMIT University, Victorian Department of the Environment, Land Water and Planning, CoDesign Studio and Eastern Organisation for Planning and Human Settlements (EAROPH), is bringing together representatives from across the region to explore the implications of the new agenda and start work towards delivery of outcomes.

The conference Implementing the New Urban Agenda: Making Cities and Human Settlements Inclusive, Safe, Resilient and Sustainable will take place at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre on 4-5 May 2017.

Greg Budworth, Compass Housing group managing director,  said the Australian Government's adoption of the NUA last October was an important opportunity for housing and urban policy development.

“The conference in Melbourne will provide the first real opportunity in Australasia and the Pacific region for those with an interest in getting urban development right, to start developing an effective and strategic approach without further delay.

“We know our population is growing, it will potentially double in the next 50 years, and this is putting pressure on our urban areas, particularly capital cities. Australian Bureau of Statistics figures suggest two-thirds of Australians currently live in a capital city and this may increase to nearly three-quarters in the relatively near future.

“Housing affordability is already an enormous problem, and there are more than 200,000 families on the waiting list for social housing while 40 per cent of people receiving Commonwealth Rent Assistance are still in housing stress.”

Professor David Adamson, conference chair,  said addressing these issues and delivering the key NUA objectives of “cities for all” and “no one left behind” would require the collaboration of a wide range of private, public, academic and not-for-profit agencies.

“Having the head of the UN Habitat Program in attendance in Melbourne is a fantastic opportunity and a sign of the global significance of the event,” he said.

“Dr Clos has had an illustrious career spanning public health, diplomacy, municipal government and urban renewal and will bring powerful insight and enormous practical experience to the task at hand,” he said.