Vancouver’s EcoDensity Policy: Reflections on Australian Planning’s Cultural Cringe and Cultural Imperialism

Australia‘s “cultural cringe”   One of the challenges of being a “migrant” in Australia is understanding the “cultural cringe” that infects so much of Australian life. I’ve lived and worked here for 45 years and it still puzzles me. For those not familiar with it, it is an internalised inferiority complex that causes us to… Continue reading Vancouver’s EcoDensity Policy: Reflections on Australian Planning’s Cultural Cringe and Cultural Imperialism

NIMBY Psychology: What Can a Planner Do?

Last night we had a lively discussion in Brisbane hosted by the Planning Institute, Queensland Branch.   Stephanie Wyeth, a highly experienced engagement practitioner and Director of Urbis, Queensland, and I spoke about the practical aspects of community engagement in a well-attended “How-To” seminar.     I spoke about NIMBY Psychology: What Can a Planner… Continue reading NIMBY Psychology: What Can a Planner Do?

Please Spare Manitoba!

  Manitoba in the early days   What now?   I never thought I’d see the day! One of the best examples of medium-density housing in Australia is up for redevelopment! How can this be?   Where is our memory?   Is new always better?   Don’t we know what’s good when we see it?… Continue reading Please Spare Manitoba!

NIMBY psychology at Harvard University February 2013

  NIMBY psychology comes to Harvard — from Australia!   February was an exciting month for me. I spent it teaching in the Graduate School of Design (GSD) at Harvard University and giving lectures and classes at MIT and Tufts University.   It was exceptionally cold for a person who lives in the sub-tropics. A… Continue reading NIMBY psychology at Harvard University February 2013

“Realising the Revolution”: Medium-Density Housing in Queensland by Bridget Rogan and Fran Toomey

First posted June 8, 2012 – 3:21 pm   Two Brisbane Planners Call for a “Revolutionary” Approach to Increasing Housing Density: Realising the Revolution?     In a recent paper to the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) Queensland conference, Bridget Rogan and Fran Toomey of the Council of Mayors (SEQ) presented the results of work… Continue reading “Realising the Revolution”: Medium-Density Housing in Queensland by Bridget Rogan and Fran Toomey