Category Archives: legislation

Government and religion

equity, GOVERNANCE, legislation, opinions, politics, religion, , , ,

In Australia we have a small band of conservatives who work tirelessly to have their brands of religion have a greater influence on government and the country’s laws.

Luckily till now they are more of less not so successful – well most of the time.

In their last round of attempts to achieve more religious freedoms (whatever that meant) – what would have been more applicable would have been to remove religion and the influence of such religious fundamentalists completely from the workings of government.

Meanwhile in a land not far away – things are going from bad to worse.

Click here for the story in the Guardian.

 

 

Lawyers, files and money–and those responsible for this mess

A DICKSON RESIDENT, Canberra, equity, GOVERNANCE, legislation, planning, politics, urban development, , , , , , ,

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It took about three hours of argument on Friday 28th October for a decision by the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT) on whether certain government planning documents should be released to those making objections to the Government’s agreement to the revised Development Application (DA) for the Dickson supermarket.

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Sydney Urbanity & Architecture

climate change, green infrastructure, legislation, sustainability, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, , , ,

Is architecture is failing contemporary Sydney? Part One

 

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There is no doubt that the City of Sydney and its harbour are magnificent to behold. (click on the photo to enlarge). The mix of built structures really makes for a view that demands you take the time to stare, contemplate and to just enjoy it for as long as it takes. However…..

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Canberra Urbanity & Development

climate change, GOVERNANCE, legislation, sustainability, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, , , ,

Recent Canberra Government development announcements

 

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In recent weeks and months there have been several significant development proposals announced by the territory (ACT) government in Canberra. If all the government’s ambitions come to fruition then residents about to witness some very serious alterations and additions to the make-up of several parts of the inner city urban fabric.

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Car Parking

carbon, cities, climate change, legislation, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, transport, ,

Using Parking Meters in Climate Change

 

parkingmadridThere are all sorts of stories in circulation in Canberra as a result of the decision to introduce paid parking for all areas within the Parliamentary Triangle. This has a big impact on those who work in the area. Some public servants are devising clever tricks to continue to have free parking.

This will also mean that visitors will now have to pay to visit the national institutions and have limited time to visit. This could be a marked change in how visitors regard the national cultural institutions. I know as a local, it will mean less visits to these institutions.

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UK Farrell Review

carbon, cities, climate change, cultural landscapes, design, education, GOVERNANCE, heritage, housing, Landscape, legislation, open space, Place, planning, politics, professions, sustainability, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, , ,

Report: The Built Environment

Farrell2 In January 2013 Ed Vaizey, the UK Minister for Culture, Communications and the Creative Industries, commissioned Sir Terry Farrell to undertake a national review of architecture and the built environment. The report is now available online.

Terry Farrell undertook this Review independently with his team at Farrells and advised by a panel of 11 industry leaders with a breadth of experience that covers education, outreach, urbanism, architecture, property and philosophy.

 

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Leadership in Design

cities, climate change, design, Landscape, legislation, planning, professions, sustainability, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, ,

Leadership in design of the built environment

watson-House-P1030003I was attending a meeting of combined community council two years ago, when to members of the public who were in attendance made very similar appeals. Both were very upset with the quality of the redevelopments that had appeared within their street, despite the local communities objections about key aspects of the developments.

As far as I could ascertain, they were not necessarily opposed to the infill of their suburb. It was more about the nature of the apartments being built.

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Urbanism, Climate Adaptation and Health

biodiversity, climate change, energy, GOVERNANCE, green infrastructure, health & well being, Landscape, legislation, sustainability, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, , , , ,

Reporting on research being undertaken

Urbanism, Climate Adaptation and Health

You are urged to ‘watch this space’ for research and reports by scientists who have been carrying out research on Urbanism, Climate Adaptation and Health. To quote from their website:

Safeguarding future health in Australian cities, The CSIRO Climate Adaptation Flagship has funded scientists and researchers from a range of disciplines to develop adaptation strategies which will improve the health of urban populations in the face of a variable and changing climate.

The Urbanism, Climate Adaptation and Health Cluster was established in 2010 and officially launched in March 2011 at a Conference in Cairns, bringing together nine different partner organisations focusing on 7 major research projects.

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Urban Trees and Heat

biodiversity, cities, climate change, energy, GOVERNANCE, green infrastructure, health & well being, housing, Landscape, legislation, opinions, planning, sustainability, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, , , ,

Opinion Editorial: Urban Trees and Heat

A case study of neglect and willful blindness?.

(cross posted from our other blog)

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Environmental Policy Analysis

biodiversity, carbon, climate change, energy, GOVERNANCE, green infrastructure, Landscape, legislation, materials, plants, politics, soils, sustainability, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, water, ,

Environmental Policy Analysis: A Guide to Non-Market Valuation

(Taken from a media release)

The Productivity Commission this week released a staff working paper that examines methods available for assessing costs and benefits for environmental values.

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Green Spaces and the Health Budgets

biodiversity, cities, climate change, green infrastructure, health & well being, Landscape, legislation, open space, parks, politics, sustainability, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, , ,

Green Spaces and the Health Budgets

re-posted from the BBC

In Australia planning authorities and government administrative services sections still do not address the proven links between health and the access to open spaces. One has to only look to the small budgets for parks initiatives and worse still to the shrinking allocations for park maintenance within local governments.

Meanwhile all our governments are under stress because of the increasing requirements being identified under their health portfolios.

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Health Wellbeing and Parks

climate change, green infrastructure, health & well being, Landscape, legislation, parks, plants, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS, , ,

re-posted from BBC, science and environment

It’s about the links between Health Wellbeing and Parks

Green spaces, Parks, have lasting positive effect on health and wellbeing

Living in an urban area with green spaces such as parks has a long-lasting positive impact on people’s mental well-being, a study has suggested. UK researchers found moving to a green space had a sustained positive effect, unlike pay rises or promotions, which only provided a short-term boost.

The authors said the results indicated that access to good quality urban parks was beneficial to public health. The findings appear in the journal Environmental Science and Technology.

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Public Health

climate change, design, GOVERNANCE, health & well being, legislation, open space, People, SUSTAINABLE SETTLEMENTS,

Re-Posted from UK Landscape Institute

Public health and landscape: creating healthy places (November 2013)

The UK Landscape Institute believes that greater priority needs to be given to prevention of ill health in public health and social care. All those involved in creating healthy places, public health professionals, planners and landscape architects, need to recognise that landscape has enormous potential to improve our health and wellbeing. In Australia, despite all the evidence being available, it has been a struggle to have the Australian Government recognise the importance of the links between our public spaces and the population’s health and well being.

 Click here for UK Landscape Institute Public Health Policy links