08 Dec 2017
8 December 2017
The Australian Government’s new National Cities Performance Framework and live dashboard of indicators brings new opportunities for Australia’s city-dwellers, says the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA).
The Australian Government’s framework and dashboard track the performance of 21 of Australia’s largest cities, plus Western Sydney, against key metrics including jobs and skills, infrastructure and investment, liveability and sustainability, innovation and digital opportunities, governance, planning and regulation, and housing.
“For the first time, we can piece together a picture of the factors that influence the liveability and sustainability of our largest cities,” says the GBCA’s Chief Executive Officer, Romilly Madew.
“The dashboard and framework provide an evidence base for long-term integrated strategic planning that will deliver better cities and communities for the next generation,” Ms Madew says.
“Eighty per cent of our GDP is created within our cities and 80 per cent of our population live in our cities, so it is critical we understand how they deliver for the country as a whole.
“As our cities grapple with increasing pressure to densify, we must consider how we are delivering against broader measures of success. The indicators provided here will be crucial as we develop a fresh vision for our cities and communicate the benefits of new infrastructure and urban renewal in a way that matters to everyday Australians.
“We can also track how the increasing adoption of rating systems, like Green Star, are influencing the sustainability of our cities,” she says.
The GBCA is a member of the Cities Reference Group which informed this process.
“We congratulate Assistant Minister for Cities, Angus Taylor, for his hard work to deliver this great outcome. We are pleased to see the Australian Government committing to ongoing improvement,” Ms Madew adds.
Minister Taylor has promised the framework is a “living resource that will be improved over time, through continuous improvement, structured around annual updates and three yearly reviews”.
Ms Madew says the GBCA welcomes this approach.
“The Australian Government acknowledges the significant further work required to collect data, particularly around critical issues such as greenhouse gas emissions.
“However, we now have baselines from which we can work together to build better cities for people.