Starring role for cities a win for citizens, sustainability

The Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) welcomes the release today of the Australian Labor Party’s cities policy, which aligns with key elements of Thriving Cities,by the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC), as well as its own federal election platform,Healthy, Resilient and Positive Place for People.

Interim Chief Executive Officer, Jonathan Cartledge, said the success of our cities and communities would determine the success of the nation moving forward as the population grows and further urbanises in the context of a de-carbonising world.

“This federal election we urged all political parties to show strong leadership and support a zero emissions buildings agenda,” Mr Cartledge said.

“We called for smarter cities and more affordable housing, with better transport connectivity and more strategic infrastructure investments an indispensable part of the equation.

“Whoever forms government needs to implement evidence-based urban, land and infrastructure planning and maximise the potential of City Deals for the benefit of all Australians.

“We also want to see the Commonwealth create a national strategy for affordable and sustainable housing that uses best practice design and construction.

“The ALP’s cities policy ticks all of these boxes.

“ASBEC’s Thriving Citiesreport, released last week, was the result of tremendous, across-the-board industry collaboration. It sets out detailed, considered policies to realise our goals for the nation’s future and it is terrific to see so much of this work picked up.

“In recent years we have seen incredible collaboration across governments and with industry and communities around Australia to deliver better cities. 

“It’s imperative that this collaboration continues because the Australian people are the ones who will benefit from healthier, better planned cities and communities.

“Creating liveable, sustainable, thriving cities requires a shared, long-term commitment, with successive governments building on the work of their predecessors, not a return to the starting blocks with each electoral cycle.

“We are optimistic that Australia has entered an era of shared commitment to creating a better future in our CBDs, our outer urban growth areas, and our regional centres equally through a coordinated national approach.”