Adelaide workshop, Urban systems transformation

On 20 February 2019 Future Earth Australia held the eighth in a series of national workshops for its project ‘Urban systems transformation: sustainable cities’. The Adelaide workshop was co-hosted by CSIRO, the University of South Australia, and the University of Adelaide and included stakeholders from government, city councils, local businesses, NGOs and research groups.

The event began with presentations by Dr Tim Muster, Team Leader of Adaptive Liveable Cities at CSIRO Future Cities, Dr Stephen Berry, Renewable Energy and Decarbonisation Manager at the University of South Australia, and Professor Chris Leisham, Director of the Centre for Housing, Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Adelaide. Next, several regional experts were asked to give a short presentation on the current issues and visions for Adelaide and regional South Australia, and to share their insights on the major challenges for achieving sustainable development. Speakers included Dr Donna Ferretti, Director of Donna Ferretti and Associates, Professor John Boland of Environmental Mathematics and the School of Information Technology and Mathematical Sciences at the University of South Australia, Mr Vaughan Levitzke, Chef Executive of Green Industries SA, and Mr Ross Womersley, CEO of the South Australian Council of Social Service. Following the panel discussion, participants were asked about their visions for a sustainable future in Adelaide. Using an online poll, we generated a word cloud of answers to a number of questions. For instance, when asked ‘What is your vision for a sustainable future in Adelaide?’, the words walkable, healthy, inclusive, green, and resilient were the most commonly answered.

To read more about the event in Adelaide, read our outcome paper.