ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia

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ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
ANNUAL   2019
REVIEW   2020
ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
THE PLANNING INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA
IS THE LEADER AND CHIEF GUARDIAN OF
THE PLANNING PROFESSION

Our Vision                             Our Mission                          PIA believes our planning
PIA’s vision is a strong, diverse
                                                                            professionals are the key
                                       To foster the development of a
and vibrant planning profession        strong planning profession and to    agents in delivering great
recognised by legislators,             champion the importance of good      planning.
policymakers, and the public           planning in shaping Australia’s
                                                                            PIA is passionate about the
alike as being committed to            future. PIA will do this through
building more sustainable and          professional leadership, effective
                                                                            value that planners deliver
liveable communities. We aspire        advocacy and networking, and         to society and we actively
to be Australia’s trusted voice on     practical, contemporary planning.    advocate that to government,
planning – working impartially with                                         industry and the community.
government officials, business and
the planning community to help
shape great spaces and places.

Our 3 Strategic Pillars
                                                                                    2. Advocacy

                               1. Leadership

2.   Annual Review 2019/2020
ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
TABLE OF
               CONTENTS

               VISION AND MISSION			                    2

               LEADERSHIP
                From the President			                   4
                From the CEO			                         8
                From the President-Elect			             10
                2020 PIA National Awards			             11
                for Planning Excellence
                Australian Urban Design Awards			       14

               ADVOCACY
                Advocacy 2019/2020			                   16
                Standing Up For Planning			             19

               EDUCATION
                Education 2019/2020			                  26
                Young Planners Network			               30
                PIA Mentoring			                        32

               MEMBERSHIP
                PIA Membership			                       34

               FINANCE
                Financial Sustainability			             38
                Balance Sheet			                        40
                Profit and Loss Statement			            41

               OUR SPONSORS
                Principal Sponsors			                   42
                Major Sponsors and Supporters			        43
3. Education    Our Team			                             44
                Celebrating Our Fellows			              46
                PIA Honour Board			                     48

                                             Annual Review 2019/2020   3.
ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
FROM THE
PRESIDENT

As this will be my final                We are indeed fortunate to be in       Notwithstanding this success, the
report as National                      a strong financial position, able to   following key initiatives the Board
                                        weather the financial storm and        had identified have been placed
President of PIA, I                     havoc the global pandemic has          on hold:
would like to reflect                   unleashed.
on the Institute’s                                                              » Exploring the impact of digital
                                        The macro economic shock brought          disruption on our profession and
achievements since                      about by this global pandemic is the      planners;
2013 when I first                       most severe economic downturn
                                                                                » Gender equity survey of the
became a Director on                    Australia has experienced since
                                                                                  profession;
the National Board.                     World War 2. As PIA only came
                                        into existence in 1951, these are       » Focusing on Aboriginal and
During this time, PIA’s membership                                                Torres Strait Islander People’s
                                        the most challenging economic
has increased from around 4800                                                    culture and contribution to
                                        conditions the Institute has
to 5300 members. In addition, PIA                                                 planning; and
                                        experienced in its 69-year history.
reaches more than 7000 individuals
who attend PIA events held all          As a result, the National Board has     » Postponing the National
around the nation throughout the        faced challenges for which there          Congress which was to be held in
year. Despite COVID-19’s devastating    is no predetermined script. I am          Adelaide earlier this year.
impacts in 2020, the number of Full     pleased to report that the Board,      Despite the lack of progress in some
Members increased from 3393 to          working closely with our Senior        priority areas, members can feel
3441 during the 2020 Financial Year     Management Team, has risen to this     justifiably proud of the progress
(FY2020). To increase membership        challenge. For example, our CEO,       which the Institute has made in spite
numbers during a global pandemic,       David Williams and his dedicated       of the impacts of COVID-19.
while other membership                  team have transformed PIA’s
organisations are experiencing          educational and event offerings        PIA recently hosted the first virtual
significant falls in membership, is a   to an online service. The take up      National Awards for Planning
remarkable achievement.                 of these offerings has exceeded        Excellence which has been viewed by
                                        our expectations and allowed PIA       over 1400 people. This far exceeds
With the exception of FY2020, where                                            the 500-600 people who would have
                                        to maintain an important income
we incurred a small loss, PIA has                                              attended the awards ceremony.
                                        stream as well as improving services
recorded successive profits over the                                           Similarly, PIA has played an integral
                                        to our members.
past seven financial years amassing                                            role in hosting this year’s Australian
over $750,000 in reserves which will                                           Urban Design Awards and again this
be used to cushion the Institute this                                          was a virtual awards ceremony.
financial year and into the future
against the ongoing financial impacts                                          These innovations help raise PIA’s
of COVID-19.                                                                   profile and show outstanding
                                                                               examples of Australian Planning at
                                                                               its best.

4.   Annual Review 2019/2020
ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
LEADERSHIP

In last year’s annual report, I noted    It is a rare privilege to have served in   “Together with our
that two key roles of the Board          this leadership role in the Institute.     dedicated staff,
are to provide leadership for the        As PIA’s 34th National President,
organisation and to ensure that          I have had the honour of helping
                                                                                    these volunteers are
good governance procedures are           to navigate the Institute through          the backbone of the
not only in place but are being          COVID-19, a once-in-100-year event.        Institute.”
followed. It has been an honour to       Much more needs to be done                 As Planners, we are providing an
be part of a high performing Board       building on the great wins over the        essential role in the economic
which has provided leadership            past seven years, so I am pleased to       recovery underway in Australia.
during this global pandemic, guiding     be handing over this leadership role       While the global pandemic
the Institute through unprecedented      to Darren Crombie. Darren has been         has created an extra layer of
times. In particular, I would like to    a PIA Director for the past six years      uncertainty about what the future
acknowledge the contribution of my       and has worked in government at            holds, Planners are resilient and
two National Vice Presidents, Cate       the Local, State and Commonwealth          accustomed to building in flexibility.
Hart and Darren Crombie. They            level, as well as in the private sector    PIA is Australia’s peak organisation
have provided valuable support and       in consulting. Consequently, he has        representing Planners from every
have been outstanding leaders in         an insight into all aspects of planning    State and Territory across the length
their own right on the two Board         and has proven to be an exceptional        and breadth of this great nation.
Committees that they chair, the          strategic thinker. The Institute is        This places PIA in a unique position
Finance and Risk Management              fortunate to have someone of the           to be the “Trusted Voice in Planning”.
Committee and the Policy and             high calibre of Darren to take on the      Your Institute is well placed to help
Advocacy Committee.                      National President’s role.                 our members to meet the challenges
I would also like to thank the           I would like to record the importance      that lay ahead.
hard-working PIA team who are            of our many volunteers, including
so capably led by David Williams.        Divisional Committee members
David’s management skills and            around Australia who contribute
his ability to grapple with difficult    via working groups and various
issues and achieve outstanding           committees helping to formulate
results have placed PIA in a strong      submissions on key policy matters.
position to face the many challenges     They act as mentors in our
arising from the global pandemic.        mentoring programs and undertake
I am delighted to report that David      numerous other PIA activities
has signed a contract to extend his      each year.
employment as PIA’s CEO until 2023.
This is great news for our profession
and will ensure PIA continues to be a
high achieving professional Institute.

                                                                                    Steve O’Connor RPIA (Fellow)
                                                                                    National President

                                                                                              Annual Review 2019/2020   5.
ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
FROM THE
CEO

A Year of                              Closer to home, one of PIA’s strategic   January to June 2020
Two Halves                             intents is to bridge the gap between
                                                                                As the holiday season began,
                                       research and practice. Consequently,
                                                                                the number, size and intensity
July to Christmas 2019                 we pursued several pathways to this
                                                                                of bushfires increased and what
                                       end during the second half of 2019.
In PIA, we were riding a wave of                                                seemed like endless days of mass
                                       This included PIA and our members
success. We were increasing our                                                 devastation rolled out down the
                                       making significant contributions to
advocacy impact, growing PIA’s                                                  eastern seaboard, in Western
                                       the Academy of Science’s Future
reach into the profession through                                               Australia and South Australia,
                                       Earth decadal plan for urban
a broader range of Professional                                                 including the iconic Kangaroo Island.
                                       systems research.
Development events, and                                                         The news broadcasts and social
strengthening the capacity of the      We contributed heavily to the CRC        media spoke of nothing else but
organisation.                          bid for Future Cities, a 10-year         the fires and their impact on our
                                       funded program of applied research       communities and wildlife. Along the
As a member of the Commonwealth
                                       led by the University of NSW, with       lengthening trail of trauma, heroism,
Association of Planners, PIA
                                       a key role in research design for        selflessness and communities
supported CAP’s endorsement of the
                                       PIA. While this application stumbled     emerged, rallying together to
Commonwealth Women in Planning
                                       in the final round of Ministerial        support themselves and others.
Network Manifesto.
                                       approval, the alliances formed and
                                                                                At PIA, with holidays cut short,
The manifesto marks the first          the project scope will serve PIA well.
                                                                                work began on responding to the
international commitment by
                                       In parallel, PIA collaborated and        bushfire crisis. We strove to support
planning associations across the
                                       advocated to put the U (urban            those members impacted and
Commonwealth to advance the role
                                       research) back in the Australian         created conduits for the immediate
of women as active participants in
                                       Housing and Urban Research               response from planners to support
planning, designing, and shaping the
                                       Institute (AHURI) and this appears to    householders, communities and
built environment.
                                       have been successful.                    local council planning staff in fire-
As a participant in the Global                                                  ravaged communities.
                                       As we approached the Christmas
Planners’ Network, a group of 12                                                We moved swiftly, connecting expert
                                       holidays, significant bushfires burned
organisations representing 100,000                                              natural hazard planning advice with
                                       in Queensland and northern NSW.
professional planners, PIA signed                                               recovery agencies and the various
the World Planners’ Abu Dhabi                                                   inquiries.
Declaration 2020. This included
the statement that there can be no
sustainable development without
sustainable urbanisation and no
sustainable urbanisation without
effective planning.

6.   Annual Review 2019/2020
ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
LEADERSHIP

To add to the strange New Year,         I am so proud of the speed              Other benefits emerged from PIA’s
in the Canberra office we watched       with which the small PIA staff          online delivery. For the first-time
as a massive hailstorm hammered         team transitioned face-to-face          members in outer suburbs, smaller
hundreds of cars in minutes and         professional development to             cities, towns and regional areas had
damaged buildings and homes,            high-quality online delivery. Many      easy access to PIA’s professional
adding a new layer of trauma.           less agile and more conservative        development. Many of the PD
Over these months, a news story ran     organisations took months to            topics are not jurisdiction-specific,
in the background of the challenges     achieve what PIA achieved in about      so members could join PIA’s PD
facing parts of China from something    48 hours.                               events hosted from anywhere
named Coronavirus. We watched           Not only did we convert existing        across the country.
nightly as the maps showed the          professional development online,        Providing online PD to those
virus spreading slowly, gaining pace,   we created new products, many of        members unable or unwilling to
then infecting people in Australia.     which were free. These included the     attend face-to-face events in the
In the first week of March we closed    Economics in Planning Series aimed      capital cities was on our “to do” list
the doors to our offices in Sydney,     at senior planners, managers and        well before COVID. The first of the
Melbourne, Canberra and Perth.          leaders and attracted more than         Viability Analysis reports was due
Staff began working from home. We       300 registrations to each of the        in early 2020. But we skipped the
have yet to return to our Sydney and    one-hour sessions. Additionally, we     Viability Analysis, the Business Case,
Melbourne offices.                      launched Planning Hour PD and           and the Pilot Phase – we just did
As a result, in 2020 our new            Friday Briefing Sessions.               it. That is another lesson from the
common-use vocabulary includes          But it was clear that our members       extraordinary 2020. Just do it.
unprecedented, iso, pivot,              needed more than just Professional      The positive feedback from
border closures, face masks,            Development. So, we created             members from all corners of
social-distancing and even hyper-       member connection events like           Australia has been loud and
localisation.                           Virtual Coffee Catch-ups (some in the   constant. Now that this service is
                                        evening with wine) for each division    operating, is proven, and is valued by
PIA changes Professional                and for specific networks such as       members it will continue as we live
Development delivery                    Women in Planning and Young             with COVID-19, and onwards after
In PIA, we also learned quickly how     Planners.                               the virus has been contained.
to provide professional development     In the early days of nation-wide
and social connection events online.    lockdown, these were really
Within the first week of shutdown,      important and highly successful as
we transitioned PLANET to online,       everyone became familiar with the
with much appreciation and              challenges of working from home,
understanding from presenters           mastering video calls and managing
and participants.                       the strange sense of exhaustion
                                        after a day on Zoom and Teams.

                                                                                           Annual Review 2019/2020   7.
ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
FROM THE
CEO

But it remains all about               It is now obvious Australia can make
the “why”                              significant structural change when
                                       the need is clear and the leadership
Both halves of 2019/20 have one
                                       strong and honest.
thing in common. PIA’s fundamental
purpose didn’t change. The only        If not now, then when? Each year
things to change were context and      Australia and the globe do not
the operating environment. Why PIA     directly address the need to rapidly
exists, in simple terms, is to:        decarbonise our economies, the
                                       risk of runaway climate change
     » Advocate for great planning;
                                       increases. This is a challenge that
     » Create outstanding planners;    planners and our communities
      and                              cannot avoid.                              Chinatown Revitalisation, Broome
     » Remind planners why they
      became planners.
                                       Urban Design and                           Planners have always understood
                                       Performance                                that an individual’s resilience relies
PIA’s Advocacy Agenda                  We have witnessed over past                on the strength of the community
Elsewhere in this Review, we detail    decades the transition to a                fabric around them, and the
PIA’s policy and advocacy challenges   service-based economy with its             community’s resilience is supported
and successes, and there have been     agglomeration impact. Now, as a            by the built structures, essential
many at the state, territory and       result of the COVID-19 crisis, we          services and communications all
federal level.                         have seen the capacity to work             being able to withstand all sorts
In 2020, we have re-doubled our        away from the office and noted the         of shocks.
efforts in advocating to decision-     advantages.                                But we don’t know everything. Much
makers and those who influence         Many in the community realise              remains to learn. The breadth and
them the importance of vision-         the urban design attributes that           depth of changes to the way our
based planning. We have stressed       keep people healthy and happy.             cities and towns are shaped and
the critical need for community        These attributes are nothing new to        perform resulting from COVID-19 are
involvement. We continue to            planners, who have been calling for        unclear. The possibilities have been
underline that planning has a          more urban design focus on active          widely hypothecated, so this is a time
positive role to play in reform.       travel, access to open spaces, local       when the profession needs to come
Soon we will return the advocacy       retail and hospitality services etc. for   together, to share, debate, support
focus to addressing Climate Change,    many years.                                and lead.
after declaring a Climate Emergency    This realisation of the power offered
in November.                           by a real sense of community has
                                       been a moment of enlightenment for
                                       many. But not planners.

8.     Annual Review 2019/2020
ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
LEADERSHIP

Thank you                               The initiative, inventiveness and       Most of us will embrace the New
                                        dogged-determination to deliver         Year and never forget this year of
In the same way that great planning
                                        services to members and, at times,      two halves.
doesn’t happen by accident, PIA
                                        simply be there for members was
thriving during the most challenging
                                        awe-inspiring. Led by the Executive
of business conditions didn’t happen
                                        Officers in each Division, the events
by accident.
                                        team, the policy team, member
Your Institute Board was nothing
                                        services team and finance team right
short of exemplary, being agile,
                                        across the country collaborated,
dedicating extra time and focus
                                        cooperated, learnt, taught and found
on the most important things to
                                        new ways to deliver our services. I
members. My thanks in particular
                                        could not be prouder.
to Steve O’Connor who has led the
                                        We could not have held the team
Board as National President over
                                        together and had the success we
the past two years. His enduring
                                        enjoyed without financial support
support to me throughout his
                                        through JobKeeper and various
tenure, in particular during 2020,
                                        state government subsidies and tax
has been the keystone in the Board
                                        waivers.
and management chiming in with
rapid and important changes to our      My biggest thanks go to our
Institute.                              Members who, despite all that
                                        happened in this uncertain year,
The calm, wise and dedicated role
                                        have joined and renewed their PIA
that Steve has played cannot be                                                 David Williams
                                        membership in record numbers.
overstated.                                                                     Company Secretary
                                        They have embraced our new
Where PIA’s rubber really hits                                                  Chief Executive Officer
                                        delivery models for professional
the road is through the Division
                                        development and re-doubled their
Committees. This group of some
                                        efforts in our policy and advocacy
100 people from all parts of the
                                        campaigns while under pressure
profession and all parts of Australia
                                        from many points.
worked tirelessly to be the conduit
                                        Much like the culture within the
to the broader membership and
                                        staff team, the culture within the
provide their knowledge and wisdom
                                        membership, the values within each
in supporting the Executive Officers.
                                        member and the deep sense of
That volunteers did this while they
                                        contribution to our profession and
were coping with the professional,
                                        communities have shone through.
business and personal challenges
                                        Much remains to do as advocates
of the pandemic is inspiring. They
                                        for the public interest in shaping
made an incredible contribution to
                                        our cities and towns, but now with
PIA in 2019/20.
                                        the confidence gained by getting
Throughout both halves of 2019/20,
                                        through nearly 10 months of this
the PIA staff team has been
                                        wretched virus, the profession’s
extraordinary. The team has always
                                        role has arguably never been more
prided itself on our outstanding
                                        needed by our communities.
culture and morale and, at times
like early 2020, we saw the benefits
repeatedly.

                                                                                          Annual Review 2019/2020    9.
ANNUAL REVIEW 2019 - Planning Institute of Australia
FROM THE
PRESIDENT-ELECT

I am delighted to                       In 2020, an important focus for PIA
provide this short                      has been continuity and resilience
                                        of the organisation. Our staff under
contribution to the                     our CEO’s leadership have done
2020 annual report.                     a fantastic job. We are fortunate
2020 has been a challenging year        to have high calibre staff across
that we have come through well.         Australia and it is a privilege to work
Looking ahead, we are very well         with them.
positioned as an organisation to
                                        My thanks to Chief Executive Officer
continue to navigate through what
                                        David Williams, the PIA staff, the
is likely to be more economic and
                                        PIA Board, PIA Divisional Presidents
social uncertainty.
                                        and Division Committees for their
Throughout 2020, PIA has shown          continued efforts and support in
remarkable resilience. It has adapted   2020. The contribution of our staff
rapidly to a changing world. It has     and volunteers is often under-
moved quickly and expertly to           appreciated. It is their efforts along
support members and to deliver          with those of the extended PIA
core member services online. In         family that make this such a great        Darren Crombie
doing this it has demonstrated to       organisation.                             President-Elect
members the value it provides.
                                        Finally, a special recognition of the
Continued delivery of member
                                        contribution that our outgoing
services across advocacy, education
                                        President Steve O’Connor has made
and leadership will remain a core
                                        to PIA. It has been a pleasure to
focus into 2021.
                                        serve on the Board with Steve for
PIA has continued to represent          the last six years. As President, Steve
the interests of its members and        has steered us through a difficult
maintain its position as the trusted    period and he has done this with
voice on planning issues. Moving into   good grace, wisdom and with a truly
2021 and beyond, I would hope that      authentic style that will be missed.
we continue to do this. Importantly,
PIA should seek to be a thought
leader and speak out more for
planners and for the public interest.

10. Annual Review 2019/2020
LEADERSHIP

2020 PIA NATIONAL AWARDS
FOR PLANNING EXCELLENCE

                                 Annual Review 2019/2020 11.
2020 PIA NATIONAL AWARDS
FOR PLANNING EXCELLENCE

2020 National Award Winners

                              2020 National Judging Panel

12. Annual Review 2019/2020
LEADERSHIP

AWARD WINNERS
Category              PROJECT TITLE                     NOMINEE or PROJECT TEAM                       STATE

Planner of the Year                                     Nikki Huddy RPIA (Fellow)                     QLD

Young Planner of
                                                        Laura Oakley PIA (Assoc.)                     NSW
the Year
                      Ballarat's Creative City          City of Ballarat with SGS Economics and
Best Planning Ideas
                      Strategy and Creative             Planning, MGS Architects, Left Bank Co.,      VIC
– Large Project
                      Precinct Master Plan              Eleni Arbus & Mary Papaioannou
                                                        Mandingalbay Yidinji Aboriginal
                      Mandingalbay Yidinji Eco          Corporation, Ethos Urban, Philip
Best Planning Ideas
                      Infrastructure Tourism            Follent Architects, CChange Sustainable       QLD
– Small Project
                      Project                           Solutions, BMT Global, Bligh Tanner and
                                                        Bennette + Bennett
                                                        Professor David Jones MPIA (Deakin
                                                        University), Emeritus Professor Darryl
                      Re-casting Terra Nullius          Low Choy RPIA (Fellow) (Griffith
                      Blindness: Empowering             University), Associate Professor Grant
Cutting Edge
                      Indigenous Protocols and          Revell (University of Western Australia),
Research &                                                                                            VIC
                      Knowledge in Australian           Associate Professor Scott Heyes
Teaching
                      University Built Environment      (University of Canberra), Associate
                      Education                         Professor Richard Tucker (Deakin
                                                        University) & Dr Susan Bird (Central
                                                        Queensland University)
                      Revitalisation of Howard          Brisbane City Council, Howard Smith
Great Place                                                                                           QLD
                      Smith Wharves                     Wharves

President's Award     Town of Gawler Civic Centre       Town of Gawler                                SA

The Hard Won          Revitalisation of Howard          Brisbane City Council, Howard Smith
                                                                                                      QLD
Victory               Smith Wharves                     Wharves
Improving Planning
Processes and         Development.i                     Sunshine Coast Council                        QLD
Practices
                                                        Department of State Development,
                                                        Manufacturing, Infrastructure and
Public Engagement
                      The Spit Master Plan –            Planning, John Gaskell Planning
& Community                                                                                           QLD
                      Conflict to consensus             Consultants, Deicke Richards, ASPECT
Planning
                                                        Studios, Articulous, City of Gold Coast
                                                        and Gold Coast Waterways Authority
                      Urban Design Management
From Plan to Place                                      Level Crossing Removal Project                VIC
                      Plan
                      Reconceptualising the
                                                        Dr Melissa Kennedy MPIA, Community
Outstanding           Creative Economy:
                                                        Planning and Development Program, La          VIC
Student Project       Possibilities in Place in Rural
                                                        Trobe University
                      Victoria
Outstanding           The Role of Spatial Planning
                                                        Bunfu Yu MPIA                                 TAS
Student Project       in Energy Provision
                                                        Planning Matters Alliance Tasmania
Planning Champion                                                                                     TAS
                                                        (PMAT)

                                                                                       Annual Review 2019/2020 13.
AUSTRALIAN URBAN
DESIGN AWARDS

Beautiful, welcoming,                   It said the Maitland Levee and              The Leadership, advocacy and
and sustainable: 10                     Riverlnk Building project (by               research, city and regional scale
                                        McGregor Coxall & Chrofi) had               award was won by Leigh Woolley
projects recognised at                  successfully regenerated Maitland’s         Architect and Urban Design
#AUDA19                                 high street, making it “an exemplar in      Consultant for the Tasmanian
Judges recognised four projects in      regional urban design and renewal in        Building Height Standards Review
two categories at the October 2019      Australia”.                                 project.
Australian Urban Design Awards in a     The Caulfield to Dandenong                  Jury chairman and Canberra City
clear sign of the exemplary standard    level crossing removal project in           Renewal Authority chief executive
of the 52 entries short-listed for      Victoria, by Aspect Studios and Cox         Malcolm Snow said: “All of the winning
2019.                                   Architecture, was highly commended          projects unequivocally demonstrate
The Maitland Levee and Riverlink        as an example of how “major                 that their designers and clients have
Building and the Howard Smith           infrastructure works are positively         both the insight and skills to make
Wharves in Brisbane won the award       shaping Australian cities”.                 places that are beautiful, welcoming
for best built project at a city and                                                and sustainable in their different
                                        Elevating the rail line had created 22
regional scale at a presentation on                                                 contexts”.
                                        hectares of green space.
Wednesday evening.                                                                  The Australian Urban Design Awards are
                                        Flour Mill, a mixed-use development
The award for best built project at a                                               co-convened by the Planning Institute
                                        project on a former industrial              of Australia, the Australian Institute of
local and neighbourhood scale went      site in Sydney’s Summer Hill led            Architects and the Australian Institute of
to the Flour Mill of Summer Hill and    by architecture firm Hassell, was           Landscape Architects.
the Ferrars Street Education and        described by the jury as “a new
Community Precinct at Fishermans        community successfully integrated
Bend in Melbourne.                      within the historic context of the city’s
The jury described the                  inner west”.
transformation of the Howard Smith      Tract’s Victorian Ferrars Street
Wharves on the Brisbane River           Education & Community Precinct
into an entertainment destination       project at Fishermans Bend was
and public space as a “spectacular”     recognised for its successful
achievement by project partners         integration of an early learning
HSW Nominees, Urbis and Woods           centre, maternal and child health
Bagot.                                  centre, multipurpose community
                                        rooms, and indoor/outdoor
                                        community sports facilities.

14. Annual Review 2019/2020
LEADERSHIP

Australian Urban Design awards
                                       Annual Review 2019/2020 15.
ADVOCACY
2019 / 2020

Climate, Fire, Pandemic
and Productivity – How
PIA has advocated for
planning in 2019/2020.
Although the last year has been
tragically disruptive, PIA has pursued
a consistent advocacy narrative
on behalf of our members. This
responded to a changing climate,
building resilience and improving the
productive contribution of planning.
PIA’s Policy and Advocacy Committee
has guided our priorities in crises,
for recovery and over the long term.

In 2019, we acknowledged the
climate emergency. We examined           With the onset of the black              The arrival of the COVID-19
our policy positions and aligned         summer bushfires, PIA offered our        pandemic changed the trajectory
them with our commitment for the         profession’s support and volunteers,     of planning within months. PIA
built environment, to achieve net        and then introduced our policy           was instrumental in informing the
zero carbon emissions before 2050.       to build back more resilience. PIA       first Planning Ministers’ Forum
PIA is now setting out policies, roles   made comprehensive submissions           under the National Cabinet. Our
and training essential for planners      to each of the National and State        planning principles helped shape the
to play their part. We are working       bushfire inquiries. We have provided     approach of planning agencies by
with partner professions through         expert witness and our input             establishing the following hierarchy
the Australian Sustainable Built         has been taken up in preliminary         of decision-making considerations:
Environment Council (ASBEC) and          recommendations of the Royal
                                                                                   » health and wellbeing;
making specific contributions on         Commission.
issues such as the future of NABERS.                                               » the importance of economic
                                         The fires and accelerated habitat loss
                                                                                     stimulus;
Australia has had plenty of warning      were the backdrop to the Samuel
of the consequences of a changing        Review of the Commonwealth                » the maintenance of capable
climate. Last year PIA made a            Environment Protection and                  planning enterprises; and the
leading contribution to national         Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC)            value of well-planned and
guidelines on land use planning          Act. PIA’s submission was clear             productive cities and regions for
for disaster resilient communities       that support for reduced process            long term recovery.
(AIDR Handbook). Our input built         duplication was contingent on the
on members’ experience in each           successful introduction of high
state and territory on the value of      national standards to improve
planning for multiple overlapping        biodiversity.
hazards.

16. Annual Review 2019/2020
ADVOCACY

PIA advocated these principles in         PIA continues to highlight the          PIA has continued to drive
recovery working groups involving         importance of a National Settlement     conversations in industry news and
industry and government in                Strategy to achieve better integrated   mainstream publications, particularly
most states and territories. Our          land use and infrastructure             on the National Settlement
involvement promoted reforms              investment decisions. This work         Strategy. We’ve explored new ideas
with ongoing value. The pandemic          acknowledges that population            on PIA Commons with regular
refocused Government and industry         growth and change (however              conversations with interesting
on the contribution of the property       impacted by COVID-19) will have         people about the planning issues
and construction sector to economic       implications around Australia           that matter.
and social recovery. PIA has              and across the boundaries of a
partnered with industry groups on         patchwork of Regional Plans. PIA has    PIA is aware of the billions of dollars
the ‘Constellation Project’, advocating   approached the Heads of Planning        saved and immense improvements
for a stronger commitment to social       and Infrastructure Australia on how     in health, wellbeing and productivity
and affordable housing delivery.          a coherent national population and      from well-planned and resilient
We have advocated investment in           infrastructure strategy would make      cities and regions. This is why our
local sustainability projects that        spatial planning more effective         advocacy efforts have remained
reflected community values that           and appeared at the Australian          focused on planning reform that
were revealed during lock downs.          Parliament Select Committee on          achieves these benefits most
PIA contributed to Infrastructure         Regional Australia to advocate for      effectively and with greatest
Australia’s Audit and Infrastructure      these same issues.                      community trust.
Priorities by promoting investment                                                PIA has used the 2019/20 crises
in bundled local green infrastructure     PIA recognises the productive
                                          potential of digital reform. We have    to reinforce our narrative – that
projects to deliver more accessible                                               the planning profession has the
and liveable cities and towns in line     established a Plantech working
                                          group to identify the digital systems   answers to shape Australia’s cities
with planning strategy.                                                           and regions in ways that make them
                                          and industry capacity needed to
PIA has advocated for productivity        ensure that the best and most           healthier, more productive and
reform of the planning system,            creative planning decisions can be      resilient.
especially to ensure the lightest         made. PIA has recruited outstanding     Moving into 2020/21, PIA is acutely
regulatory burden is imposed to           talent among our members from           aware of the challenges and
achieve strategic planning outcomes.      universities, government and            opportunities of positioning the
However, we have called out               planning firms to make this happen.     planning profession to make a deep
counterproductive proposals to ‘cut                                               and timely contribution to mitigating
red tape’ where they compromise           PIA has worked closely with our
                                          members on our policy and               and adapting to a fast-changing
results expected from strategic                                                   climate.
plans. PIA has made detailed              advocacy response and worked to
submissions to the Reserve Bank           spread our messages throughout
and Productivity Commissions              membership and beyond. Members
nationally and in NSW on the value        have likely seen emails and social
of planning and where reform is           media messages which touch
most cost effective.                      on many issues for which we
                                          advocate, including affordable
                                          housing, renewable energy, local
                                          infrastructure and the value of
                                          planning.

                                                                                             Annual Review 2019/2020 17.
ADVOCACY
2019 / 2020

PIA has continued to
drive conversations
in industry news
and mainstream
publications. The three       135
articles on the following     Total number of meetings
pages are examples of         with elected and government
PIA’s voice published         officials between 1 July and
across the year to            30 June
speak to the public on
behalf of the planning
profession.

                              400
                              Total number of planning
                              articles (not event promotions)
                              published online in PIA
                              publications between
                              1 July and 30 June

                              54
                              Total number of written
                              submissions to government
                              1 July–30 June

18. Annual Review 2019/2020
ADVOCACY

STANDING UP
FOR PLANNING

Commonwealth                   In responding to the                   The Covid crisis and the National
‘agreement’ to national        recommendations of the Alexander       Cabinet have now disrupted
                               Inquiry into the Commonwealth’s        Commonwealth-State relations
settlement strategy –          role in the development of cities,     and may bring an end to COAG
an opportunity not to          the Federal Government agreed          via Australia’s National Federation
be missed.                     ‘in principle’ to the development      Reform Council. This will refocus
                               of a National Settlement Strategy.     Ministerial Committees including
By John Brockhoff, Planning
                               This is an initiative promoted by      those dealing with population and
Institute of Australia.        the Planning Institute of Australia    planning.
First published 6 June 2020.   (PIA) with support across the built
                                                                      We are now closer to having the
                               environment sector.
                                                                      governance arrangements needed
                               It is important that the               to progress elements of a National
                               Commonwealth now take this             Settlement Strategy. While the
                               opportunity to set out how Australia   strategy itself would give clear spatial
                               is to shape its growth sustainably     direction to the decisions made by
                               across all cities and regions.         the Council.
                               The ‘in principle’ agreement was       The opportunity is now wide open
                               made in the Government’s response      for the Commonwealth and States
                               to the recommendations of the          to undertake lasting microeconomic
                               Alexander Inquiry. PIA’s submission    reform that can improve productivity
                               was central to the findings of this    and shape the sustainable growth
                               inquiry and was based on avoiding      and change of our cities and regions.
                               a tipping point – beyond which we      The ‘in principle’ agreement must
                               would be sleepwalking towards          now lead to deep commitment
                               being a nation of unliveable           to the key elements of a National
                               megacities.                            Settlement Strategy:

                               Prospect of Commonwealth /             A national ‘spatial’ vision – for
                               State governance reform                a sustainable and prosperous
                                                                      Australia that is specific on the role
                               The Government’s response to the
                                                                      of its cities and regions and which
                               Alexander Inquiry was prepared pre-
                                                                      responds to a coherent climate
                               covid in the context of COAG and the
                                                                      policy.
                               National Population and Planning
                               Framework. This offered limited        A coherent set of regional plans –
                               scope for reform – only ad hoc city    that are consistent in the planning
                               deals, migration opportunities and     and population assumptions, climate
                               ‘congestion busting investment’ were   and environmental performance
                               on the table.                          benchmarks and infrastructure
                                                                      demand parameters applied to
                                                                      guide growth or change for places
                                                                      and communities

                                                                                 Annual Review 2019/2020 19.
STANDING UP
FOR PLANNING
The Commonwealth Government              A National Settlement Strategy           They acknowledge a ‘hub and spoke’
becoming more ‘spatially aware’ of its   should seek greater community            model of faster rail connectivity
impacts – establishing a role within     involvement in the issues that           among cities and regional centres as
Government to advise the National        concern them and lead to a               well as an improved freight network
Federation Reform Council on the         balanced national discussion             and consideration of a high speed
spatial implications of major funding,   about the future of our cities and       rail network linking principal nodes
investment, monetary and taxation        regions as places to live and work. It   along the East Coast.
policy decisions.                        would help us look for factors that
                                                                                  The Australian Government has
                                         influence regional population growth
Infrastructure investment focussed                                                agreed ‘in principle’ to establishing a
                                         and change. It should provide a
on strategic outcomes for places –                                                clear trajectory to carbon emissions
                                         framework for addressing climate
an infrastructure investment strategy                                             reduction and expanding the use of
                                         change resilience and carbon
designed to achieve regional plan                                                 green building and precinct rating
                                         reduction in the built environment.
outcomes including via City Deals                                                 tools.
and growth compacts integrated.          What has the Commonwealth                A welcome observation is the
National Settlement                      agreed ‘in principle’ to?                Commonwealth’s response
Strategy recap                           The Commonwealth Government              supporting States and territories
                                         has now agreed ‘in principle’ to         investigating the potential for city
A National Settlement Strategy is
                                         developing a national plan of            commissions (eg Greater Sydney
needed to provide a spatial context
                                         settlement incorporating a national      Commission) and promoting
for government action to implement
                                         vision for our cities and regions for    governance reform that works
strategic plans around Australia.It
                                         the next fifty years.                    toward achieving shared objectives
would not be about forcing people
                                                                                  for a city or region.
to settle anywhere, nor changing         The have ‘agreed’ that this plan
constitutional responsibilities for      should encourage integrated              Of the 15 recommendations that
planning. However, it would be about     strategic masterplans for all tiers      are explicitly linked to the call for
ensuring investment decisions are        of government in each jurisdiction       a National Settlement Strategy the
more responsive to where housing         and that these enable integrated         Australian Government agrees
and job growth could occur – and it      decision making on infrastructure,       ‘in principle’ to 10 of them. The
would provide a mandate to plan for      housing, employment and services.        Government notes the remainder,
more resilient, better connected and                                              excepting the recommendation (31)
                                         For urban areas, the plans should
more liveable cities and towns.                                                   dealing with reform of tax settings
                                         promote accessibility, a 30 minute
                                                                                  that distort patterns of city growth
A coherent national vision would         city and more compact urban
                                                                                  and the need for appointing a
restore a ‘line of sight’ between the    form in a high quality urban
                                                                                  National Chief Planner.
planning of places, homes and jobs       environment. In the regions, they
– and the broader growth outcomes        support centre growth and catalytic
sought by each tier of government.       investment where it contributes
                                         to decentralisation – specifically
                                         supporting investment in community
                                         infrastructure and improved rail
                                         links.

20. Annual Review 2019/2020
ADVOCACY

Some Commonwealth                         Next Steps
assumptions are no longer                 Although the Commonwealth
relevant                                  Government’s explicit commitments
A common theme in the                     from the Alexander Inquiry are
Government’s response to the              modest, they reflect a growing
recommendations is that previous          awareness of their role in shaping
governance arrangements under the         our cities and regions. They are
National Population and Planning          becoming less blind to the spatial
Framework, City Deals and through         implications of their monetary
the portfolio responsibilities of the     and taxation policy, funding
relevant Ministers will continue          and infrastructure investment
to be sufficient to address the           decisions. They are beginning to
Commonwealth’s interests (ie              see themselves as partners with
Minister for Population, Cities and       the states and territories in shaping
Urban Infrastructure and Minister         great places to live and work.
for Housing).In addition, the             PIA will continue to focus on how
Commonwealth and State/Territory          a National Settlement Strategy
Planning Ministers have recently          should make a difference to living in
reengaged in a National Planning          Australia’s cities and improving their
Ministers Forum.                          resilience to future economic, social
These assumptions in the                  and environmental conditions. A key
Government’s response are no              step is building up a coherent and
longer relevant.                          mutually consistent set of regional
                                          plans around Australia – informed
The demands of responding to the
                                          by consistent infrastructure
Covid crisis and the creation of a
                                          demand parameters and a common
National Cabinet have opened the
                                          response to climate change and
doors for a reset on how we govern
                                          natural hazard threats.
this country more collaboratively.
This represents an opportunity            John Brockhoff is the National Policy
that the Commonwealth must not            Manager for the Planning Institute of
                                          Australia.
miss to deliver on their ‘in principle’
agreement to a National Settlement
Strategy.

                                                                                        Annual Review 2019/2020 21.
STANDING UP
FOR PLANNING

The urgent challenge          Climate change is without much          A look through the entries
of net zero embodied          doubt the greatest threat now           shortlisted for the 2019 Australian
                              confronting the planet – and            Urban Design Awards will confirm
carbon.                       the dread most of us feel about         that planners are exploring
By David Williams, Planning   accelerating global warming is being    innovative, new ways to encourage
                              deepened by the failure of our          active transport, improve rail
Institute of Australia.
                              elected leaders to act decisively.      transit options and pave the way
First published 2 October                                             for automated and zero-emissions
2019.                         For decades, politicians have hedged    vehicles.
                              their bets on climate action or
                              demurred when stronger actions          They’re equally proactive in ensuring
                              were proposed: little wonder that 18    our buildings are made ready for
                              of the past 19 years have been the      climate impacts and are healthy and
                              warmest on record.                      comfortable places in which to live
                                                                      or work.
                              Our towns and cities are at the
                              epicentre of global warming: they       The importance of this mission got
                              consume nearly 80 per cent of the       a timely boost last month when
                              world’s energy and produce more         the World Green Building Council
                              than 60 per cent of greenhouse gas      (WorldGBC), along with the Green
                              emissions.                              Building Council of Australia and
                                                                      62 other co-signatories, laid out a
                              Built environment professionals         roadmap for net zero “embodied”
                              need to succeed where governments       carbon buildings.
                              have failed.
                                                                      Embodied or upfront carbon refers
                              Planners, architects, engineers and     to the emissions released during
                              landscape architects already work       the manufacture and transport
                              hard to make these places more          of building materials, and the
                              sustainable, but that effort needs to   construction as well the end-of-life-
                              be redoubled in the absence of firm     phases of built assets, while the
                              new commitments and actions by          emissions released when heating,
                              government.                             cooling, lighting and energising
                              The challenges of adapting and          built assets over their lifetime are
                              equipping our built environment for     grouped as operational carbon.
                              the climate emergency are two-          Until relatively recently, insufficient
                              fold: to lower transport-generated      attention has been paid to upfront
                              emissions and to quickly reduce         carbon, perhaps because much
                              the upfront and operational carbon      of it is a case of out of sight and
                              emissions from our buildings and        out mind. But it is a substantial
                              infrastructure.                         contributor to global carbon
                                                                      emissions – over 10 per cent.

                                                                      That percentage will rise as the
                                                                      operational carbon emissions of
                                                                      our homes, factories and offices are
                                                                      progressively reduced by using new
                                                                      technologies and new materials.

22. Annual Review 2019/2020
ADVOCACY

However, steel, glass, cement, and          The WorldGBC wants all new                It hardly needs saying that limiting
bricks – all of which are inherently        buildings, infrastructure and             global temperature increases to 1.5
energy-intensive to make – are              renovations to have at least 40 per       degrees Celsius will be a large and
likely remain in strong demand as           cent less embodied carbon by 2030,        complex task – made more so by the
construction materials.                     with net zero operational carbon.         inevitable creation of winners and
                                                                                      losers – or that declaring a climate
That puts an obligation on built-           Its goal for 2050 is for all new assets   emergency without an effective plan
environment practitioners to reuse,         to have net zero embodied carbon,         risks frittering away additional time.
recycle, readapt and reconfigure            and all buildings, infrastructure and
existing assets and materials where         renovations (new and existing) to         The Planning Institute of Australia
possible.                                   have net zero operational carbon.         is looking to involve planners more
                                                                                      closely on how best to map a path
Time to get away from the idea that         Is this timeframe feasible? If we’re      to a radically carbon-constrained
we should tear down factories and           pragmatic in our approach, then yes.      future, and other built environment
stadiums after 30 or 40 years                                                         professions are doing the same.
                                            The Australian Built Environment
The idea that offices, homes,               Council (ASBEC), with the support         If this process leads to demonstrably
factories and sports stadiums should        of the Planning Institute of Australia    effective and high-quality outcomes,
have a design life of 30 or 40 years        (PIA), has endorsed the WorldBGC’s        the public’s support for more far-
to then be torn down, dumped                goals.                                    reaching solution will grow – and
in landfill sites, and replaced with                                                  politicians will have to get down off
equally disposable assets is hugely         And PIA is now looking closely
                                            at the implications, for not only         the fence and start acting decisively.
wasteful.
                                            development assessment but how            Planners, architects, engineers and
If there is any silver lining to our        carbon reduction and offsetting is        landscape architects must take the
current apartment construction              applied in strategic planning and in      lead in this climate crisis, and not
crisis it is that governments and the       the master-planning of precincts.         simply because we’re committed to
public realise that buildings must                                                    leaving the world a better place for
be designed for an extended life,           Carbon offsets are an important
                                            policy mechanism for sequestering         our children and grandchildren.
preferably be adaptable to new uses
or renovated if they’re no longer fit       carbon created in the making and          We alone have the skills, the energy
for purpose.                                running of buildings – but neutrality     and the commitment to make a
                                            is not a given.                           decisive difference.
For built-environment practitioners,
the next challenge (after reducing          Being long-term (and off-site             David Williams is the Chief Executive Officer
or eliminating upfront carbon and           propositions, offsets can be              of the Planning Institute of Australia, which
                                            difficult to measure and verify.          represents qualified urban and regional
operational carbon) is net zero
                                            There’s another pitfall too: they can     planners across the country.
embodied carbon.
                                            encourage building developers or
What’s net zero embodied                    owners to not think too deeply or
carbon building?                            seriously about carbon and energy
                                            efficiency.
A net zero embodied carbon
building is one is one where upfront        Reducing upfront and operating
carbon has been minimised to the            emissions must remain the
greatest possible extent and where          primary focus of build-environment
all remaining embodied carbon is            practitioners, with carbon offsets
offset so that emissions over the           serving as an adjunct.
lifecycle of the building are effectively
eliminated.

                                                                                                  Annual Review 2019/2020 23.
STANDING UP
FOR PLANNING

Staying in your suburb:         The rapid spread of Covid-19 is          The community is certainly yet to be
planning for a world            reshaping our world hour by hour.        tested on our capacity to transform
                                                                         in the aftermath of Covid-19. But it
transformed by                  At the time of writing, the Prime        is this crucial final element of social
covid-19.                       Minister, state premiers and territory   resilience to which planners must
                                chief ministers have ordered a lock      turn their minds. This is where the
By Audrey Marsh, Planning       down of our communities.                 value of planning matters. Because
Institute of Australia.                                                  it is planning that has the ability
                                Many of us are working from home
First published 6 April 2020.   and are not able to leave our houses     to shape the physical and social
                                unless absolutely necessary. Nobody      dimensions of our neighbourhoods,
                                knows for how long these changes         cities and states.
                                will be in effect.                       You may have heard Premier
                                To manage threats of various kinds,      Annastacia Palaszczuk tell
                                an entity, in this case the entire       Queenslanders to “stay in your
                                community, needs to exhibit social       suburb”. But to do so raises a host of
                                resilience.                              questions.

                                To crudely rephrase the work of          Does a brief walk to my local shops
                                many academics in this space:            give me access to all the necessities?
                                in order to be socially resilient a      Do I have the phone number of
                                community must have the capacity         the older woman up the street to
                                to cope, the capacity to adapt and       check she is coping? Is my internet
                                the capacity to transform.[1]            connection good enough to allow
                                                                         my family to access online work and
                                As we work through this crisis it is     school all at the same time?
                                difficult to determine quite where we
                                lie between coping and adapting.         The answer to these questions
                                                                         lies in the capacity of planning
                                The economy is headed for                professionals to deliver quality
                                recession and Centrelink queues are      communities.
                                heartbreakingly long. We still have
                                citizens aboard cruise ships floating    The preservation and diversity
                                off the coast of foreign countries and   of your local shops would have
                                unable to return home. Perhaps we        involved the input of land use
                                are still learning to cope.              planners driving a thriving economy.
                                                                         The sense of connection with your
                                But we are seeing the beginnings         neighbour might have involved a
                                of adaptation – local restaurants        social planner or an urban designer
                                are keeping staff on by re-badging       creating safe and inviting places
                                as takeaway venues, registration         for you to casually cross paths.
                                systems are being established to         Your ability to connect remotely
                                allow essential travel over now-         to home or school involved
                                closed state and territory borders       infrastructure planners ensuring
                                and many of us are learning the art      telecommunication facilities were
                                of the Zoom Meeting to keep our          built and maintained.
                                work ticking over from home.

24. Annual Review 2019/2020
ADVOCACY

So if people find they can’t easily stay   Of course, these are just examples
in their suburb – if Covid-19 teaches      of the lessons Covid-19 might teach
us that people are not connected           us about our suburbs and regions.
with their neighbours, don’t have          In fact, it is likely that the lessons
easy access to local shops or their        of this pandemic will not be known
online connectivity is poor – it is up     for months or years. But the role of
to planners to ensure we develop           planners is to understand whatever
the capacity to transform our urban        lessons emerge and integrate these
and regional communities.                  into our practice.

We must look at our retail policy.         Governments, industry and
A socially resilient community cannot      organisations, like the Planning
rely on a service station to sell          Institute of Australia, are currently
essentials. It requires access to a        involved in discussions regarding
hierarchy of retail supported by the       resilience of a different kind.
diversity of housing that makes a
local centre thrive.                       The tragic bushfires of this summer
                                           just gone have spurred governments
We must look at our open space             to launch inquiries asking critical
provision. A socially resilient            questions about how the resilience
community cannot rely on footpaths         of our houses, property and
by busy roads or overcrowded               infrastructure can be strengthened.
pocket parks to walk the dog or go
for a run. It requires open space          Once the worst of Covid-19 has
that has been planned, funded and          passed, we should again ask
maintained to cater to a growing           ourselves how resilient we were. This
community.                                 time it won’t be about the resilience
                                           of our property, but about the
We must look at our                        resilience of our community – how
telecommunications planning. A             well we looked out for one another
socially resilient community cannot        and how quickly we could change
have pockets of disadvantage where         the way we lived.
households don’t have reliable
internet access to work or learn.          And planners will then set to work,
It requires the coordination of            testing our capacity to transform
government to ensure all members           and using our skills to create
of our community can access the            communities that can better manage
digital services they need.                the threat next time around.
                                           Audrey Marsh is a Senior Policy and
We must meet the challenge of              Campaigns Officer at the Planning Institute
ensuring every suburb, town,               of Australia.
regional community and city is
socially resilient.

                                           [1] M Keck and P Sakdapolrak, What is social
                                           resilience? Lessons learned and ways forward,
                                           Erdkunde, 2013, 5-19

                                                                                           Annual Review 2019/2020 25.
PLANNING
NATIONAL EVENTS

PIA QLD Awards for Planning Excellence Dinner 2019                                      PIA ACT Awards for Planning Excellence 2019

PIA SA Awards for Planning Excellence 2019           PIA NSW Awards for Planning Excellence Ceremony 2019

26. Annual Review 2019/2020
EDUCATION

Planning is a complex                  With catastrophic bushfires and         The profession’s ability to discuss
profession involving                   COVID-19 this year, it has been         current Planning news and views
                                       more vital than ever to ensure the      was also missed during lockdown.
many diverse areas                     profession remains connected,           PIA started a LinkedIn group for
of knowledge. Its                      shares experiences and maintains        members called ‘PIA Commons’.
practitioners grapple                  access to high quality, relevant        PIA Commons is an online space
with issues ranging                    professional development.               to share news, discuss industry
from the theoretical,                  In the second half of 2019 PIA’s
                                                                               updates and access free webinars
strategic and practical                                                        from experts.
                                       professional development offerings
right down to the nitty-               continued to grow including state       A total of 1239 PIA members access
gritty, including place-               conferences and award celebrations.     and interact with the content on PIA
making at the town and                 Little did we know that these would     Commons. This includes:
city levels.                           be among the last large face-to-face     » PIANews – twice weekly media
                                       opportunities for the profession to        briefing, summarising the
The profession has responded           come together. By the end of March         planning news of the day;
to global change, the growing          2020, Australia went into lockdown
complexity of our built environment,   to try and manage the COVID-19           » PIATalk – thought-provoking
changes in community expectations      pandemic.                                  ideas and perspectives to discuss
and regulations that are continually                                              with your fellow planners; and
being reviewed and/or amended.         In response to this and to ensure the
                                       safety of our members, PIA ceased        » PIALearn – free lunchtime
Managing the challenges of natural     all face-to-face educational training      webinar from a leading Planning
disasters and overnight changes in     and social events.                         expert every Wednesday.
communities from pandemics has
dramatically underlined the need for   Our staff then took on the              The 2019/20 term has also offered
planners to adapt and forge ahead.     monumental job of moving the same       PIA’s continuing professional
                                       high-quality training opportunities     development program to help refine
Planners need to be aware of these     to an online platform to continue to    or upgrade the skills of planners in
developments, and to be equipped       support members.                        six key practice areas:
with the necessary skills and
                                       The lockdown of Australia meant
                                                                                » Professionalism and integrity;
knowledge to enable them to take
advantage of new opportunities and     the usually connected and                » Understanding, interpreting and
openings.                              collaborative Planning profession          using spatial thinking;
                                       was left in isolation during this
PIA’s commitment to ensuring the       uncertain period. To counter this,       » Using a creative and integrative
Planning profession is equipped to     PIA instigated virtual ‘coffee catch       approach, drawing on a range of
meet all planning contingencies is     ups’ which have been accessible            disciplines and methods;
long-standing, and we are always       to everyone within the Planning
looking to improve and refine how                                               » Communicating and engaging
                                       profession. These free online
our members can acquire the                                                       with stakeholders;
                                       meetings enabled Planners to have
expertise they need to advance         a short catch up with peers to regain    » Understanding and working with
their careers and contribute to the    and share their connections. Six           planning frameworks; and
reputation and good standing of the    hundred and eighty-one Planners
profession.                            took up this opportunity to connect      » Developing and applying
                                       during the first half of 2020.             technical knowledge.

                                                                               Lifelong dedication to skill
                                                                               development in these practice
                                                                               areas helps create great planning
                                                                               outcomes.

                                                                                         Annual Review 2019/2020 27.
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