Building community + town planning coalitions for cooler cities

As a self-proclaimed ‘policy wonk’, it is easy to get stuck in the policy statements, advocacy work and planning scheme codes which interplay with the practice and research we do to create cooler cities that are safe from the impacts of extreme heat.

Last weekend, it was great to be amongst community change-makers with

Regen Brisbane

,

The Shady Lanes Project

and

ACF Community Brisbane Northside

who want to see a Meanjin/Brisbane which works together to ‘create a cooler, greener, shadier and thriving city where everyone is safe from the effects of heatwave and urban heat islands’.

Talking about urban heat and heatwaves nearly always leads to a broader conversation about good planning and design, improving public transport, adequate health and community service provision (the list could go on). Last weekend, our conversation ranged from car-centric planning, to verge garden rules and to house design. This is a lot to do with the fact that the drivers of heat exposure and vulnerability are diverse and often complex. But more acutely, there is the fact that heat is such a systemic natural hazard that feeds on vulnerability — to a much greater intensity than other hazards, like flooding or bushfire. There are many actions which can reduce community vulnerability to heat.

We know that planning and design play a large role in the intensity of heat hazards. Planning as a profession and policy setter needs to be doing better — something I explored in this research from a few years ago. But as we discussed at this gathering last weekend, there is a clear need for better communication and appreciation between community members and planning practitioners when it comes to achieving outcomes for cooler cities.

Moving forward

Some of the ways I see myself contributing to this focus area of urban heat with

Regen Brisbane

and co. include:

• Advocacy direction: what are the easy wins and longer plays? It is important to find ways to leverage off advocacy and work already underway, and create alignment with actors who have shared values and priorities.

• Networking into professional practice: being a practising planner, I have connections across professional and student bodies which we can leverage to collaborate on activities, advocacy and events.

While one of the overarching sentiments to come from this gathering was the need to build better coalitions between planners and community for cooler cities, this is not something that will happen overnight.

So, some of the low hanging fruit actions we are taking forward include collating together resources on public submissions to support community members advocate for good planning outcomes which support cooler cities, and counter-act growing NIMBY sentiments to housing development. The other action is to explore co-branded events with planning student university bodies across the city.