For the first time in four decades, Australia’s largest cities – Sydney and Melbourne – witnessed population loss last year, while many regional areas have experienced an influx of new residents. Some analysts view this shift as a temporary, pandemic driven phenomenon which has only exacerbated the regional housing crisis, but others see rich and dynamic opportunities for sustainable growth beyond metropolitan Australia. Fifty years after former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam’s short-lived attempts to foster decentralisation, this event, held in Albury, one of Whitlam’s flagship National Growth Centres, examines the prospects for future growth in regional Australia. With a diverse panel of regional leaders and experts, the discussion will canvas opportunities and risks confronting communities beyond the major cities and the priorities for contemporary government intervention.

The Henry Halloran Trust would like to acknowledge the support of the Murray Art Museum Albury (MAMA) in hosting this panel event.

To attend the event in person, please register via the MAMA site.

Panel:

Aunty Edna Stewart, Wiradjuri Elder

Andrew Boyd Barber, Urban Planner

Dr Julie Rudner, La Trobe University

Professor Nicole Gurran, University of Sydney

Chaired by: Michael Keys, Regional Growth Development NSW Corporation

Aunty Edna Stewart is a Wiradjuri Elder. She is the co-chair of Dyiraamalang Wiradjuri Elders Group. Aunty Edna has played a significant role teaching Wiradjuri language to preserve it for future generations. She worked with the Albury & District Land Council to establish Mungabareena as a Declared Aboriginal Place on the state heritage list and is passionate about its ongoing management and protection. Aunty Edna was instrumental on the Yindyamarra Sculpture Walk Committee her collaborative artwork on the trail ‘Teaming Life of Milawa Billa’ acknowledges important animals and birds around the river, the Magpie at the top of the work represents and acknowledges the work of Yunga Ma.

“Look after the land and rivers and the land and rivers will look after you”.

Andrew Boyd Barber is a passionate urban designer and strategic planner and has worked on a variety of urban renewal projects in Australia, the United Kingdom and most recently New Zealand. Andrew grew up in Albury Wodonga and has always maintained a strong connection to his hometown. He undertook his master’s thesis exploring the potential effects of high-speed-rail stations on Albury Wodonga; and was a candidate in the 2021 Albury City Council elections, campaigning with an urbanist’s agenda.

Dr Julie Rudner is the Campus Director for La Trobe University – Bendigo, which provides opportunities to promote the role of higher education in supporting regional and economic development. Prior to this role, she was an academic and Convenor of the Community Planning and Development Program for La Trobe - teaching across social, environmental and regional planning. Her planning foundations were forged at Albury City.

Nicole Gurran is Professor of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Sydney, where she directs the University’s Henry Halloran Research Trust. She has led numerous studies on regional growth and change, housing and planning, funded by the Australian Research Council, the Australian Housing & Urban Research Institute, as well as state and local government. She has authored several books including Urban Planning and the Housing Market (2017, Palgrave), Politics, Planning and Housing Supply in Australia, England and Hong Kong, (Routledge, 2016), and Australian Urban Land Use Planning (2011). Beyond academia, Professor Gurran serves as a State appointed independent expert member of the Sydney Western City Planning Panel advising on regionally significant planning decisions. She grew up in the northern rivers region of NSW before leaving to attend university in Sydney.

Michael Keys MPIA is Director Planning Services at the Regional Growth NSW Development Corporation. He has over 28 years’ experience in regional and rural planning in NSW. He has focused on supporting and promoting regional development and growth across the Riverina-Murray Region of NSW including executive roles with Murray Shire, Albury and Wagga Wagga City Councils. Michael has recently joined the Regional Growth NSW Development Corporation (RGDC) to oversee and manage planning for the newly created Special Activation Precincts in regional NSW. Michael is also the Riverina-Murray Convenor for PIA NSW.

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The annual Festival of Urbanism is an initiative of the University of Sydney's Henry Halloran Trust and is hosted in partnership with Monash University.