Urban Broadcast Collective

In PlanningxChange Episode 72, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview Peta Charles the principal of Brisbane Town Planning (BTP). Peta has introduced many innovative features into her practice. She has produced and appeared in 100's of YouTube videos explaining different planning and design issues. It has become a significant information resource for the general public and clients. BTP applies a fresh and exciting approach as evident on their website (www.brisbanetp.com.au) which includes: "We may have a big name and crazy big ideas, however, our passion lies in working with the "little guys" like us. As it is where we feel we can make the biggest difference and hence, where we get the greatest satisfaction." The website includes 'Charlie' which is described as: “BTP’s own virtual town planner, “Charlie” is the face of all all our automation magic! She handles all of the boring back-office administration "stuff". Things like gathering property information for an enquiry, setting up jobs in our project management system/drafting invoices when an agreement is accepted ... you get the idea.” Peta is described on the website as: "Professional on the outside and slightly loco on the inside … which means she is serious when she needs to be and lighthearted when she doesn’t. Peta is obsessed with innovation/automation and has a strong distaste for bureaucratic red tape (the time/energy waste drives her bonkers). She also LOVES to challenge expectations. Most importantly though, she is driven by the saying "knowledge is power". This means that she is passionate about being transparent/honest and educating people about the inner workings of the town planning process … so they don't end up going down a path that isn't right for them. " The podcast interview covers a broad range of issues including the use of technology, client relations, learning and communication. Peta brings a down to earth yet enlivening approach to the issues. Surely one of the most interesting and innovative town planners in Australia. PlanningxChange is a proud contributor to the Urban Broadcast Collective. This podcast was produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 26 November 2020.

In PlanningxChange Episode 71, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview Tamara Brezzi, the President of VPELA. Tamara is also a Partner at Norton Rose Fulbright. Tamara started professional life as a Council town planner with the former City of Malvern. She then undertook a law degree and transferred to legal practice. Tamara talks of the importance of mentors in her professional development, essentially giving her confidence to take bold steps. Tamara discusses the role of the Victorian Planning and Environmental Planning Association (VPELA). She has been President of the Association for ten years. She also talks of important planning concepts such as 'common cause' and the need for ongoing reform. The discussion also talks to the issue of 'noble cause corruption' and the need for due process. The podcast provides an insightful guide to client / lawyer relations. A wonderfully fresh and frank discussion on fundamental principles that are often taken for granted and sometimes dismissed in troubled times. Tamara suggests that sometimes its best to wait, and wait, and wait a little more, and allow dust to settle and thoughts to mature and truths to emerge. Hasty certainty tends to be a fool and allows bad decisions to settle and establish and become 'precedent'. This podcast was produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 13 November 2020.

In PlanningxChange Episode 70, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview Nick MacHale, the CEO of BRITE. Nick is an experienced executive having spent time in both commercial and not for profit sectors. His passion lies in bringing together people from all walks of life, to achieve a common purpose. Hailing from Ireland, Nick states he has been lucky enough to call Melbourne home for the last 13 years.  BRITE provides sustainable services that create opportunity and support for people living with a disability or who are vocationally disadvantaged. It is a social enterprise and a non-profit charity that has been changing people's futures for more than 40 years by providing jobs and opportunities. We urge you to visit their website www.brite.org.au to learn more about the organisation and the great work that they do. We can vouch for the high quality of their museli!  This podcast was produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 22 October 2020. PlanningxChange is a proud member of the Urban Broadcast Collective.

In PlanningxChange Episode 69, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview two local government planners, Meghan Ablett and Emily Cooke. Meg and Em work for the Cardinia Shire Council which is one of the major residential growth areas within the Melbourne metropolitan area. Meg and Em work in 'growth areas' planning that is at the urban edge overseeing the formation of new suburbs and providing the support for 'instant communities'. One of the toughest jobs in planning. The duo talk about their day to day work; their inspirations and the constant learning experience of visiting recently created suburbs in their municipality and others, and taking in lessons. The issues they deal with stem the full gamut of planning considerations; heritage, archaeology, drainage systems, geology, built form, transport linkages, economic and social planning. In the process they have gained considerable insight into all the 'working parts' that make for great suburbian outcomes. A delightful interview that gives confidence in the next gen of local government planners. This podcast was produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 8 October 2020. PlanningxChange is a proud member of the UBC.

In PlanningxChange Episode 68, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview Clark Davies; an urban planner/project manager based in the Middle East. Originally from Melbourne Victoria (a graduate of the Class of 83' at RMIT), Clark worked locally, then moved interstate and eventually overseas. Clark is a senior executive with a breadth of property development, construction and business management experience. He has delivered profit on large and complex projects through being able to successfully manage people and processes to orchestrate outcomes aligned with development and corporate goals. He is currently the Chief Development Officer at Edamah (Bahrain Real Estate Investment). In the podcast he talks of his experiences living and working in different continents and amongst different cultures. He brings a unique perspective to global development trends and the importance of local place. He talks of past lessons and sets out what he believes are new trends. He also has advice to young planners just starting out. A sparkling and delightful interview. This podcast was produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 4 September 2020.

In PlanningxChange Episode 67, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview Nick Vlahandreas of Mountain Planning. Nick is based in Bright, a mountain town in North East Victoria. He has 16 years experience combining local government and private practice. Nick talks candidly about mistakes he made when first in local government and the lessons he put into practice and by so doing making him a more complete and responsive planner. As well, he joined the local footy club and this opened his eyes to the importance of community in small towns. He talks of the vast difference between practising planning in major cities to the more local circumstances in country areas. He also makes suggestions on how planning controls can be reformed to better reflect the changing dynamics and needs of regional and country Australia. A frank and revealing interview that gives a terrific insight into working in small town and country areas. This podcast was produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 10 August 2020. PlanningxChange is a proud member of the Urban Broadcast Collective.

In PlanningxChange Episode 66, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview Paul Shipp one of Australia's rising urban planning economist stars. It's said economics is essentially half psychology and half elementary school arithmetic with a flavouring of statistics. Paul in the interview gives a sense of the potential of urban economics to harness data to better understand and improve contemporary cities and regions. This at times challenges conventional wisdom and long established planning policy.  Paul has 15 years experience consulting to government and private clients, primarily in Melbourne and regional Victoria. As a Director of consultancy Urban Enterprise, Paul leads a wide range of strategic planning and urban economic projects. Paul specialises in fields at the interface of strategic planning and economics: land use planning, land demand and supply studies, demographic and property analysis, economic impact assessments and infrastructure funding, across the residential, retail, commercial, industrial and tourism sectors. He regularly appears as an Expert Witness at planning hearings on these issues. A proud urban planner, Paul has held roles on the Planning Institute of Australia's Victorian Committee and was a Co-editor of the monthly Planning News publication. PlanningxChange is proud to be part of the Urban Broadcast Collective. This podcast was produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 17 July 2020.

In PlanningxChange Episode 65, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview Scott Beyer of the Market Urbanism report. This is the first international interview conducted by PlanningxChange! Scott Beyer is an urban affairs analyst based in New York City. He is founder and owner of Market Urbanism Report, a media organization that promotes free-market urban policy. MUR publishes a weekly article, a monthly podcast, and has active social media accounts with a combined following of over 50,000. Scott is also a journalist who recently completed a 3-year, 30-city cross-country tour to study urban American issues. He now writes as a regular columnist for Forbes, Governing Magazine, HousingOnline.com, and the Independent Institute. Recently he launched a consulting company, Beyer Policy, to build political support around his ideas. BP works with public and private institutions to spearhead pro-market, pro-growth policy in cities across America. The interview introduces the concept of borrowing more ideas on urban policy from the United States. America has 50 states and each area has its own identity. Within this vast country and different government areas there is the potential for urban policy experimentation on a truly remarkable scale. In addition, the country is known for its free thinking approach to tackling urban issues. Our guest, Scott Beyer seeks solutions to urban problems with a free market approach. Basically this means less government involvement not more, an approach rarely expressed in Australian planning circles. A bold and refreshing speaker with ideas that can add to the 'planning commons' of ideas. The interview was recorded using Zoom, the first using our new Rode microphones, we hope to steadily improve the audio quality. Podcast produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 23 June 2020.

In PlanningxChange Episode 64, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview Tim Biles from Ratio Consultants. Tim has had a long and distinguished career as a lecturer, consultant, advisor and 'creator' of several planning consultancies. We thought Tim would be an excellent commentator on the impacts of Covid 19 and Government retrictions on city life. So many predictions made during the pandemic have turned out in error sometimes of a massive magnitude causing huge dislocation to city life and citzens. The interview considers the concept of 'safeism' and the impact this will have on buildings, personal interaction, general levels of health, economic wellbeing and city living. Will the changes be permanent or soon forgotten? The interview was recorded using Zoom, we apologise for the less than optimal audio quality. We are working on methods to improve the listening experience. Podcast produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 11 June 2020.

In PX63, Jess Noonan and Peter Jewell interview Ben Rossiter Secretary and Executive Officer of Victoria Walks. The organisation is a walking health promotion charity managed by an independent voluntary board. The organisation's mission is simple: 'More people walking more every day'. Victoria Walks undertakes research, which informs an ongoing campaign of advocacy and policy work. Ben talks of the benefits of walking and impediments to walking within our city form. But isn't more walking just like eating more vegetables, we all know we should do more of it! Ben answers this question suggesting walking is given better representation within the transport matrix and from this better implementation solutions can follow so that walking is an easier daily choice. The organisation website victoriawalks.com.au contains a link to walkingmaps.com.au (an offshoot) that contains numerous local walking trails, the majority created by the public. The website includes videos on how to create and upload walking trails. There are themed walks within cities and regional areas. This platform is of increasing interest to local government in terms of promoting better health outcomes and supporting local tourism. The benefits of walking extend beyond the physical, Friedrich Nietzsche the German philosophy stated: 'All truly great thoughts are conceived when walking'. For internal reflection one only need consider the Philosopher's Walk in Kyoto. The route is so named because the influential 20th century Japanese philosopher and Kyoto University professor Nishida Kitaro is thought to have used it for his daily mediation. Kitaro's most famous concept is the logic of basho usually translated as 'place' involving at times the dynamic tension of opposites. We hope this podcast creates interest in walking and how cities can be made more walking friendly. Due to the Government lockdown, this interview was recorded using Zoom, we apologise for the less than optimal audio quality. Podcast produced by Complete Podcasting Services. Episode released 11 May 2020.