In this edition:- NSW Local Government and Affordable Housing Forum
- Introducing our new Practitioners in Residence
- Upcoming Events
- City Road Podcast: New episodes released!
- Watch on Demand
- Links to the Martin Payne PIR scheme and academic funding opportunities
- Media mentions and commentary
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NSW Local Government and Affordable Housing Forum: examples, pathways and opportunities
We were very pleased to host the NSW Local Government and Affordable Housing Forum in March. This one day event provided an opportunity for local government leaders, practitioners and researchers to share knowledge and practical responses to the housing crisis. The program was developed by our post-doctoral researcher Dr Greta Werner together with City of Sydney Councillor Sylvie Ellsmore, with input from a committee of mayors and councillors from across NSW—including Randwick, Willoughby, Byron, Forbes and Newcastle.
Recordings of the presentations will be available on the Henry Halloran Urban and Regional Research Initiative (HHURRI) YouTube channel soon.
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Photo from NSW Local Government and Affordable Housing Forum
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Introducing our new Practitioners in Residence
Our Practitioner in Residence (PIR) Program allows experienced practitioners to undertake a period of supported research in residence at the University, working with academics and students and engaging with our program of public events.
We are delighted to introduce our three 2026 Practitioners:
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Beck Dawson
Beck is an executive leader and sound operational manager with a strong track record of delivering impact through collaboration, engagement, strategy and a focus on performance. Beck has deep experience in climate mitigation and adaptation across the private and public sectors, including many years as the Chief Resilience Officer, Resilient Sydney. Beck's project is titled: “Information asymmetry and climate risk in Australia: Implications for urban planning, social justice, and community economic resilience".
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Josephine Skinner
Josephine has been director and lead curator of the not-for-profit contemporary art space Cement Fondu since co-founding it in 2017, and in 2023, she co-founded Vital Commons, curating culturally relevant practice in the public realm. Josephine's project is titled: "Monumental shifts: Curating beyond compliance to cultural possibility".
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Amy Lawton
Amy is a social policy, planning and research professional with 15 years’ experience in government, not-for-profit, university and private sectors. She is currently working part-time as Senior Project Officer - Social Cohesion at the Sydney Policy Lab, University of Sydney. Amy's project is titled: "Designing and planning cities for people with invisible disabilities: Exploring practitioner and lived experience perspectives to inform urban policy and practice in Australia".
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In 2023, the PIR Program was renamed to honour and recognise the contributions of Martin Payne, who was instrumental in supporting the establishment of the Henry Halloran Research Trust and its mission to foster connections between the University and wider policy and practice communities.
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Implementing wellbeing outcomes in the NSW planning system - Martin Payne Practitioner in Residence Public Lecture and Panel DiscussionWhen: Tuesday, 21 April, 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm
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City Road Podcast: New episodes released!
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Marramarra: Indigenous Artists making History Visible
In this first City Reads episode, host Jacqueline Tyrrell speaks with internationally renowned artist and curator Brook Andrew and art historian and researcher Jessica Neath about their recently published book. We find out how indigenous artists are finding pathways to visibility and healing through a broad range of artistic mediums, along with some deeper insights into global narratives from Indigenous perspectives.
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Tackling distrust in the renewable energy rollout
A renewable energy transition is top of the list when it comes to Australia's race to net zero carbon emissions. But take the temperature around Australia, and not everyone is on board. Bill Code speaks with Associate Professor Bec Colvin about the importance of taking different concerns seriously and the narrative of regional communities 'standing up' to the powerful actors sweeping in with unwanted change from the outside.
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Live event: Is housing 'abundance' really the solution?
Governments of different stripes tend to believe that the way to deal with the housing crisis is to build more houses. If there were an 'abundance' of houses, we'd be able to easily tackle the lack of *access* to secure housing. But is abundance – as popular as that term has become in the last year – the key to the issue?
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Live event: Regenerating civics: Urban AI, social media and post-truth
Originally hailed for democratising access to information, the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and pervasive social media platforms are increasingly associated with a fragmentation of public discourse and distrust of ‘mainstream’ politics. In this panel, NSW Housing Minister Rose Jackson, Professor Marcus Foth, Christine El-Khoury and Dr Justine Humphry discuss the implications of new technologies for civic engagement and urban life.
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Data Centres: Planning for growth amidst the AI boom
Dr Bronwyn Cumbo of UTS's Transdisciplinary School and Johanna Lim from the US Studies Centre join host Bill Code to talk about some of the environmental, social and strategic considerations around planning for data centres, the so-called 'nerve centres' of our digital economy.
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Regenerative Spaces? Public art and engagement in urban placemaking
Denis Winston Memorial Lecture
Keynote: Tina Havelock Stevens
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Debate: That housing “abundance” is the solution
Speakers: Tina Perinotto, Patrick Fensham, Jess Scully, Professor Steven Rowley, Ben Hendriks, Mehnaaz Hossain
Chaired by: Nicole Gurran
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Many hands, many actors, many ideas: Unpacking Parramatta’s urban design
Panel: Kelly Van Der Zanden, Philip Graus, Phillip Vivian, Callantha Brigham, Gigi Lombardi
Chaired by: Deena Ridenour
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Beyond borders? Collaborative governance for regenerative regionalism
Speakers: Kalina Koloff, Brett Davis
Chaired by: Michael Keys
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SOLD! Who Broke the Australian Dream? — Panel Discussion
Panel: Mark Humphries, Craig Reccausal, Zahra Nasreen, Siena Fagan
Chaired by: Prof. Nicole Gurran
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Links to the Martin Payne PIR scheme and academic funding opportunities
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Media Commentary:
The Henry Halloran Urban & Regional Research Initiative promotes evidence-informed contributions to public debate, through our publications, events, and media commentary.
Recent highlights include:
Sydney Morning Herald, Clover’s Right: Unlocking government land offers an exit ramp from the housing crisis
The Daily Telegraph featured comments from Professor Nicole Gurran, who explained how western Sydney suburbs like Penrith, Blacktown and Parramatta face higher temperatures during heatwaves due to their inland location and lack of coastal breezes.
The Byron Shire Echo reports on an independent research partnership between Byron Shire Council and Professor Nicole Gurran. The collaboration aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the 60-day cap on short-term rental accommodation (STRA).
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The Henry Halloran Urban and Regional Research Initiative is a cross-disciplinary research centre focused on the profound challenges facing cities and regions in the 21st Century. Through our grants, projects and public events we foster research, education and dialogue across the many disciplines, professions and communities vital to creating better urban and regional futures.
We acknowledge the tradition of custodianship and law of the Country on which the University of Sydney campuses stand. We pay our respects to those who have cared and continue to care for Country.
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