E Synnott, D Griffiths, 2011
Despite the composed ‘predict and provide’ attitude displayed in the National Urban Policy Paper towards change in Australian Cities, our cities have been more vulnerable to an increasing range of events and trends. The experience of the last year alone is a clear indicator that prediction along traditional lines is an increasingly unreliable way of managing cities. Instead, planning policy and frameworks will have to reckon with the need to strengthen contingency and resilience in cities, whether for rapid deployment or on a larger timeframe as an essential part of a national conversation about the future of Australian cities.
http://soac.fbe.unsw.edu.au/2011/papers/SOAC2011_0250_final.pdf
Picture courtesy of Bernard Spragg used under Creative Commons.