Agenda

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• A comparison of ABS, Treasury IGR3 and Federal Budget population projections and why they differ
• Comparing the projected trends with those of the past
• Where are people going? Where do they come from?

• An insight into the impacts of growth in Melbourne
• Melbourne is getting about 24% of net overseas migration to Australia but has 18% of our population, why?
• How will cities cope with high migration?

• The growth lobby and the sustainability movement
• Attitudes to population growth and immigration
• Cosmopolitans and patriots? Understanding currents in public opinion

• Comparing the arguments of those alarmed by population growth and the pro-growth group
• Habitat, the environment, and resources
• Is planning and innovation a solution?
• Is growth inevitable?
• Physical and energy limits to growth

• The real challenges of food security: of what and for whom?
• Can we meet the food requirements of a larger population? At what cost?
• Food systems, climate and energy: impacts, challenges and opportunities

• Ensuring supply of land meets the ongoing demand
• The impacts of the rate of population change
• Eliminating the NIMBY culture
• Changing the way land is utilised

• The impact of continuous building of unsustainable housing
• Quality control measures for building in future
• Case studies of sustainable developments
• Cities change adaptation
• Climate change adaptation

• The changing housing dynamic
• Housing supply and affordability
• The environment and other factors at play

• The challenges and opportunities from the perspective of the Greater Shepparton City Council

• How fast is the population growing in different regions of Australia, and what drives the variations?
• Is there anything government can do to influence the population growth of different regions? Is this money well spent, or are we just trying to make economic water flow uphill?
• Is government investment in services appropriately targeted given regional population growth?
• Can regions accommodate a substantial portion of Australia’s population growth? Would this be a good thing?

• What is sustainable mobility in the Australian context?
• What is the current status of our transport system?
• What are the options for achieving sustainable transport?
• What role does population increase play?

• Exploring the correlation between population growth and economic growth
• What is the impact of infrastructure spending on the budget deficit?
• Is bigger necessarily better?

• What will happen if the population remains stable?
• What does Australia need to remain prosperous?

• Employment and development changes expected in future
• Using education
• Identifying skill needs
• Ways of avoiding skills shortages

• Describing the impacts of not only a population increase, but the impacts of an ageing population on public health expenditure
• Looking outside the square – alternatives to hospital based health care for older people
• Maximising health and productivity of older people – a “win win” approach

• Social and environmental challenges for people of large cities
• Creating greater spatial efficiency in our cities
• Refurbishing existing buildings and city spaces to suit future needs

• The challenge of decoupling energy and water consumption and waste generation from population growth
• What mechanisms are available to drive performance in new development, with particular focus on the planning scheme?
• International examples of how the planning scheme has been applied in other cities to drive sustainability performance
• The potential for implementation within Melbourne