The Victorian grassland earless dragon may well be the first lizard species driven to extinction on Australia’s mainland. But conservationists aren’t ready to declare it dead just yet.
The future of tourism depends on ensuring visitors do not wear out their welcome. Giving locals more of a say in tourism can help ensure they share in the benefits and minimise the costs.
John Stanley, University of Sydney; Janet Stanley, The University of Melbourne, and Peter Brain, National Institute of Economic and Industry Research
State and local governments can’t do much about the rapid population growth in Melbourne, but they can take steps to reduce the costs of growing disparities between the outer suburbs and inner city.
A newly released ten-year plan for Melbourne aims for fewer cars, safer streets and more shared spaces. A significant amount of parking and road space would be reallocated to walking and cycling.
Footpaths are a valuable space for everyday social activity, but their role is often overlooked. In increasingly dense urban areas such as Footscray, footpaths are essential public spaces.
Rather than mourn the end of a seven-year reign as ‘world’s most liveable city’, Melbourne could raise its sights to become more liveable, healthy and sustainable for all who live in the city.
Kebab vans symbolise the success of ‘bottom-up’ multiculturalism, providing a way for the non-European cultural ‘other’ to become part of our way of life.
The illegal demolition of a historic pub in Melbourne is the subject of a legal bid to order its rebuilding. Although the heritage value of such a move is debatable, there are other justifications.
Melbourne has its first playable art tram – a 32.5-metre-long musical score played via augmented reality. So what’s the idea of playable trams and playable cities really about?
Aboriginal songs found in the notebooks of a Victorian anthropologist shed light on the mystery of a ‘captive white woman’ that has been debated for generations.
Cities overseas that have been able to overcome the affordable housing challenges facing cities like Melbourne have adopted a coordinated and systemic approach to scaling up solutions that work.
Every year, our big cities vie for global liveability honours. But as well as differences between the cities, liveability varies widely within them, leaving plenty of work to be done.