What do cyclists want? Former UQ|UP student Tmnit Hailu together with Dorina Pojani argue in The Fifth Estate that cycling must be treated the same as other vital urban infrastructure, such as water, sanitation, and telecommunication. Read the full piece: https://thefifthestate.com.au/columns/spinifex/what-do-cyclists-want/ Continue reading
Category Archives: Opinion
UQ|UP team on Contact Magazine writing about micromobility and e-scooters
Brisbane faces a variety of mobility challenges and a team of UQ|UP experts (Jonathan Corcoran, Dorina Pojani, Thomas Sigler, Frank Zou) and their colleagues are looking to the potential of micromobility – such as e-scooters and e-bikes – to help alleviate the pressure. Read the full article on UQ’s Contact Magazine: https://stories.uq.edu.au/contact-magazine/2023/why-e-scooters-are-the-public-mobility-glue-for-urban-transport/index.html Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on Streetsblog USA’s podcast Talking Headways
Dorina Pojani joins Jeff Woods to talk about her book, “Planning for Sustainable Transport in Southeast Asia: Policy Transfer, Diffusion, and Mobility.” They chat about how four different Southeast Asian cities are taking transportation ideas from other places and trying to deal with congestion and mobility. Listen to the full interview: https://usa.streetsblog.org/2023/01/26/talking-headways-podcast-policy-transfer-in-southeast-asia/ Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on RGS’s podcast talking about new capitals
UQ|UP’s Dorina Pojani is on Ask the Geographer, the podcast of UK’s Royal Geographical Society. She talks about the challenges faced by Nusantara, Indonesia’s new capital city. The episode is titled ‘How ‘not to build a capital’. More more information and to have a listen, check the links below. Webpage: https://www.rgs.org/schools/teaching-resources/how-not-to-build-a-capital-with-dr-pojani-nusantar/ Soundcloud URL: https://soundcloud.com/rgsibg/how-not-to-build-a-capital-with-dr-pojani-nusantara-indonesia Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on 4ZZZ talking about the Gabba Olympics redevelopment
In preparation for the 2032 Olympics and Paralympics, the QLD Government has announced a complete refit of The Gabba Stadium in Woolloongabba. 4ZZZ journalist Joshua McIntosh spoke to community members and experts, including UQ|UP’s Dorina Pojani, about the proposal to gain insight into what it might mean for the area. Listen to the full story … Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on the Courier Mail talking about shopping centre revitalisation
After the floods, Bellbowrie Shopping Plaza could be totally transformed. Brendan O’Malley of the Courier Mail interviewed local experts, including UQ|UP’s Dorina Pojani, to pick their brains. Dorina said that: “Demolishing the building was not a climate-friendly option, while replacing it with housing posed more complications than adaptively reusing the building for a high school … Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on the Courier Mail discussing redesign options for the Toombul shopping centre
An airport hotel, a transport-oriented community and a walkable, tree-lined high street-style shopping strip – what should replace Toombul Shopping Centre? Brendan O’Malley from the Courier Mail set out to investigate options by interviewing the local state MP as well as a series of planning and business experts, including UQ|UP’s Dorina Pojani: Dr Pojani questioned … Continue reading
Listen to Dorina Pojani on the Oblique Life podcast talking about mobility in the Global South
Urban mobility must tackle an over-reliance on automobiles, which has led to both sprawl and inequity of access to amenities and opportunities, if it is to re-invent itself. Citizens, particularly in the Global South, are already spending on informal, often unregulated private transport. To learn about this and more, listen to: The Oblique Life Global … Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on the Globe and Mail talking about the impact of new capital cities
Rio to Brasilia, Seoul to Sejong, Old Cairo to New Cairo, Yangon to Naypyidaw, and now Jakarta to Nusantara. Climate mitigation in capital cities costs. Is building new ones the solution? UQ|UP’s Dorina Pojani, author of Trophy Cities, talks to Ivy Lerner-Frank at the Globe and Mail (Canada) without mincing words. Read the full article: … Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on 9News advocating for the preservation of Queenslander houses
A derelict Queenslander has been slated for demolition even though it should be protected under heritage regulations. The decision angering the local community, but Council says it’s damaged beyond repair. Dorina Pojani pitches in: https://mobile.twitter.com/9newsqueensland/status/1518872220529045504 Continue reading
Sebastien Darchen on GEMS panel discussing the 2032 Olympic Games in Brisbane
GEMS held its first industry event of the year, a panel discussion on the 2032 Brisbane Olympics! Members had the privilege of listening to an engaging and diverse panel including Council Member Jonathan Sri and UQ|UP’s Sebastien Darchen, who provided invaluable insight and greatly contributed to this challenging conversation. The panel discussed topics like the … Continue reading
More on the SEQ City Deal: Laurel Johnson pitches in on ABC News
Outside of Brisbane, regional centres are booming. So why is there ‘not a lot’ for them in SEQ’s $1.8b City Deal? Read Laurel Johnson’s interview on ABC News: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-28/seq-public-transport-challenges/100939888 Continue reading
More housing in flood-prone areas? Dorina Pojani chimes in on ABC News
A month on from Queensland’s devastating flood disaster, thousands of families are attempting to rebuild as federal government funding for a joint support package remains up in the air. Build back better? Build back faster? Not build at all? Various experts from Queensland universities are interviewed, including UQ|UP’s Dorina Pojani. Watch the full news clip: … Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on ABC Radio Brisbane setting forth her vision for the SEQ Liveability Fund
If you had $285 million to make your neighbourhood more liveable, what would you spend it on? In southeast Queensland’s City Deal, there’s big ticket items – like the $450 million Brisbane Metro Woolloongabba Station or $210 million for affordable housing in Caboolture West. And then there’s $285 million dollars for a “Liveability Fund”. UQ|UP’s … Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on ABC News talking about the SEQ City Deal
The SEQ City Deal is great news for the development sector. It’s an exciting time to be a planner in Brisbane when there is all this money set aside for planning projects. But are we focusing too much on big-ticket transport items and neglecting smaller scale projects such as cycling networks and greenways? Read Dorina … Continue reading
Laurel Johnson on The Guardian advocating for a shakeup of the planning system in the aftermath of Brisbane floods
Queensland floods raise questions about the ethical obligation of planners. Laurel Johnson says the planning industry needs to return to its roots of caring for the health and safety of urban residents. Read Laurel’s interview in The Guardian: http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/mar/20/queensland-floods-raise-questions-about-the-ethical-obligation-of-planners-industry-figures-say Continue reading
Dorina Pojani talking about car-free living on the Hustle & Bustle podcast
The Hustle and Bustle is a series of conversations with city thinkers and shapers, focused on South East Queensland. The podcast is hosted by Nicole Bennetts, a passionate urbanist on the Gold Coast. The episodes are light hearted, conversational and inspiring. In Episode 18, Nicole interviews UQ|UP’s Dorina Pojani on one of her latest research … Continue reading
New ABC article on Indigenous knowledge systems, co-authored by Jim Walker
Indigenous knowledge systems are vital to the design of solutions to climate change — so why are Indigenous voices so rarely included in deliberations? The limits to meaningful Indigenous presence in climate change response events are more structural than simply the day-to-day politics of exclusion. While there is now a growing chorus of calls by … Continue reading
Dorina Pojani on the media talking about flood risk and city planning
Devastating flooding is ongoing across Australia, where an area the size of Alaska with some 10 million people is at risk for excessive rainfall and storminess. The devastating floods come a little over a year after one of Australia’s worst fires seasons on record. From a planning perspective, an obvious suggestion is that housing shouldn’t … Continue reading
UQ|UP staff interviewed by Contact Magazine on post-Covid urban lifestyles
The big question: What does the future hold for urban lifestyles? There is no indication that the ‘pre-COVID-19 normal’ will be returning. So, is the ‘now normal’ going to be the ‘new normal’? And what does this mean for future urban environments? UQ|UP experts, including Drs Thomas Sigler and Dorina Pojani, talk about the future … Continue reading