Sunday, January 16, 2011

Your Development

  • http://yourdevelopment.org

    Why Your Development?

    Australian cities are expanding; by 2050 the UN predicts that 94% of Australians will live in urban areas and that our population will be 30 million. Our neighbourhoods are significant consumers of resources. Residential energy use has increased by around 14% in the last decade and per capita water consumption will have to be reduced by an average of 12% across major cities to stay within projected sustainable yield targets. The impacts of climate change and the need to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels means that our neighbourhoods of the future need to change.
    Your Development can help facilitate that change.

    What is Your Development?

    Your Development is a dynamic website providing information on sustainable urban development in:
  • Fact sheets
  • Case studies
  • Brief case studies
  • Links to other sites
  • User comments
  • A Glossary
  • News articles
Topics covered include:
Site Ecology - focusing on site issues, landscaping, biodiversity, soil and water management, ecological footprint.
Place Making & Social Sustainability - housing stock, affordability, community issues and facilities, connection to facilities, heritage and safety.
Estate Design - street and lot layout, urban density, mix use, open space provisions and infrastructure provisions.
Access & Transport - public transport and bicycle infrastructure, pedestrian environments, innovative transport modes, transport integration and linkages.
Materials & Recycling - life cycle analysis of materials, waste minimisation, waste management and recycling and healthy materials.
Water Management - water sensitive urban design, water sources, water efficiency and water quality.
Energy Management - energy supply, distributed energy and energy efficiency
Climate Change Adaptation & Mitigation - greenhouse abatement and adapting to climate change
Sustainability Management - whole of life costing, financial models, partnerships, post occupancy evaluation, community education and sustainability assessment.

Information is provided on what to do during each of the phases of development:
  • Feasability
  • Planning
  • Design
  • Construction
  • Lot Creation
  • Completion

Who is Your Development for?

Your Development is for use by:
  • private and public developers
  • urban planners
  • local, state, and federal government bodies
  • designers
  • builders
  • many others with an interest in sustainable urban development

How was Your Development created?

Your Development is a national project developed in partnership with CSIRO and the Australian Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage, and the Arts. Content has been written and reviewed by leading researchers and industry experts.
Your Development uses Web 2.0 technology that aims to facilitate creativity, information sharing, and collaboration among users.