Awais Piracha

Religious Belief across ‘Post-secular’ Sydney: the multiple trends in (de)secularisation

Abstract Cities were once thought to be crucibles of secularisation, where the retreat from religion and its expression would be most pronounced. This decline in faith was linked to the heightened levels of heterogeneity and cosmopolitanism within cities. However, there is recent evidence of both the continuation and of the recession of the secularisation process in contemporary Western societies, with the mix and pace of these trends being quite unique to different countries. Significantly, this combination of processes has been argued to be part of a ‘post-secularist’ paradigm. Drawing on census data, this paper examines the spatial patterns of religious affiliation and non-belief in the Australian city of Sydney. Sydney has divergent geographies of faith and non-faith indicating the spatial multiplicities of religious belief. The decrease in Christianity in some areas of the city has been matched by an increase in non-Christian faiths, while in other areas there has been little change. Some parts of the city—especially those areas with a strong mix of affluence, diversity and cosmopolitanism—betray the strongest levels of secularisation and the retreat of faith. At least five geographies of faith and non-belief are recognisable within Sydney. While post-secularisation has been recognised as internationally uneven, this research demonstrates that it is also uneven across a world city like Sydney. The Sydney variations in (de)secularisation reflect city-based effects, including the historic and contemporary patterns of immigrant settlement, established and emerging religious communities, the segmented geographies of class and affluence, and the development of zones of cosmopolitanism. The findings point to the need for further research on the micro-geographies of religious belief and non-belief and community relations, and the on links between religious communities and civil society.

Crime prevention through environmental design : a case study of multi-agency collaboration in Sydney, Australia

Crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) has been legislated in every State and Territory of Australia despite the lack of clear empirical evidence that it is successful (Homel, 2005). Despite a commitment in the literature surrounding CPTED to isolate ‘what works’ (Cherney and Sutton, 2007), there is a distinct lack of empirical evidence in Australia that details how CPTED theory operates in practice. To address this gap in the existing literature, this paper presents the findings of a case study that was conducted on Martin Place, a major pedestrian thoroughfare located in Sydney, Australia. Following on from the research conducted by Zahm (2005) that explored the transference of CPTED knowledge from criminologists to those involved with the design of public places, this paper analyses how CPTED theory was understood and utilised as part of the multi-agency implementation of CPTED-based initiatives that occur in Martin Place. Furthermore, this paper presents a brief history of the development of CPTED in New South Wales (NSW), and a unique framework for understanding the application of CPTED within these contexts. With the help of this case study, this paper addresses the absence of research and evaluation of how CPTED has been implemented in Australia.

The NSW (Australia) Planning Reforms and their Implications for Planning Education and Natural and Built Environment

Planning reforms in NSW have gathered pace. In the past few years, the state government has churned out a series of reforms. These reforms are becoming more urgent in their rhetoric and more dramatic in their impacts. The reforms have included planFrist, BASIX, standardization of LEP, changes to the major projects regime, and changes to the development contribution system. Near the end of 2007, another set of major reforms was proposed through a discussion paper, and some of these reforms have already been speedily legislated. These reforms are being enacted to achieve economic efficiency through uniformity in the planning system across jurisdictions, simplicity and speed for the developers, delivery through electronic systems (ePlanning), development assessment by independent panels and private certifiers, and flexibility via voluntary mechanisms (planning agreements). It has been argued that the reforms are necessary because they are taking place internationally and in other parts of Australia. Contrarily, some sections of the society feel that the reforms are a power grab by the state government or that they are an outcome of the strong influence of the development lobby. On the other hand, a number of planning scholars believe planning reforms are a natural and inevitable outcome of the ascendance of the neo-liberal economic order of the past two to three decades. This paper reviews the motivations behind planning reforms and discuses the profound implications that changes in the planning system in NSW have for natural and built environments in the state.

Evaluating the urban design and community life in public housing in Australia

Abstract Public housing is an essential component of urban life. For those unable to access the private housing market, it provides vital shelter. Constructed during the later decades of last century, housing estates comprise the majority of public dwellings in New South Wales. Social and economic change has left many of these estates as ‘homes of last resort’ struggling to meet the needs of tenants. During the 1990s the NSW Department of Housing embarked upon the Neighbourhood Improvement Program (NIP), a strategy for renewing the most disadvantaged of housing estates. This renewal was targeted at the urban fabric of the estates, and sought to improve the quality of life experienced by tenants. This research explores the claims that urban design can be used to alter the quality of community life experienced by residents, a notion often incorporated into the planning stages of residential development. As the basis for analysis, this research draws upon the case study of the public housing estate at Riverwood in Sydneys south west, which was subject to NIP improvements. Archival research, community surveys and consultation with stakeholders provided insight into the realities of neighbourhood renewal through physical intervention and its effectiveness. Findings are presented with stakeholder motivations and outcomes analysed. Finally, recommendations are made as practical and achievable mechanisms to retrofit existing estates and improve the experienced quality of life.

Geoinformatics for guiding industrial location in punjab Pakistan

The way industries are located in a region has profound impact on its environment. Urban and regional planners have been mostly concerned with locating industries for economic development. Environmental impact assessment (eia) has been their main tool for dealing with environmental issues related with industrial locations. Even the new glorified form of eia, strategic environmental assessment (sea), is for evaluating plans and programs and not a theoretical approach that could form the basis of policy formulation for industrial locations. This paper presents a new approach that attempts at determining the types and volumes of industries that may be allowed in different parts of a region without violating the limits natural environment. The new environment-based approach in meant to be for developing countries and its application has been demonstrated in a case study of Punjab province, Pakistan. Using the understanding of planning support systems and the conditions in the study region, the environment-based approach was translated into a methodology having four modules. The first three analytical modules cover three important aspects of regional planning (land, water, accessibility) and are a fair cross-section of current techniques (gis based overlay methods, hydrological modeling and location/allocation methods). The fourth and last module sheds light at the policy and planning implications of the findings of the three earlier modules of the methodology.

The Multifaith City in an Era of Post-secularism: The Complicated Geographies of Christians, Non-Christians and Non-faithful Across Sydney, Australia

In an era of post-secularism there are co-existent trends towards faith and away from faith. These trends are uneven across time and also space. The Australian religious landscape itself has evolved over the last two centuries. Protestantism and later Catholicism benefited from the privileged status of a “State faith” in Australia. Christianity remains the most populous collection of faiths. In settler nations there is also the persistence of Indigenous faiths. Added to this complexity are new trends within religiosity, with the rise of popular religions, hyper-religions and New Age faiths. Australia has had a comprehensive immigration program especially since the 1950s which has seen the growth of new faiths: Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism. Immigration has also provided adherents to Christian denominations, breathing new life into these faith groups and generating new performances. These faiths have not enjoyed the same levels of state endorsement as Christian groups; rather they are generating inequities. The non-religious have expanded to almost one-third of the population and they have their own specific and varied expectations of state policy. In the central western region of Sydney the suburb of Auburn is a microcosm and a harbinger of the post-secular trends across western settler societies. In Australia, there are also strong legacies of indigenous cosmology and of Christian-centrism, while the nation has also been officially constructed as secularist and multifaith. There have been impressive cross-faith negotiations and co-operation. Religious diversity is palpable, yet policy and national identity seek to come to terms with this everyday geographic reality.

Examining the Role of Structural Engineers in Green Building Ratings and Sustainable Development

This paper examines role of structural engineers in design of green buildings by analysing credits available for the structural aspects of buildings in the four rating systems (LEED, BREEAM, Estidama and Green Star). It was concluded that the points related to the structural credits are roughly proportional to the cost of structural elements in buildings. However, participation of structural engineers in the sustainability efforts is disproportionally low based on the percentage of structural engineers holding LEED Accredited Professionals (LEED AP) designation. Embodied and total energy requirements of typical buildings were examined and it was concluded that embodied energy in the structural components has a share ranging from 2% for traditional buildings to 25% for net-zero buildings. Finally, the sustainability aspects related to structural design that are currently ignored in the rating systems were identified and discussed. Such aspects include: baseline material usage, structural robustness and resilience to disasters, structural adaptability and reuse, structural durability and longevity. It was emphasised that a structure can be sustainable, in true spirit of the terminology, without achieving significant points in the rating systems as long it satisfies the guiding principle of reducing burden on natural resources and the environment.

Future directions for social housing in NSW: new opportunities for ‘place’ and ‘community’ in public housing renewal

ABSTRACT Large scale Estate Renewal Projects (ERPs) have been a prominent feature of recent public housing policy in Australia. These projects are often presented as an urban panacea intended to solve the social and asset challenges that have left estates as neighbourhoods of ‘concentrated disadvantage’. Communities Plus, a component of the recent Future Directions for Social Housing in NSW policy represents a recommitment to place based ERPs. These plans include a broad range of social and physical environment interventions that “create opportunities for innovation through partnership”. Past research has sought to understand the impact of social mix policies. Or have championed an idealistic agenda for urban design and renewal. This research establishes a nuanced understanding of how conceptions of ‘community’ and ‘place’ are deployed by stakeholders to navigate social housing renewal by approaching ERPs from three directions: lived experience, discourse and spatial form. The article draws on interviews, place audits, and participant led photographic surveys from two Sydney ERPs to argue that estate renewal is a complex and often site-specific undertaking. Deployed sensitively, Communities Plus may have significant potential to ensure equitable renewal of NSW’s social housing estates.

Supplying water to the urban poor: Processes and challenges of community-based water governance in Dhaka city

The purpose of this paper is to explore the processes and complexities of community participation in a water supply project for the urban informal poor in Dhaka, Bangladesh.,This paper reviews the performance of a community-based water governance entitled Dushtha Shasthya Kendra Model. The Model includes the local urban poor community with the formal urban service providers in the process of water supply. Using a case study of Karail slum in Dhaka, the paper affirms the potential of community engagement for successful implementation of water supply project by the formal organizations.,The opportunity of community participation by the urban poor helps them to be engaged with the formal organizations. Community engagement not only offers them access to water supply but also ensure formal/legal existence in the city. Despite the fact, the community initiative in the slum faces huge locally situated political and socioeconomic challenges. Addressing these complexities with a proper management may still provide a successful community-based effort for water supply to the urban poor in the slums.,The paper presents a case study of water supply system for the informal poor. Water scarcity in the slum is a serious problem in Dhaka city, though the formal authorities often forget the issue during policy making and planning. This study certainly offers a better understanding of complexity and potentiality of community-based water governance, which may further ensure community participation as well as equal access to water by the urban poor.

Awareness of Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation at Local Level in Punjab, Pakistan

Climate change awareness is an imperative to achieve sustainability in developing countries. Lack of awareness is a significant barrier to climate change adaptation in developing countries. Raising climate change awareness at the local level is critical for Pakistan as climate change impacts are exacerbating the number and extent of disasters in this disaster-prone country. Pakistan’s vulnerability to climate change impacts is very high (ranked 12th in the world). This research assesses the awareness of climate change impacts among the local planning officials in Punjab, Pakistan. The research contextualises its findings in the context of Pakistan’s resilience to deal with the adverse impacts of climate change given its unique and unusual set of socio-political circumstances. The findings of this chapter are based on a detailed survey conducted with local planning officials of Lahore, Pakistan. The survey explores the level of awareness of climate change, its causes and impacts in Pakistan. The survey and subsequent analysis in particular focuses on the potential role of use of Geographical Information System (GIS) in raising climate change awareness.