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Kaya,
Welcome to Issue 20 of Urban Scrawl – your monthly scoop of global inspiration, the latest urban research and fresh intel from our vibrant community of members.
This issue’s header image features a striking mural by Perth-based artist Bec Abdy, created as part of the No More Blank Walls festival in Subiaco in October 2024. The 11-day event welcomed over 48,000 spectators to Subiaco and showcased the transformative power of street art for public spaces. We dive deeper into the theme in Research Bites, where new findings from Cincinnati in the US continue the conversation.
As always, if you discover new ideas or visited places that stirred your imagination, we would love to hear from you – sharing insights across our network is how we grow together.
Happy reading, Francien Boom Committee for Perth |
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Image credit: Artworks Cincinnati / Saya Woolfalk |
A new study by the University of Cincinnati explores the impact of street murals on vitality and community development. Cincinnati’s public art is a defining feature with over 300 murals across the city.
The study, ‘The role of public murals in street vitality’, looked at how murals fit into Cincinnati’s neighbourhoods by analysing maps and data on foot traffic, crime and local populations. Key findings include: - Murals are strongly associated with food-related businesses, retail shops, cultural venues, historic landmarks and transit hubs.
- Areas with murals tend to have denser housing, more college-educated residents and higher rates of walking to work.
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Murals boost foot traffic and draw people to public spaces.
- There is no link between murals and crime.
“The findings come at a pivotal moment for cities seeking low-cost, high-impact strategies to foster walkability, cultural identity and neighbourhood vitality”, says Jeong, the researcher leading the study.
“These findings underscore the role of murals in placemaking and suggest opportunities for collaboration among artists, small businesses, and residents. We recommend that policymakers link mural initiatives with affordable housing and long-term employment strategies to support inclusive growth and community stability.” Learn more here. |
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78% of surveyed companies worldwide reported using AI in at least one business function in 2024 ‒ a 55% increase compared to the previous year. The most common areas where companies use AI are information technology (IT), marketing and sales, and service operations. How do you use AI?
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READ: Monocle's ten steps to solve the housing crisis, including making modular housing part of the solution and naming and shaming the owners of long-term vacant units. Easy done! (Monocle)
LISTEN: Committee for Adelaide’s Adelaide Connected podcast, a series aimed at giving insights into people who have lived abroad and why they have chosen Adelaide as their home to live and work. This episode, with Tara Moses, COO at RM Williams, shares her first impressions of Adelaide, sense of community and what needs to improve in the city. (Adelaide Connected)
WATCH: Future Council, Damon Gameau’s film, which takes eight children on the ultimate school excursion: a road trip across Europe to meet with powerful leaders and find solutions to our greatest environmental challenges. (The Regenerators) |
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Sometimes the best research comes from the people who are living and breathing a city. This month we speak to Suzi Hullick, State General Manager, Commercial WA at Westpac, who has recently moved to Perth, and is passionate about developing and empowering people to have choices and to grow to be the best version of themselves.
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To start off with, what is your background? I grew up in country Victoria, in a large family, where sport for me was more important than school, so I finished year 11 and joined the RAN (Royal Australian Navy) as my first job.
My foray into banking came as a part-time teller and now after 26 years across 2 institutions, I have undertaken nearly every role and some more specialist roles, as well as the Head of Indigenous Banking and Group Head of Diversity Equity and Inclusion.
Utilising large organisations as a vehicle for change, I have had the pleasure of leading some cool changes, and implementing some amazing programs of work which are now business as usual, and to round it off during Covid, I completed my MBA specialising in Social Impact.
You’ve recently made the move to Perth, what has stood out to you most about your new home?
Its ability to connect people and communities, whether it’s through festivals, events, museums, art, music, transport, roads or digitally: Perth brings a diverse range of cultures, activities and experiences to life and has the potential to build on that. It’s the weekend… where will we find you? Lately, diving at one of the amazing dive sites around the coast or on one of the pristine golf courses here.
What is your favourite hidden gem in Perth?
Andaluz Bar and Tapas, and I really love the Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse (down south).
One last question. If you could do one thing to improve the Perth region, what would it be?
I would love to help solve the homelessness in the city, the rising trends of those seeking a warm bed, cup of tea and a sandwich are overloading those organisations already supporting a large number of vulnerable people.
The alarming trend of women my age who find themselves without a safe place to call home is truly concerning. Vulnerability does not discriminate, it can happen to anyone anytime, we need to be able to deal with that as a State. |
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INTERNATIONAL INSPIRATION |
Image credit: Abdul Saboor/Reuters |
Would you jump in? After more than a century-long ban, the Seine in Paris has officially reopened for public swimming. The clean-up program, spurred on by the river’s role as a 2024 Olympics venue, came at a cost of approximately €1.4 billion. The ambitious clean-up involved upgrading water treatment facilities, building substantial rainwater reservoirs to prevent sewage overflows during rainstorms, and correcting system misconnections.
Not only are people enjoying the river again, but nature is too. The number of fish species has risen from just three in the 1970s to nearly 40, showcasing the potential for urban ecosystem recovery. |
In a recent pilot project, sections of Swiss railway tracks have been transformed into solar power plants. While rail-integrated solar energy isn’t entirely new, this Swiss startup has introduced an innovative, removable panel system designed to simplify maintenance and replacements. Their custom-built machine can install or remove up to 1,000 square metres of solar panels in just a few hours.
According to the startup, approximately 5,320 kilometres of the Swiss rail network, excluding tunnel sections or areas with limited sunlight, could produce up to one billion kWh of solar energy annually. That’s enough to power around 300,000 households, or roughly 2% of Switzerland’s total electricity consumption. In comparison, Perth’s rail network spans about 270 kilometres. Could we be sitting on untapped solar potential? |
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"Almere is not an experimental city exactly, but a city in which experiments can happen"
Founded on reclaimed land in the 1970s and officially established as a municipality in 1984, Almere is an example of visionary urban planning. Located in the Flevoland province of the Netherlands, it was created to relieve housing pressure in the densely populated regions surrounding Amsterdam and Utrecht. In 2025, it has a population of 230,500 people. By 2030, it is expected to have 350,000 inhabitants. Grown from non-existence, and sitting on top of reclaimed land, it plans to grow with 60,000 houses and 100,000 jobs as outlined in its framework.
An ambitious masterplan by OMA provided the collection of dispersed districts with a structured centre, integrating projects by internationally recognised architects.Its city centre has a distinctive three-tier structure with car parking underground, ground-level shopping and leisure facilities, and green spaces on rooftops. |
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Committee for Perth conducts its work on Whadjuk Noongar Boodjar. We recognise their peoples' ongoing connection to land, culture and community and in doing so, pay our respects to Elders past and present. |
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