iCities Report: Localising the SDGs - towards transformative actions and base planning in Albany (WA)

With the rapid urbanisation of the world’s population, much focus is on large cities. But most of the world’s population (56%) lives in small to medium-sized urban settlements with populations smaller than half a million people. These ‘intermediate’ iCities are particularly significant as hubs for infrastructure and services to their immediate residents and extended regional areas. It is critical that iCities can plan their future development strategically to enable a sustainable future. The methodology implemented is based on the Base Plan Approach, an inclusive planning tool developed by UNESCO UdL-CIMES Chair for Intermediary iCities, adjusted to the Australian planning context. The workshop, organised in Singleton in November 2022, assembled broad stakeholders - local governments, community members, and academics - in the thinking-planning-proposing process as a collective endeavour. The workshop focused on localising the SDGs: 1) exploring how existing local plans meet Singleton’s future sustainable development needs with attention to its relationship with its region – spatially and functionally; 2) verifying how existing local plans meet the SDGs (or not) (Fox & Macleod, 2022; Krellenberg et al., 2019; Mueller, 2020); and 3) proposing future planning addressing gaps. Singleton Council and stakeholders have already undertaken significant work to ensure a more sustainable future. However, the region faces critical challenges in addressing a sustainable future. The following recommendations embed the need for partnerships between regional councils, communities, state and federal governments, research and educational institutions, other Intermediate iCities, and international institutions like the UNESCO Chair for Intermediate iCities.