Sustainability Magazine September 2019 | Page 136

RESILIENT MELBOURNE
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“ RESILIENT MELBOURNE HAS FOUR INTERDEPENDENT , LONG-TERM OBJECTIVES , WHICH AT THEIR HIGHEST LEVEL SEE OUR METROPOLITAN COMMUNITIES AIMING TO BE STRONGER TOGETHER , HAVE SHARED PLACES , A DYNAMIC ECONOMY AND A HEALTHIER ENVIRONMENT ”

— Toby Kent , Chief Resilience Officer , Resilient Melbourne Chair , Future Business Council
Bay , Kent and the Resilient Melbourne team led the creation of the city ’ s first ever resilience strategy . This involved working in partnership with over 1,000 representatives from more than 230 organisations and agencies . The strategy provides an alternative way to address chronic stresses that impact the city , such as rapid growth and congestion and to be better prepared to deal with acute shocks , such as extreme heat , fire and floods . “ Resilient Melbourne has four interdependent , long-term objectives , which at their highest level see our metropolitan communities aiming to be stronger together , have shared places , a dynamic economy and a healthier environment ,” explains Kent .
Resilient Melbourne has most recently released Living Melbourne : our metropolitan urban forest , which aims to improve liveability and enhance the health of the city . There are many advantages to the urban forest , according to Kent . Importantly , he says , it is a way to tackle unpleasant impacts of climate change and other stresses , presented in a way that excites people , rather than scaring them , which halts action . “ Substantively , the urban forest helps to cool
SEPTEMBER 2019