SHANGHAI and BRISBANE, Australia, April 12, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- National Planner of the Year and Executive Director of Planning at Place Design Group, Chris Isles, is in China this week representing the best of Australian Planning and Urban Design at Austrade's International Smart Cities Forum, AWIC 2016.
Due to present on Wednesday, Chris will discuss Australian best practice planning and innovation around Smart Cities. Joined by Australian Federal Government Ministers, including Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, and Minister for Trade and Investment Steven Ciobo, Chris understands there is much to be gained for Australia and China via the mission.
"China is experiencing such rapid urbanisation that smart city thinking is critical, so they are well positioned to lead this exciting evolution of cities. Australia has the opportunity to play a critical part in this process through the provision of key thinking and technology," Chris says.
Led by Austrade, the mission is working to advance Australia's diplomatic and economic interests and to promote the international competitiveness of Australian businesses in China.
Chris believes timing has never been better, and the mission serves as critical, not only for international business relations, but for the future of our cities.
"As we grapple with big data, the 'internet of things', and urbanisation we are at a point where we have the technology to make better cities. This mission is a perfect opportunity to share key learnings and ideas between our countries," Chris says.
Currently, there are many commercial opportunities present thanks to the unprecedented increase of an affluent middle class, and the recently revised China Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA). And to responsibly capitalise on these, we must consider the critical need for an international smart cities approach.
"Cities around the world have one unifying element. People. Urbanisation, and how we develop 'smart technology' to help keep liveability for people high on the agenda should be a global pursuit, and one of world importance."
The AWIC 2016 program will feature trade and investment seminars, roundtables, site visits, product showcases and opportunities for networking with Chinese business, industry and government.
Chris will be releasing a wrap up report, post-mission which will provide valuable insights into opportunities for international investment, trade and smart cities planning approaches from across the globe. This is set to be available early May.
The second 'Australia Week' in China is on now, and will tour multiple cities from the 11 to the15 April 2016.
CONTACT:
Erin Ashford
Marketing Communications Manager
Place Design Group
+61-7-3852-3922
erin.a@placedesigngroup.com
