Why this blog?
My original aim was to outline some principles of urban development. The postings have ranged a bit wider than that, but they're all connected one way or another.
Over the past few years Auckland, where I have lived a good deal of my life. has undergone a transformation in governance and headed down a planning path founded on increasing urban density as a means of achieving a varety of policy goals. Its a path which is a challenging one given Auckland's physical constraints and consequently its pursuit tortuous and potentially costly. As a result, my blogs have become somewhat focused on the Auckland example of urban policy and planning. However, the resulting critique, while not necessarily popular, may well have wider application.
My experience
Over the years I have consulted on development and policy matters throughout New Zealand, Australia, the Pacific, and parts of Asia. I have covered horticulture, forestry, farming, fishing, processing, manufacturing, and transport development and urban, regional, and industry strategy and policy in a variety of settings. In transport I have worked on passenger transport, freight, road and rail evaluation, and aviation.
As head of a consulting group and market research company and as an independent consultant I have worked with private and public companies, local, state and federal governments and inter-governmental agencies. I spent five years as an academic, heading up the School of Resource and Environmental Planning at Massey University in Palmerston North, a small university city in New Zealand's North Island. Today I am largely retired, an observer rather than participant in the matters I commment on, living just beyond the urban edge.
