Keynote speaker: Prof Rob Adams + 'Question Time' Panel

Prof. Rob Adams  General Manager, City Design, City of Melbourne 

Melbourne is currently subject to 'Stage 4 restrictions' with curfews and people restricted to remaining within a 5 km radius of where they live. 

"This presentation will look at how car orientated cities like Melbourne can use the post COVID environment to put in place strategies that will over the following decades produce more walkable neighbourhoods with many of the characteristics of areas such as Fitzroy. How, by introducing a few changes to the way we are currently building our cities, we can ensure that these neighbourhoods far from being disadvantaged to the extent they are today can gradually become socially cohesive, financially vibrant and environmentally sustainable and in doing so save billions of dollars in future infrastructure expenditure."

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Liane Hartley  Director, Mend + Founder, Urbanistas

Liane has worked as a consultant and writer on the broad area of urban sustainability for over twenty years and is a powerful advocate for women’s leadership in cities. She is a recognised thought leader in creating socially sustainable and inclusive cities and writes about the emergence of the “Social City”.

She founded Mend in 2010 as a pioneering social sustainability consultancy, following ten years working in the public and private sectors. She founded Urbanistas in 2012 as a women’s leadership network amplifying the voices of women to make cities better for everyone. Liane is a member of the Mayor of London’s Infrastructure Advisory Panel, High Streets Task Force Expert, and a Design Council Built Environment Expert.

Pierfrancesco Maran  Deputy Mayor Milan

Born in 1980 in Milan, Maran has a degree in Political Science and has worked as a consultant. He was Councillor in the 3rd administrative area of Milan and City  Councillor of Milan. From 2011 to 2016 he has been Deputy Mayor for Mobility, Environment, Subways, Public water and Energy.

Among the policies he introduced, Area C and the development of car sharing have been the most relevant. In 2016 he has been reelected and he is currentily the Deputy Mayor for Urban Planning, Green Areas and Agriculture, where he's working on the regeneration of seven abandoned railway stations in Milan, which is one of the most important urban projects in Europe, in addition to the development of green and rural areas in the city. 

Caroline Russell  Assembly Member London, Leader of City Hall Greens

Caroline Russell, Green Party Member of the London Assembly since May 2016, chairs the Assembly’s Environment Committee and is a member of both the Transport and Economy Committees.

Caroline came in to politics through campaigning for people friendly streets, after a career as an artist and lecturer, retraining as a civil engineer and a period of parenthood combined with community activism. She was first elected in 2014 as the only opposition councillor in Islington and was re-elected again as the only opposition councillor in May 2018.

Jason Taylor  Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, Advisor Urban Policy

Jason Taylor is an Urban Designer and Planner with a wide range of experiences working within the private and public sectors, within Australia and more recently Ireland. Jason has worked on a number of high profile projects in Ireland including newly planned communities within the Poolbeg West, Adamstown and Clonburris Strategic Development Zones.

Jason was the principle author of the Design Manual for Urban Roads and Streets which is Government of Ireland policy for street design within all urban areas. Jason currently works as an Advisor for the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government in the field of Urban Policy.

Lord Matthew Taylor  Mayfield Market Town

Throughout his 23 years as a Liberal Democrat MP, Lord Taylor took a strong interest in policy development, communications and political strategy. This included his role as Special Advisor on Sustainable Rural Communities (Land Use & Planning), which culminated in the publication of the Taylor Review, Living Working Countryside (June 2008).

Made a Life Peer in 2010, Lord Taylor was in 2012 asked by the government to lead an independent review of the whole of the government’s planning practice guidance. His recommendations, published at the end of 2012 were accepted, leading to the creation of a completely new, web based guidance suite replacing all of the older material, bringing it up to date and in line with the National Planning Policy Framework.