The first four international keynote speakers have been announced for this year’s Living Cities Forum, Australia’s flagship event for urban designers, thinkers and placemakers presented by the Naomi Milgrom Foundation.

The global program features cross-disciplinary speakers who share inspiring, actionable ideas to improve the cities of today and tomorrow. This year’s program has been extended to Sydney.

Living Cities Forum will be held in Melbourne on Wednesday, 18 September 2024 at The Edge, Federation Square, and in Sydney on Friday, 20 September 2024 at the State Library of NSW.

Anchored by the theme of Common Interests, the day-long series of international keynotes and conversations in Melbourne and Sydney will spotlight progressive ideas and solutions from across the globe, all trained on the future of the public realm.

Public space can act as a great leveller in contemporary cities. While buildings often divide us, open civic space is where diverse and competing interests meet. With Melbourne and Sydney on track to become megacities by 2050, reimagining these spaces amid population growth, increased densities and a warming planet has never been more vital.

Speakers

Clockwise from top left: Catherine d’Ignazio (US), Martí Franch (Spain), Jill Desimini (US), Kabage Karanja (Kenya)

The first international keynote speakers include:

Martí Franch (Spain) is a landscape architect pioneering low-cost, large-scale green infrastructures in Catalonia, transforming neglected urban areas into vibrant, multifunctional public spaces.

Catherine d’Ignazio (US) is a coder, scholar, and artist/designer combining feminism and technology to create more inclusive open spaces, both online and offline.

Jill Desimini (US) is an associate professor and landscape architect exploring the design possibilities of vacant lots and residual spaces as sites of public amenity and climate justice.

Kabage Karanja (KY) is a researcher, architect, and co-founder of Nairobi-based Cave Bureau developing design strategies for resisting and healing, restoring the rights and practices of indigenous communities and all living things.

Program

Melbourne: Wednesday 18 September 2024, 8:30 am – 5:30 pm

Location: The Edge, Fed Square, Melbourne

Sydney: Friday 20 September 2024, 8:30 am – 5:30 pm

Location: State Library of NSW, Sydney.

Information: www.livingcitiesforum.org

Branko Miletic

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