City of Sydney, Australia

Virginie Lavallée-Picard, Associate Member, Sustainability Solutions Group
Published March 7, 2011

Case Summary

The City of Sydney is the state capital of New South Wales (NSW) in Australia. In 2000, this port city of 4.5 million hosted the Olympic Games. This case study explores the process that led to the creation, in 2008, of the city’s sustainability strategy and plan - Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision, its strategic directions, its climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies, and aspects of its action framework.

There are ten major strategic directions that the City of Sydney, Australia is aiming to achieve by 2030, as outlined in its sustainability plan, 2030 Sustainable Sydney. The key areas include: i) creating a globally competitive and innovative city; ii) becoming a leading environmental performer; iii) integrated transport for a connected city; iv) a city for pedestrians and cyclists; v) a lively, engaging city centre; vi) vibrant local communities and economies; vii) a cultural and creative city; viii) housing for a diverse population; ix) sustainable development/renewal and design, and x) implementation through effective partnerships. Each key area was identified in response to a public engagement process focused around discussing the direction the City of Sydney should take to become a more sustainable city. Sydney is looking at expanding their cycling paths and networks. Their goal is to ensure that every citizen lives within a 3-minute walk to a continuous green connection for bicycles and walking. The City is also working to increase creative expression throughout the city by commissioning vibrant and engaging art and urban design and celebrating indigenous culture and telling the story of Indigenous life.

The city has claimed to be carbon neutral since 2008, through energy efficiency measures, purchase of green power, and carbon offsets.

Sustainable Development Characteristics

Sydney, its people and businesses, as with other major urban capitals around the world, are facing a host of challenges generated by external forces—from economic globalization to climate change, from petrol price fluctuations to competition for enterprises and creative talent. Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision provides step change progressions towards a more sustainable future, while protecting and preserving those aspects of the city that are valued and which underpin its medium to long-term potential. Global climate change represents a socio-political challenge, which Sydney, and other large urban centres, are facing in their future planning.

Sydney is simultaneously pursuing these challenges by aligning the city's work along these themes—Green, Global, and Connected. These themes have proven effective in engaging the City in developing its sustainability strategy and plan and in taking ownership of Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision.

Critical Success Factors

The support of the Lord Mayor, the City Council, and the Sydney CEO is considered one of the critical success factors leading to the creation of the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision. Local leadership support was crucial not only to the development of the vision, but as well to the community engagement process and to the formal adoption of the vision, but, more importantly to its implementation. Asked to share a few lessons learned, one of the interviewees emphasized that local leadership “needs to own and drive the project as much as those who are developing its content…to manage expectations and remember that ideas travel much faster than projects can be delivered” (Interviewee A).

Another interviewee identified that support at the senior levels of both the political and the city arenas, and knowledge and expertise of city officials has been fundamental with regards to implementing successful projects.

Building partnerships and fostering opportunities for collaboration is an integral feature of the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision. A key message emanating from this case study is to not simply listen to the community but to engage, challenge, debate, and honestly represent the community - especially on the difficult issues. By openly and consistently publishing all information relevant to the development of the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision, the community was given the opportunity to own and support it.

Interviewee A also highlighted the importance of supporting city officials while keeping in mind that visioning is a change management process and that all change is difficult, thus the importance of coalitions inside and outside of organizations. Interviewee A also highlighted the need to consider what effects a visioning process has on the existing structure and alignment of an organization as well as the need to apply considerable resources to internal engagement. “Support the staff developing the vision project and consider that everyone in your organization will need to see how their day-to-day activities contribute to the overall vision (Interviewee A).”

Community Contact Information

Alan Cadogan
Strategy Director, City of Sydney
acadogan@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au
+61 408 415 927

What Worked?

A critical aspect of the initial phase of Sustainable Sydney 2030 was a communicated and demonstrated desire for open and honest engagement on behalf of the authorities involved in the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision, with broad representation from the people. The city’s focus on engaging and sustaining a wide range of partnerships and community leaders was another key factor in achieving wide-scale buy-in and implementation of the city’s vision. A full spectrum of interested individuals and groups were consulted, making it the most extensive engagement process in Sydney's history. During 18 months of consultation, 12 000 people were directly consulted, the 2030 website received more than 15 000 visitors, and more than 2 000 comments were received through the city’s ‘Future Phone’ line. The city engaged the citizens, businesses, and community leaders through forums and events. The city has also been successful in addressing government silos by involving a variety of government sectors such as environment, health and infrastructure into their overall sustainability plan, allowing government staff and officials to engage with each other, and work together to prioritize goals and issues around sustainability.

What Didn’t Work?

Sydney has been particularly successful at building a network of support with the academic, business, residential, and other communities. This seems to have been a very strong way to move forward - not just a consensus of vision, rather a mutually reinforcing collaboration of interests. This may be stronger than a legislative-led approach but it is resource intensive. Interviewee A has pointed out “with a federal system of government, some of the hardest partnerships for local government in Australia to build, however, are with the national government which has not traditionally had a role in local issues or cities (despite for example, their contribution to the national economy). Perhaps an issue to consider is not legislating local collaborations of interest, but in how to develop national policies that have real depth and traction in cities (Interviewee A).”

Financial Costs and Funding Sources

The City of Sydney is currently beginning to address financial barriers related to its energy generation projects and various infrastructure investments. A long-term financial plan is currently being developed in order to further investigate the financing of these 2030 projects (Sydney has already invested $18 million to cut CO2 emissions by 20% by 2012 from 2006 levels). Other aspects of the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision that have required large investment include the resources dedicated to community engagement (i.e. hiring consultants), developing various tools, fiscal resources, providing local government staff resources (time and expertise), and researching best practices.

The city also plans to increase its efforts in conducting community cost-benefit analysis to inform decision-making processes. So far, these analyses have been conducted on an as needed basis for particular projects. For example, in 2010 the city commissioned independent research to quantify the economic benefits of the proposed Inner Sydney Regional Bike Network.1

Research Analysis

This case study is based on in-depth interviews2 with city officials and an in-depth literature review of government and city documents, in particular Sydney’s extensive online material available describing its experience in developing its 2030 vision. Interviews were conducted with key officials involved in the city’s approach to developing its sustainability strategy and plan, officials from the City’s Energy and Climate Change, Development, Cycling and Strategy Departments.

There has been a great amount of international interest in Sydney’s approach to developing a vision to be sustainable by the year 2030. In response, the city provides a wealth of resources (Council reports, tender documents, specifications, as well as official plans and strategies) on the 2030 Sustainable Sydney website.. Online resources are easily accessible and have the potential of stimulating and helping other municipalities to replicate the Sydney experience. Finally, the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision project is a very recent initiative (2008). As such, new information is constantly being released and new success factors and responses to various challenges will continue to emerge as the City moves further into implementation.

Detailed Case Background Description

Key precursors

A key precursor to the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision was the process of developing Local Action Plans, short-term strategic plans between the city and local communities to improve and protect both the character and the amenities of the city’s communities. To date, approximately 85 per cent of the 415 community projects outlined in the Local Action Plans have been completed or are ongoing as part of the Council's operations. Local Action Plans were an important element in setting the scene for community involvement; they contributed to building citizen confidence in the capacity of the public sector to deliver on and implement requested community projects.

Another key prerequisite to the success of the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision was the city's ongoing work with Professor Jan Gehl, a a renown architect, and his team. In 2007, Gehl Architects were asked to lead a public spaces and public life survey for Sydney. The objective was to inform citizens of the development of a public domain plan, which became an essential component in the development of the city’s vision and sustainability strategic plan. One of the goals of this urban design study and initiative was to help the city strike a balance between people, cars, and the built form.

Social and political pre-conditions necessary for the initial stages of the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision have included a supportive and action-oriented local government. Other arguably relevant factors include a public sentiment that Sydney had not fully capitalized on the 2000 Olympics, and that the city lacked a vision for the future (Interviewee A). The state government’s perceived failure to address climate change in federal policy may have been another precursor (interviewee A).

Strategic directions, targets, project ideas and big moves

The Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision is composed of ten Strategic Directions, ten targets, ten project ideas and five big moves.

The Strategic Directions are the result of the community consultation process. Strategic Directions reflect the aspirations and qualities that the City must build on while serving as a framework for action to achieve the vision. Each Strategic Direction is further articulated through objectives and project ideas.

The Ten Strategic Directions are:

  1. a globally competitive and innovative city;
  2. a leading environmental performance;
  3. integrated transport for a connected city;
  4. a city for pedestrians and cyclists;
  5. a lively, engaging city centre;
  6. vibrant local communities and economies;
  7. a cultural and creative city;
  8. housing for a diverse population;
  9. sustainable development, renewal and design, and
  10. implementation through effective partnerships.

Specific targets will contribute to making Sydney more sustainable by 2030. These ten targets are the following.

  1. by 2030, the City will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 per cent compared to 1990 levels, and by 70 per cent compared to 1990 levels by 2050;
  2. by 2030, the City will have capacity to meet up to 100 per cent of electricity demand by local electricity generation and 10 per cent of water supply by local water capture;
  3. by 2030, there will be at least 138,000 dwellings, 48,000 additional dwellings in the City for increased diversity of household types, including a greater share of families;
  4. by 2030, 7.5 per cent of all City housing will be social housing, and 7.5 per cent will be affordable housing, delivered by not-for-profit or other providers;
  5. by 2030, the City will contain at least 465,000 jobs including 97,000 additional jobs with an increased share in finance, advanced business services, education, creative industries and tourism sectors;
  6. by 2030, the use of public transport for travel to work by City Centre workers will increase to 80 per cent and the use of non-private vehicles by City residents for work trips will increase to 80 per cent;
  7. by 2030, at least 10 per cent of City trips will be made;
  8. by bicycle and 50 per cent by pedestrian movement;
  9. by 2030, every resident will be within a 10 minute (800m) walk to fresh food markets, childcare, health services and leisure, social, learning and cultural infrastructure. By 2030, every resident in the City of Sydney will be within a three minute walk (250m) of continuous green links that connect to the Harbour Foreshore, Harbour Parklands, Moore or Centennial or Sydney Parks, and
  10. by 2030, the level of community cohesion and social interaction will have increased based on at least 45 per cent of people believing most people can be trusted.

Project ideas are meant to help deliver a Green, Global and Connected Sydney. The Ten Project Ideas are described below.

  1. a revitalized Western Edge: The 2030 Vision places a new emphasis on the Western Edge as a place of great future opportunity;
  2. three city squares as outdoor meeting places: A new civic meeting place in the heart of the City is created;
  3. protecting the centre: Rethinking the use of city streets to give priority to people and improve the public life of Sydney by making it easier for cyclists and pedestrians to move around the City;
  4. the celebration and sharing of Indigenous culture by ingraining knowledge, culture, history and stories to the public domain of the city;
  5. by supporting the City's identity with a Sydney harbourside cultural walking trail, Sydney will continue to offer internationally recognized, unique cultural experiences;
  6. a liveable green network that is a comprehensive network of safe, attractive and leafy paths across the City;
  7. a new town centre designed for people connects with local community life;
  8. a partnership project to deliver access to affordable housing for key City workers. This partnership involves all levels of government, not-for-profit organizations and the private sector;
  9. improved access to the neighbourhoods surrounding King Street, Newtown supports community life, the arts, retail and creative enterprise and the live music scene, and
  10. re-inventing the supply of energy and water while securing supply for the City with state-of-the-art gas turbine generation. By-products of this generation could provide greenhouse-free hot water, heating and cooling.

Sydney identified Five Big Moves to transform the city - these five moves are based on Sydney's understanding that economies of global cities, which contain diverse precincts and neighborhoods connected by high quality and dense public transport, are underpinned by creativity and innovation that takes place when skilled people mix in social, business and cultural activities. These five moves are:

  1. a revitalized City Centre at the heart of global Sydney;
  2. a liveable green network for walking and cycling;
  3. an integrated Inner Sydney transport network;
  4. activity Hubs as a focus for the City’s village communities and transport, and
  5. transformative development and sustainable renewal.

People and timing

From the start, Sydney decided that bringing the right people together at the right time and in the right place was essential to the success of the visioning exercise. The city's Strategy Director and the Design Director led the project from the beginning to its implementation over a three-year period. Overall, the strong support of the Lord Mayor, City Councillors and the Chief Executive Officer of the city factored into the success of the visioning exercise. Other stakeholders played a crucial role by championing and advocating for the vision including community leaders such as museum and theatre directors, university professors, business and non-governmental organization representatives, etc. As well, a highly skilled internal team of urban designers, economists, statisticians, architects, and planners and an external consultant consortium led by SGS Economics and Planning were involved in the overall visioning exercise.

Strategic partnerships

There exist several formal and informal strategic partnerships and Memoranda of Understanding between the City of Sydney, the State Government, the community, and the three local universities. These partnerships cover a large range of sectors and domains. A few partnership examples are:

  • Tourism: The city endorsed the Greater Sydney partnership, a non-profit organization established to promote Sydney as a global city. The city is also supporting the Tourism New South Wales Sydnicity campaign. The city is also in the early stages of developing a comprehensive tourism action plan and a sustainability program for the tourism sector.
  • Governance: The City of Sydney's Advisory Panel, set up in 2007, and composed of architects and designers, provides advice on several development application and city projects. Sydney has also established a division to direct strategic policy relating to 2030 implementation and ensure actions concerning public domain design, city plan controls, urban renewal, sustainability, transport are integrated.
  • Cycling: The City of Sydney has partnered with 14 other councils to lobby the Federal Government for funding to develop a Regional Cycle Network, which will link more than 160 suburbs.3

Community engagement

Citizen engagement, first undertaken in 2007 with the Local Action Plan process, continued with the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision project throughout 2008. A full spectrum of interested individuals and groups were consulted, making it the most extensive engagement process in Sydney's history. More than 30 community forums were conducted during which approximately 12,000 people provided input.

Over a six-week period, the city’s sustainable plan was showcased during a public exhibition, which allowed visitor interaction and engagement and targeted feedback to the visual presentation. It’s estimated that more than 50 per cent of the 157,000 visitors to the public exhibition visited the presentation. Over 547 people participated in detailed briefings on the vision during the public exhibition.

Information on the 2030 vision was also placed in 19 Council venues across the Local Government Area while the Lord Mayor, the city's Chief Executive Officer and members of the city’s strategy team delivered a series of briefings to Local, State and Federal Government leaders, and business executives. The Sustainable Sydney 2030 website, highly publicized as one of the tools for citizens to stay informed and provide feedback during the vision exhibition, continues to be a key element of the engagement strategy.4

Following the consultation process, the 2030 vision was launched in April 2008 during a City Talks. Presented by the city, City Talks are forums designed to stimulate discussion on the urban environment. City Talks are available online in podcast and video format.5 The City Talks current focus is to explore how the 2030 vision can be delivered as well as how to engage international experts and to enquire into global best practices. City Talks are ongoing engagement activities, which will be maintained as a foundation to deliver the 2030 vision over the next 20 years and beyond.

The innovative community engagement methods used by Sydney were developed by “the internal project team in collaboration with the city’s engagement and communications division, and with input from the consultant consortium. The overall engagement program is considered to have been successful because it generated a broad and deep level of engagement,” advises Interviewee A.

Because each individual project stemming from the 2030 vision has its own engagement processes, the approach to feeding findings from the community engagement process into policy and program refinement varies depending on the project. A five-year review will be undertaken in 2013 of Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision, which will formally evaluate this process.

Sydney is also developing a long-term engagement strategy within a new regulated framework for community consultation by local government.

Overcoming government silos

Sydney continues to work to overcome government silos and to integrate sustainable development planning and decision-making into administration practices and the overall culture. Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision calls for integration, which is occurring at varying degrees. The city's corporate plan is currently being reworked to better integrate the Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision. The recently created Chief Operating Officer position is tasked with reviewing the city’s systems and processes to help address government silos.

Action on climate change

The Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision sets the targets and underpins the justification for action against climate change. Community consultation indicated that 97 per cent of respondents wanted urgent action on climate change, which is why this is the primary theme of Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision. The city aims to achieve its C02 reduction target of 20% from 2006 levels by 2012 through energy efficiency measures. The City is committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 70 per cent over the next 20 years (based on 2006 levels). Sydney plans to meet 100 per cent of its energy needs from local generating systems. Projects to date include building retrofits, which have cut emissions by 17% in City buildings. Sydney has a pilot program for LED street lights, which if successful could improve efficiency of city lighting by 50%. The city is focusing on decentralized energy options as well as renewable energy with a goal to have 25-30% of the city’s energy needs supplied from renewables such as wind, solar, marine and geothermal by the year 2020.

The Green Infrastructure Plan

Eighty per cent of Sydney's greenhouse gas emissions come from coal fired power generation. To achieve a 70 per cent reduction in GHG emissions requires replacing the remote centralized coal fired power generation with localized energy sources. In December 2008, a blueprint of how to de-carbonize the city and make it sustainable by 2030 was drafted. This document is called the Green Infrastructure Plan. It comprises the following five Master Plans:

  • “trigeneration (generates low carbon electricity through a gas-fired engine or turbine and uses the zero carbon waste heat from electricity generation for heating and cooling);
  • renewable energy (renewable electricity and renewable gases derived from all forms of waste both inside and outside the city, including agriculture and farming);
  • alternative waste treatment (increased recyclables and conversion of non recyclable waste into renewable gases using advanced gasification technologies which can be used for both trigeneration and transport - this would eventually replace natural gas by 2030);
  • decentralized water (total water cycle management and a city-wide non potable/recycled water network recovering all water resources), and
  • automated waste collection (connected to the alternative waste treatment in the city, and reduce heavy waste collection vehicles and emissions by 90 per cent).

The city recently approved the Trigeneration Master Plan and it is currently being presented to the community through a public exhibition. The trigeneration infrastructure is “by far the largest (about 70 per cent) and most economic of the green infrastructures which will allow the other infrastructures to take advantage of (60 per cent of the cost of implementing infrastructure is trenching so the remaining infrastructures will save this cost),” advised Interviewee B. It also provides the opportunity to implement a city wide recycled water network and an automated waste collection system to replace inefficient and polluting garbage trucks. The objective is to make the city locally self-sustainable as well as reducing emissions.

In addition to the Green Infrastructure Plan, the city is also implementing a series of 'show by doing' demonstration projects to reduce emissions from its own buildings and operations by a 70 per cent GHG reduction, by 2030.

From a national and international perspective, the City is placing all of its tender documents, specifications, Council reports, etc, into the public domain via a dedicated website ‘Powering Sydney – Making It Happen’, partly to freely share its knowledge with others and partly to manage the numerous requests for information from both the public and private sectors from around Australia and the world.6

Other legislative changes

A legislative change to support the city's sustainability planning included a liquor license reform in 2008/2009 as part of a city program to revive laneways and support small bars. This is one element of a broader initiative to revitalize the downtown area and create three linked city squares as well as a public transport zone with cycling and pedestrian infrastructure along one of the major arteries of the city. A grant program was designed to encourage new businesses to re-activate buildings that had been vacant for more than two years. It is estimated that this program generated a turnover of approximately $40 million and created 150 jobs.

Reporting frameworks

Sydney uses a large number of reporting and monitoring tools on a regular basis. Relevant to Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision is the current development of two key organization-wide reporting frameworks.

The first, the Community Indicator Framework, aims to measure the wellbeing of the community over time and the effectiveness of the city's interventions. This project is being developed with the assistance of the Institute for Sustainable Futures at the University of Technology, the McCaughey Centre at the University of Melbourne. The indicator framework is based largely on the Community Indicators Victoria (CIV) model.7 The CIV adopts indicators across 5 areas - social, environmental, economic, cultural and governance engagement. At this point, indicators for social, cultural and governance engagement have been developed, that are consistent with the objectives of Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision.8 The remaining indicators are to be developed by March 31st 2011.

The second framework is the Integrated Planning and Reporting model. According to recent changes in planning and reporting requirements introduced by the State Government, Councils in New South Wales have to prepare a series documents including a 10 year Community Strategic Plan, a 4 year Service Delivery Plan and a 1 year Operational Plan.9 These plans consolidate a range of other reporting requirements used in the past including, amongst others, corporate plans, social plans and state of the environment reports. The objective of this new planning model is to create reporting consistency across the state, improve transparency and accountability, increase the focus on sustainability and provide the opportunity for elected Councillors to be more involved in the planning process as the timeframes match election cycles.

Sydney Bike City

In April 2007, the Cycle Strategy and Action Plan 2007-2017 was unanimously adopted by the City Council. This initiative predated Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision but fed very well into the subsequent 2030 vision. This strategy is Council's commitment to making cycling an equal first choice transport mode, by building a 200 kilometre bike network and by providing a program of social initiatives to address the barriers that prevent people from cycling. The target is for 10 per cent of trips taking place in the city to be undertaken by bicycles by 2016.

The development of the strategy followed a comprehensive analysis of cycling challenges and gathered input from Sydney’s cycling community. The strategy incorporated submissions made during the public exhibition period as well as findings from targeted social research.10

Progress on the implementation of the Cycle Strategy and Action Plan 2007-2017 is reported on (at both design and tender stages for major projects) to Councillors, stakeholders and state agency representatives at the Cycling Advisory Committee. Bicycle infrastructure projects implemented to date include approximately ten kilometres of separated bike paths, the installation of on street bicycle parking rings and racks, provision of free cycling confidence courses and bicycle maintenance courses, promotion of cycling events, provision of bicycle valet parking at other city events and the distribution of 30,000 cycling maps.

Adaptability to Case Studies in Canada

The Sydney case study highlights the following elements as essential to effective implementation of sustainability planning at the municipal level in Canada.

  • Overcoming the inertia sometimes tied to government processes is achieved with high-level political support, high level management support and someone inside the organization with the knowledge to deliver specific programs.
  • Involving individuals with sustainability expertise through various partnerships and forums that aim to share innovative ideas and stimulate discussion on the urban environment helps to contribute relevant knowledge and important skills to the implementation of the vision.
  • Engaging the community in the visioning process provides the opportunity for citizens to own and support the vision from the very beginning.
  • Supporting city staff and ensuring that everyone sees how their day-to-day activities contribute to the overall vision is key.
  • Being consistent and ‘demonstrating by doing’ is both an engagement strategy and a requirement for success.

Strategic Questions

  1. What are the key findings extracted from Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision that are most relevant to Canadian municipalities and why?
  2. Could a visioning and community engagement process of a scope similar to that of Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision be implemented in Canadian municipalities? If so, in what ways?
  3. How critical were the right people coming together at the same time in the right place to the success of City of Sydney’s Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision?

Resources and References

Cadogan, Alan. Strategy Director, City of Sydney. Email correspondence. December 2010.

Campbell, Fiona. Manager Cycling Strategy, City of Sydney. Email correspondence. December 2010.

City of Sydney. The Sustainable Sydney 2030 Vision Snapshot. Available at http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/theplan/Downloads.asp . Retrieved December 2010

City of Sydney. Sustainable Sydney 2030 Support Document. Available at http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/theplan/Downloads.asp . Retrieved December 2010

City of Sydney. Sustainable Sydney 2030, Vision . Sydney, 2008 (Online). Available: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/theplan/Downloads.asp . Retrieved December 2010.

City of Sydney. Cycle Strategy and Action Plan 2007-2017. Available: www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/AboutSydney/documents/ParkingAndTransport/Cycling/CycleStrategyAndActionPlan2007-2017.pdf. Retrieved December 2010.

City of Sydney. Decentralized Energy Master Plan-Trigeneration. Available: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/makingithappen/documents/CityofSydney-DEMPTrigeneration-Report20101129-LowRes_000.pdf. Retrieved December 2010.

City of Sydney. Appendices: Overview of the consultation process. Available: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/documents/2030Vision/42_Consultationoverview.pdf. Retrieved December 2010.

City of Sydney. Progress Report Up and Running. Available: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/documents/3978_CE_FA4_2030_report%20card_A3%20Folded%20A4_web.pdf. Retrieved December 2010.

City of Sydney. Review of International Strategies Sustainable Sydney 2030 Available: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/documents/Sydney2030InternationalStrategies.pdf. Retrieved December 2010

Jones, Allan. Energy and Climate Change, City of Sydney. Email correspondence. December 2010.

Mcmahon, Tye. Strategy Specialist, City of Sydney. Email correspondence. December 2010. Prime Minister's Task Group on Energy Efficiency Issues Paper Submission. Available: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/makingithappen/AllanJones.asp. Retrieved December 2010.

1 Cycling related research projects are available at: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/AboutSydney/ParkingAndTransport/Cycling/EcononmicResearchCycling.asp

2 Interviewees preferred to provide written responses to questions, which were conducted by email.

3 More information on cycling infrastructure is available from the progress report “Up and Running” available at http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/documents/3978_CE_FA4_2030_report%20card_A3%20Folded%20A4_web.pdf

4 An overview of the consultation process is available at http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/2030/documents/2030Vision/42_Consultationoverview.pdf

5 Videos and podcasts of City Talks presentations are available online at http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/podcasts/default.asp

6 For more information on this initiative, see - 'Powering Sydney – Making It Happen', available at: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/podcasts/citytalks/default/default.asp

7 For more information on the CIV model, see http://www.communityindicators.net.au/

8 More information on Sydney's research and approach in regards to community indicators is available at: http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/Council/MeetingsAndCommittees/2010/Committees/081110/environment.asp (item number 4)

9 More information on this process is available at: http://www.dlg.nsw.gov.au/dlg/dlghome/dlg_generalindex.asp?sectionid=1&mi=6&ml=9&AreaIndex=IntPlanRept

10 Information on the cycling social research undertaken by Sydney is available at: www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/AboutSydney/ParkingAndTransport/Cycling/SocialResearchCycling.asp