Research and Development

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Geografia invests a considerable amount of time and resources in research and development. We publish regularly in our field; investigate and develop new products and techniques; and regularly attend professional training sessions to maintain and enhance our skill levels. For example, we have recently completed courses in the advanced use of statistical and non-linear modelling software; GIS; and the Victorian Government's Investment Logic Mapping process.

Investing in our skills and knowledge means we can provide the best solutions for our clients. Some of the new products and ideas we have generated are described below.

Settlement Systems Planning

One of the motivations for establishing Geografia was our realisation that policy and investment decisions can have unintended consequences. We have found that this is largely because we do not have sufficient awareness of the complexity of the interactions between social, economic and environmental systems. Most of our R&D work has focused on developing models that accurately and reliably mirror these systems. These models incorporate feedback effects, indirect linkages and delays and they emphasise risk and probabilities, not absolutes. When integrated, these models provide a comprehensive set of tools to assist in understanding and planning for towns, cities and local economies. The benefit to this is more certain policy outcomes and, therefore, more effective (and more measurable) strategies and initiatives.

Our models are used to:

• assess the social, demographic and economic impact of major projects on regional economies;
• project population growth in response to local and external influences;
• estimate demand for retail space and other essential amenity attributes;
• provide clients with the tools to identify and prioritise community infrastructure needs over time, taking into account important feedbacks and dynamic effects (such as the need to allocate land to schools and the impact of new infrastructure on population growth);
• calculate dwelling and population capacity in new or infill developments;
• estimate the impact on public assets of major project developments; and
• provide municipalities with an 'amenity and connectivity index' for their towns that can estimate the impact of different interventions on local quality of life or accessibility.

At the heart of this work are large and diverse databases which are used to calibrate models developed in dynamic systems modelling software. Through graphical user interfaces that are friendly to non-modellers, and with the use of GIS, we can map the interactions between population, economic variables, housing, social capital indexes, government budgets and land supply. If you would like to know more about this please call us on (03) 9329 9004 or email info@geografia.com.au

A Transparent Population Model

Geografia regularly prepares small area population projections as part of our project work. We believe that the methods and assumptions behind this should be transparent so that stakeholders can be assured projections are realistic and based on the best available evidence and modelling techniques. As part of our settlement systems planning work, we have developed a generic population module that graphically illustrates how the different components of population modelling work. This will help our clients better understand the manner in which population projections are prepared. It is part of our ongoing effort to share knowledge and skills with clients and to ensure we provide the best possible population change estimates.

A Policy Evaluation Tool

When it comes to meeting a specific policy objective, the best approach is not always clear. There may be several options for solving a problem and numerous criterion by which the option can be assessed. Additionally, it is important that the community is confident the process of decision-making is logical and accountable. We have constructed a tool to assist in this process. As a very user friendly, graphics-based interface, the user can be confident that the benefits of different options are fairly compared (that is, we are comparing apples with apples); and the community can be a part of the process. This software-based evaulation tool is an easy-to-use, infinitely expandable mechanism to make policy decisions more reliable.

The Geography of the Knowledge Economy

Geografia is always interested in helping make places more economically, socially and environmentally functional. We think that one of the best ways to do this is to enable people to live and work in closer proximity. In a recent examination of the commuting patterns of Knowledge Economy workers in metropolitan Melbourne, we found that there are distinctive spatial patterns to where different sectors of the Knowledge Economy workforce live and where their jobs are concentrated. Understanding what generates and sustains these patterns puts us on a better footing when it comes to developing policies to create more self-sufficient communities. We prepared a paper on this for a recent conference, which can be downloaded here. A newspaper article on the work highlighted the interest in this concept. An edited version of this paper will be published in a forthcoming book: Building Prosperous Cities: Policies, Plans and Metrics.