Telling it like it is - one place at a time
Our cities are always evolving. They expand and change internally, the old makes way for the new, populations grow and change. This blog looks at an area in Brunswick, an inner suburb of Melbourne, to determine how land use has changed over the last 100 years. This has been done using the Sands and McDougall directories, as well as personal observation.
The release of regional population estimates for 2022 has been highly anticipated. This is because it's the first post-2021 Census release of population data. It covers a 12 month period when the Australian border was reopened to overseas migration after COVID related lockdowns. The state of Victoria was hit hard by COVID, with significant shifts in migration patterns marking an end to a decade or more of strong growth. What are the key demographic trends in 2021-22? Read on to find out.
On a recent trip to Canberra I stayed in the suburb of Belconnen. I hadn't been there for many years and I was struck by the number of high rise apartment buildings around the town centre. High rise development is a relatively new phenomenon in Canberra but it is guided by the 2018 ACT Planning Strategy. The Census offers some insights into how high rise development has increased over the years and where these dwellings are located. Read on to find out more.
When the 2021 Census data was released in July, the number and proportion of the population claiming no religion attracted significant interest. Almost 10 million Australians, or 38.7% of the population, now claim they have no religion. This is an increase of 41% on the 2016 figure. The Census is the only reliable source of data on religion in Australia, and is typically used for planning schools and religious venues. What else does the data tell us about people with no religion?
In late June the ABS released the first batch of 2021 Census data. The Census provides critical information on the socio-economic characteristics of the population, which underpins the evidence base for service planning. This is the first in a series of a number of blogs highlighting important and interesting changes to the Australian demographic landscape. This blog looks at the Nepalese population in Australia.
Queensland is currently the fastest growing state in Australia. In 2020-21, the population increased by 0.9%, well above the national average of 0.2%. The volume of growth was just shy of 46,000 people. Queensland's population growth is driven by interstate migration. In recent years, the volume has increased, and has accelerated since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. But it's not all sunshine and roses. This blog looks at population change by SA2 in South East Queensland (SEQ). It shows that while there are pockets of strong growth, at the same time, some areas recorded a decline in population.
The release of the 2021 regional population estimates has been highly anticipated. This is because it shows a full twelve months of COVID-19 influenced population trends, particularly the closure of the international border, at a local level. Previous data released by the ABS, such as changes in internal migration patterns have provided some clues as to what the data will show. Read on to find out more.
Each year the ABS releases data on the number of birth and death registrations across Australia. The data is important as it provides indicators of population change at the local level. Fertility trends differ widely across metropolitan and rural areas. What were the key trends in 2020?
Much has been written in the last 18 months about the increasing population in regional Australia. The driver of this has been attributed to COVID-19 influenced migration (so called "flee changers"). This is despite the fact that the number of people moving out of Sydney and Melbourne has been increasing for some years, ie it predates the pandemic. This blog looks at residential building approvals data, concentrating on NSW, and its relationship to population change in regional areas.
It goes without saying that the impacts of COVID on population change have been profound. Not only has Australia recorded a net loss of overseas migrants but there have been changes in the age structure as a result. In 2019-20, the population of young adults in Australia declined. This blog looks at the scale of this trend and where the impact has been felt more strongly.
Despite recent growth driven by migration, Tasmania remains the oldest state in Australia. It has the highest median age, reaching 42.3 years in 2020. One in five people are aged 65 years and over. The age structure of a region, and how it's changing, is an important consideration in service planning. This blog uses recently released population data by the ABS to look at variations in the age structure across Tasmania.
The current outbreak of COVID-19 cases in Sydney has some close parallels to the second wave that hit Melbourne last year. Not only is the Sydney outbreak proving difficult to control, but it appears that public health messages are not reaching multicultural communities (CALD). This is particularly true where English proficiency is poor. This blog is essentially a Sydney version of one that I wrote last year about Melbourne. It looks at the main languages spoken in Sydney, highlighting those with poor English proficiency, and their spatial distribution in the metropolitan area.
The latest release of regional population data by the ABS showed that the City of Perth recorded the strongest growth of all LGAs in Australia (7.1%). This was an intriguing outcome, and is indicative of an upward shift in population growth in Western Australia (WA) over the last two years. But has this been uniform across the state? What trends can be seen at a local level? Read on to find out.
In late March the ABS released the 2020 regional population estimates (ERP). This data shows some signs of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on population trends at a more local level. In this blog I look at Victoria, a state that has recorded substantial growth in recent years. Was this trend sustained in 2019-2020? And what has happened at a more local level? Read on to find out.
Australia is in the fortunate position of having one of the highest life expectancies in the world. A child born in 2019 can expect to live to 82.9 years. Life expectancy is a function of many factors including mortality rates and the quality of the health care system. Although most people are familiar with the concept of life expectancy, many are not aware that there are differences across the country. This blog looks at life expectancy trends in Australia from a spatial and temporal perspective.
One of the most profound impacts of the COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns has been the loss of jobs across the economy. This has manifested itself in higher unemployment numbers and rates. Data released by the ABS through the monthly labour force survey is a leading economic indicator, but it doesn't provide the fine-grained spatial aspects to look at differences across regions. This blog uses JobSeeker and Youth Allowance data from the Department of Social Services (DSS) to look at spatial patterns of unemployment.
