PIA Foresight

With foresight, planners can help communities navigate change and plan effectively for more sustainable and liveable futures.

PIA Foresight Report: Navigating the Future of Planning

In today's rapidly changing world, the pace of change is faster than ever. To stay ahead and avoid falling behind, planners need to anticipate future trends and understand their potential impacts on the profession. By doing so, they can guide communities through change and plan for more sustainable and liveable futures.

The Planning Institute of Australia (PIA), in partnership with Urbis, has developed the PIA Foresight Report. This report is designed to help planners recognise the drivers of change and better prepare for them. It highlights major trends that are influencing both the planning profession and the communities planners serve.

Key Objectives of the Report:

  • Understanding Drivers of Change: Identify and analyse the primary trends shaping the planning landscape.
  • Planning for the Future: Equip planners with insights to make informed assumptions about the impact of these trends.
  • Building Resilience: Foster knowledge that helps the profession remain adaptable and resilient in the face of uncertainty. 

PIA Foresight considers a number of drivers that are accelerating future trends:

Climate Change and Sustainability

Population Shifts

Technological Transformations

Political and Social Landscape

We focus on trends most relevant to planning, and look across three different timelines that represent the scale of urgency and uncertainty driving how we respond:

  • The Urgent Trends: Act Now
  • The Preparatory Trends: Build Resilience
  • The Monitoring Trends: Observe and Learn

Whilst we can never be certain of the exact trajectory of trends, we can make informed assumptions as to their likely impacts. We have aimed to empower the profession with knowledge of future trends and build resilience for our uncertain futures.

Read PIA Foresight

Produced in partnership with Urbis, PIA is pleased to share this major thought-leadership report with the profession. 

Download now

Illustrations of cartoon urban environment, technology and icons used int eh PIA Foresight report.

Key contributors

This report has been prepared with inputs from the planning profession, through surveys, workshops and interviews and we extend our thanks to all those who took the time and effort to contribute.

A special thanks also to the following individuals who put in considerable time in the preparation of the report:

  • James White MPIA, Research & Strategic Knowledge Manager, Urbis
  • Ashley Lane MPIA, Group Director Planning, Urbis
  • Nicole Bennetts RPIA, State Manager QLD/NT, Planning Institute Australia
  • Matt Collins MPIA, Chief Executive Officer, Planning Institute Australia
  • Karen Goldsmith, Chief Operating Officer, Planning Institute Australia
Top down view of the PIA Foresight Report 2024, published by the Planning Institute of Australia in collaboration with Urbis. The cover features illustrations of urban elements like buildings, trees, and infrastructure.