Ms Cathryn Chatburn
Research project:
The Barriers to building better cities: How cost-based decision-making influences and impacts what is designed and built.
Project description:
The scale and pace of contemporary urban development are significant issues in terms of 'climate change' contribution, and the process of delivering urban development is increasingly complex and challenging within the context of a contemporary 'short-term' investment mindset and risk-averse, cost-focused market.
Cathryn's research explores the influence and impact of cost-based decision-making on the design process within the urban development 'system'. The adoption of a systems perspective considers the influences and impacts on both the product and process of design and the roles of stakeholders, enabling the interconnectedness of different parts and functions within the complex urban development process to be understood, and supporting the identification of 'Leverage Points' where a small change can potentially lead to substantial change in behaviour or outcome in the system.
The study adopts a qualitative methodology to draw on professionals' perspectives in designing and delivering medium-density residential development in South East Queensland (SEQ), an area undergoing sizable population growth and urban development pressure, to understand the processes and decision-making required to catalyse change.
The research findings reinforce the relevance and imperative of sustainability as a driving priority for the construction industry, proposing an enabling project management framework to facilitate enhanced delivery of sustainable urban outcomes as standard practice.
Researcher biography:
Cathryn is a PhD candidate (part-time) at the University of Queensland, where she is also an Industry Fellow and Casual Academic. Her research and professional work bridge the gap between academic inquiry and practical urban design solutions, with a particular focus on exploring the role of the design process in addressing sustainable urban challenges.
As the founding Director of Urban Enquiry and a leading Australian urban designer, Cathryn has over 30 years of experience in design management, policy development, and award-winning master planning. Her work has earned numerous industry accolades.
She holds a First-class honours degree in Landscape Architecture and Postgraduate Diplomas (with distinction) in Landscape Architecture and Urban Environmental Design from Leeds Metropolitan University. With a strong foundation in both policy and practice, she has contributed to planning, architecture, and urban design education in the UK, Australia, Italy, and Turkey.
A passionate advocate for good urban design, Cathryn is committed to shaping environments that balance the often-competing needs of society, the environment, and the economy. She strongly advocates for the significant role of design as a collaborative, inter-disciplinary and participatory process - essential to solving complex urban problems.
Researcher interests:
Sustainability, Urban Design, Design, Design Thinking, Systems Thinking, Stakeholder Theory
Principal Supervisor:
Dr Sara Alidoust
Contact Email:
c.chatburn@uq.edu.au
cathryn@urbanenquiry.com