Transforming Cities through Automation and Virtual Mobility

Adapting to change in how we work, design, and build

The global pandemic forced many of us to find new ways to live and work. The simple requirement to stay six feet from anyone outside our household transformed urban spaces, industrial spaces, retail spaces, and places of work. In the process, we learned just how quickly people and organizations can adapt. In a matter of days, in-person operations became fully remote. Data had to be made available in new ways and on massive scales while still maintaining security. And the planners and designers who craft our urban areas had to adapt as well. Movement strategies for pedestrian safety, emergency evacuation, and maximizing retail dwell time were refocused on social distancing, minimizing loitering, and simplifying cleaning. Paul Murphy and Melissa Ross of GHD share their insights on what the response to the pandemic has taught us about ourselves as individuals and as a society, and the ways that it will permanently reshape our cities and how we plan them.

About the speakers

Paul Murphy is a technology and technical applications leader for GHD, responsible for the strategic development of technical capabilities that support delivery of services to clients, while also helping people adapt to those changes in technology and processes. He’s been with GHD for nearly 20 years and also consults about security.

Melissa Ross leads GHD’s Australian Urban Planning and Land Development technical services. For more than 14 years, she has pursued an interest in the way that humans shape and respond to cities, and how planning can act as both an enabler and barrier to participation and social interactions. She is also a member of the Committee for Brisbane Smart Cities and Suburbs Taskforce.

Related learning

Discover more about smart cities and adapting to change with these AU resources.

People: The Unlikely Heroes of a Technology-Driven Transformation

Paul Murphy shared his thoughts at AU 2019—just months before the pandemic hit—on how to best support individuals and teams in the process of constant adaptation.

Digital and BIM: Building a Better and More Sustainable World

Emmanuel Di Giacomo shows you how to use simulation, analysis, and design tools in Revit and ReCap for improving sustainability not just for an individual building, but for an entire development or community.

Campus and City Rapid-Energy Modeling and Data-Driven Forge Dashboard

Take energy analysis beyond individual buildings to entire building portfolios. Matthew Goss and Mathews Mathai show you how governments, institutions, and planning entities can set up a Forge-enabled management dashboard for rapid energy modeling (REM) to empower better development decisions.

The Swift Turn the World Made Us Take

Carlos Cristerna shares the methods and tools used by his Neoscape Rad Lab collaborators and clients to work remotely during the pandemic lockdown.