Australasian Housing Institute, AHI

Two punks' guide to community planning in the USA

Our associates at NAHRO in the USA recently published an excerpt from Two Punks’ Guide to Community Planning, which originally appeared in Razorcake, the United States’ only non-profit independent music magazine. Here's an interview with the two punks themselves, Kamala Parks and Jason Wittenberg.

How did Two Punks’ Guide to Community Planning come about? What was the process of creating it?  


Kamala: "I was the instigator. I was reading Razorcake and one of the main people at Razorcake who was interviewing a band said something blatantly wrong about how developers benefit from housing scarcity, and I immediately said that is so wrong!"  


"So, I reached out to one of the other main people at Razorcake and said, 'Look, I hear this over and over again in the punk community about housing development and people bemoaning housing being developed – or any development, honestly. I get it, but there’s also a lot of misinformation – not just in [individual] punks but [in the] general overall community about housing development, and just knowing about how we have such a shortage and how it’s manifesting in terms of the cost of housing and homelessness and all these other underlying things. I felt very compelled to educate this group of folks, my community, about the importance of development and housing in relation to transportation. So, I reached out to Jason and said, 'What do you think?'” 


Jason: "It took me about two seconds to realise this was an awesome idea. There are a ton of opportunities to really dive into things where disparate parts of life overlap in meaningful ways. When the opportunity came to write this piece, I jumped at that. All previous guides have been one punk’s guide." 

"I felt very compelled to educate this group of folks, my community, about the importance of development and housing in relation to transportation."

How do you explain punk to a layperson? 


Kamala: "I don’t." 


Jason: "That is a tough one. It includes so many different factions. As much as the sort of nihilist side of punk has been interesting and fun, I’m more interested in the “there’s a better way” and “a better world is possible” side of punk – that’s been more appealing."   


What kind of feedback have you had about the piece?  


Jason: "I had a lot of positive feedback. It clearly caused people to think about issues in ways they hadn’t really thought about before. It was interesting that some of the people who read and gave feedback are people who work in the [city planning] profession and are unfamiliar with punk and, on the other side, there were punks without much exposure to city planning and development. Both camps are enjoying it and getting useful info. 


Kamala: "I had a range – a few laypeople like my sister and her friends, my husband. Generally, besides my husband who said it made his brain hurt, others said it made them really think about things." 


"My punk planner friends read it and didn’t know I was doing it, and so they thought it was well written and are passing it around. We’re both very academic because of our work, but Jason just wanted to be sure that folks knew about it – especially since Minnesota [where Jason currently works] is an important hub of punk, and stuff going on there is so progressive and inspiring. Translating and explaining things in more layperson terms was challenging, and I hope that we conveyed our message in a compelling way." 


Jason: "We got questions, but no one who was trying to push back. I haven’t had anyone want to argue points, but that would be fun too. We can largely thank Kamala for being anti-jargon. I started writing like [I was submitting a paper to the] American Planning Association. She said, 'That’s not our audience', and she was correct. It would have been less compelling if geared towards the audience I usually write for." 


Why publish it in a punk magazine?  


Kamala: "Punks are generally quite progressive. In the past, being anti-developer and anti-this and anti-that was actually pushing back against blind progress. Progress can be good and bad – I’m using it neutrally here. For us, we’re punks, and this is something I hear repeatedly, so I thought it was important to reach out to this community." 


"Now, it’s very conservative to be anti-housing development and 'Can’t we return to where we are? Why do things have to change?' I have a different mindset now. I can’t claim I was always pro-housing developer, and I don’t think they’re all great – rules need to be clearly laid out. You’re trying to set up rules so any developer, regardless of moral compass, will do the right thing for community." 


Let’s talk about the intersections between punk and community planning!  


Jason: "A better world is possible. Kamala and I, we’re in a position where we have some influence over the future of our cities. It’s a messy process often that involves a lot of competing interests, and as Kamala pointed out there hasn’t been a really good sense among our colleagues in punk community about what all goes into that mess of how cities change. So, I really liked the opportunity to bring this topic into Razorcake, the largest indie punk zine, which seemed like a really great forum to get that out there." 


Kamala: "I echo what Jason said. There’s a somewhat natural extension between punk and community planning – we deliberately called it community planning because we didn’t want to be too wonky, though it’s really about transportation and land use planning – put that on a cover and see eyes glaze over. Community planning is a useful catchall even if it has some specificity. There’s the idea about do it yourself (DIY) and being a part of change you want to see. That’s not unique to punk but it is one of punk’s tenets.

In your piece, you note that some very effective planners have no college degrees and might have arrived at their jobs through advocacy (e.g., bicycle or housing), but that most typically have master’s degrees – like both of you. Can you talk about how you got to where you are now? What are some of the paths for those who don’t have higher ed degrees, or are unwilling/unable to get them?  


Kamala: "For me, it was a long, winding road. I had no idea the planning profession existed until my 30s. I thought I wanted to be an architect. When you’re interested in urban design, you think of architects because they transform the environment. You don’t necessarily think about the underlying policies or soft infrastructure that you don’t see as a layperson." 


"I got my bachelor’s degree in math and went into teaching. Two years of teaching high school chewed me up and spit me out – it was really hard. So, I was at loose ends. While I was getting my teaching credential, I saw urban studies in a catalogue at San Francisco State University. At the time, there weren’t a lot of undergraduate or community college courses that would allow you to enter this field. What I’d love to do is teach a community college class about transportation and land use planning. That would be really helpful." 


"We rely on a lot of data, so sometimes folks get into this field because they’ve done data collection – e.g. traffic counts. Or they have some mechanical knowledge – e.g. doing things like traffic signal timing, which makes use of both mechanical and field experience — then get exposed to the field." 


"Advocacy is one of the most common ways – pedestrian and bike advocacy, housing advocacy. Generally, a lot of places want to see advanced degrees." 


Jason: "My path was a little different but overlapping. I was partway through undergraduate study when I discovered that city planning was a thing. I majored in geography with an urban geography emphasis. I had a great mentor who was a part of the city planning division and urban studies, landed an internship with the city working on basic planning issues. It’s helpful to be around a planning office and see how things work, what conversations are like, what people work on from day to day. From there, I got a master’s degree in urban planning and policy at the University of Illinois Chicago and was fortunate enough to land back in Minnesota right after graduate school." 


"As Kamala notes, generally our department looks for people with advanced degrees in planning or closely related fields, but people can break into the profession through advocacy, architecture, public policy and health, sustainability, and engineering – these are often gateways."

How do we make it easier for people to get into this line of work?  


Kamala: "They have to know about it first. That’s the basic thing." 


"There are a couple of things working against planning as a profession. First, it’s hidden and obtuse and even people close to me don’t understand what I do because it doesn’t feel tangible. They can’t grab on to it. It’s wonky. I think that we as planners try but don’t necessarily do a good job of conveying to the general public – or even to people close to us – what we do in a way that sticks in the head. I remember when I was trying to find a simple graphic about different stages of a project that starts with a plan, and I went on the APA website and could not find one layperson-friendly way of describing the process. I was really shocked. I think we need to spend more time as planners coming up with our elevator speech about what we do – we need to get out and talk with folks more. I was invited by Berkeley High School to talk at their senior lunch-and-learn: how’d you get that cool job? I talked with the senior class there, but it’s hard to prioritize when you have so many other things going on." 

"I think we need to spend more time as planners coming up with our elevator speech about what we do – we need to get out and talk with folks more."

Jason: "There’s a kids’ book about city planning: Ava Tanner the City Planner. It’s long been a goal of ours to have more involvement with the Minneapolis public schools and high schools. We haven’t made it work but will keep trying." 


"Raising the awareness of young people in cities would be helpful – it would bring diversity to a field that could use more diversity. I think cities could do a bit more to create positions at the technician/intern level that don’t require college degrees, to give people a chance to shine and work their way up in the organization. I don’t know how many places have been successful with that." 


Kamala: "BART employees are provided access to subsidized educational opportunities, such as course offerings at San Jose State University’s Mineta Transportation Institute. That’s a potential way for an organization to bring more awareness." 


"It’s a well-respected transportation think-tank program – quite progressive. They developed the concept of the level of traffic stress versus vehicle level of service, they came up with transit pedestrian and bicycle levels of traffic stress, pioneered the idea of different types of cyclists – terms that entered the lexicon." 


There’s a big need for more people working in affordable housing, especially as the more experienced leaders retire – is the same true for community planning? How are community planners overall doing as far as succession planning and bringing up the next generation?  


Jason: "Interest seems to ebb and flow – I don’t have a good sense of what’s been happening with grad school applications for planning and how they compare historically. When we post a job, sometimes there’s tremendous interest and a large applicant pool; other times, it’s a challenge." 


"I have an encouraging anecdote, though. We hosted a national planning conference in Minnesota this spring, with a record number of first-time registrants. There seems to be much broader interest in planning work among the public these days. When I first started, it seemed like participants were primarily coming in from the NIMBY perspective, now there’s advocacy for housing development and better public infrastructure that didn’t exist to a large degree when I started."

"There seems to be much broader interest in planning work among the public these days."

Kamala: "In transportation planning, there are a couple of factors, including an age divide. There are a lot of old-school engineers who still prioritise vehicle access, then there are youngsters who are coming in and want to see more multi-modal considerations." 


"Some areas experience recruitment challenges – ADA coordinator positions, finding the right person who understands the disabled community’s needs and how to translate that into our build environment from a transportation network. That’s quite specialised – it’s hard to find someone." 


"It feels like not so much quality but diversity of applicants that we really need to focus on. Planning tends to be very white. It’s gotten a little more diverse and a little more equal in terms of gender. But from a racial standpoint and maybe also from a gender standpoint – and I think this is true everywhere – non-binary and other genders may have a challenging time or just aren’t there. But there seems to be good diversity of sexual orientation – I know a lot of gay, lesbian and pan-sexual planners – but I feel like racial and a bit of economic diversity are lacking. I’d like to see more efforts focused there." 


What are your suggestions for reaching young people who might be interested in getting into housing, community planning and related fields (the guide is one amazing resource, by the way)?  


Jason: "Kamala and I aren’t super tuned into this, but I think a lot of good work is being done on YouTube and other forums. For example, one reference that we made in the sources of the article is City Nerd, a weekly YouTube video that I watch religiously. I imagine that kind of thing can really reach a lot of people who might not otherwise be exposed to these ideas." 


Kamala: "I think there are many ways to go about it. It’s about what effort you have, given an existing framework. Certain cities have done an amazing job of educating the general public about land use and transportation – Portland is one. I can go talk to folks and they have a basic understanding of planning, more so than in a lot of other cities." 


"Certain things I know have been proposed that I would love to see – such as mobility education, which was meant to replace driver’s ed, which has also been phased out of school. Mobility education talks about the intersection between the environment, economics and safety – it’s teaching kids about transportation choices, options and their effects. That’s another way to get in at the high school level."

Anything else you’d like to tell our readers?  


Jason: "Part of our piece was about trying to convey that people should be open to change, and that a big piece of that includes adding to our housing supply. The housing shortage is a big nationwide discussion right now – it’s more acute than others but is also being felt in unexpected places." 


"It’s clear that one of the major contributors to housing affordability problems is the inability/unwillingness of many places to allow enough housing to satisfy demand to live in places. Housing is expensive to build. That’s why we try to make the point multiple times in the piece that even higher-end market housing, what people consider luxury, is important too because of how filtering works in the housing market. We need to be building housing at all income levels. Making it affordable to people significantly below the Area Median Income (AMI) will require government subsidy, because math doesn’t work to build new affordable housing otherwise. I think that’s a hard thing for people to accept and grasp. In most people’s minds, developers should just be able to go out and build housing that’s accessible to someone who has modest means, and the math just doesn’t work." 

""It’s clear that one of the major contributors to housing affordability problems is the inability/unwillingness of many places to allow enough housing to satisfy demand to live in places."

Kamala: "To that point, in 10 to 20 years, luxury market rate places are going to be middle-income housing because more and better things get added to luxury housing. Then those get more dated, and it could be that they’re for lower-income folks in 40 years’ time. That’s a hard thing. When you don’t build housing, what happens is people who have a choice will take up space that should be affordable for the middle-income folks. As a general rule of thumb, middle-income housing isn’t built – it filters. Middle-market housing can be hard to build as a program – no government subsidy, and it often doesn’t pencil out for the developer to build missing middle housing." 


Jason: "I agree. I’ll also point to a recent project by the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority – they built family units in a series of 16 buildings scattered throughout the city, many of which were four-to-six-unit buildings in places that would have formerly been single-family homes or duplexes. The project also made a point about the importance of allowing a variety of housing types throughout a community – it’s important for market-rate housing, and opens opportunities for nonprofits and public agencies like the MPHA to add housing diversity to communities that have been locked into single-family homes for decades." 



Kamala: "This is why zoning is so important. Minneapolis transformed that."


Read an excerpt from Two Punks' Guide to Community Planning 

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Brighter Future Awards nominations now open!!

February 14, 2025
It is with great pleasure that we announce nominations are now open for the ahi: 2025 Brighter Future Awards .

Submission in response to the Draft NSW Homelessness Strategy 2025 - 2035

February 14, 2025
About the Australasian Housing Institute The Australasian Housing Institute (ahi) is a professional body for workers in the social and affordable housing and Specialist Homelessness Service (SHS) sectors across Australia and New Zealand. It has Branch Committees in each state and territory, as well as in New Zealand. The ahi is submitting a response to the Draft NSW Homelessness Strategy (the Strategy), representing the collective feedback of the NSW Branch Committee, with the support of the entire ahi organization. With over 2,000 members across NSW, ahi members work in both government and non-government housing organizations. The ahi has a long history of collaborating with SHS, Specialist Disability Services, and other mainstream services, including health, education, and local councils. For the past 25 years, ahi has been proudly delivering training for industry housing professionals across a wide range of areas, including tenancy management, asset management, and governance. The ahi also hosts masterclasses and networking events to support its members. The ahi provides professional development to the workforce through: Training and knowledge-building on a range of issues relevant to social housing professionals, from induction programs for new workers to advanced and specialized training in areas such as asset management, trauma-informed approaches with applicants and tenants, personal development, and community participation. A mentoring program that pairs experienced professionals with newer or younger members to help them achieve their career aspirations and goals. A certification program for social housing professionals to uphold professional standards and ensure success in their area of expertise. Leading the Annual Brighter Future Awards, which recognize excellence in the social housing industry. Promoting active, engaged, and connected membership through the delivery of topical events, seminars, webinars, masterclasses, and more. As a member-based professional body, the ahi is uniquely positioned to build trust, enhance skills, and foster relationships across both the government and non-government sectors, as well as between organizations. Summary The ahi congratulates the NSW Government on its significant investment of $6.6 billion in the 2024 budget, aimed at tackling the unprecedented housing stress and the rising numbers of individuals experiencing homelessness driven by the ongoing rental crisis in both the private rental and social housing sectors. The Strategy for 2025-2035 is highly commendable, with its three core goals—rare, brief, and non-repeated—standing out as ambitious and impactful objectives aimed at addressing homelessness. These goals are set to bring about significant changes in the social housing system and provide a clear policy framework to guide efforts toward achieving meaningful outcomes over the next decade. The ahi recognizes the importance of this Strategy and the critical role that the social and affordable rental housing system plays in meeting these goals, emphasizing the need for genuine, whole-of-government collaboration in delivering results. This approach involves collaboration across government, the not-for-profit community housing sector, and mainstream services, all supported by SHS’s within a Housing First framework and guided by a clear governance structure. It marks a shift from a deficit-driven perspective to a solution-focused, positive approach. The success of this transformation relies on collective efforts through co-design, co-evaluation, and co-delivery, ensuring the long-term effectiveness of the change. For this paradigm shift to succeed, it will require a skilled, committed, and dedicated workforce, as outlined in Principle 8 (The Workforce is Strong and Capable). Recognizing the need for a sustained, locally connected workforce is crucial to addressing the diverse needs of individuals experiencing homelessness across all three phases of their journey. In its feedback on the Strategy, the ahi emphasizes the importance of focused attention on homelessness and social housing workforce planning, professional development, industry support, and the need for culturally competent workers—both paid and voluntary—who bring diversity, inclusion skills, and lived experience. Finally, the ahi urges that Principle 8, which highlights the strength and capability of the workforce, be prioritized, particularly in supporting First Nations people experiencing housing stress and homelessness, with a long-term vision extending beyond the next 10 years. Detailed response The following is more a detailed response from the ahi to the questions outlined in the consultation paper for the Strategy. SECTION 1: The Guiding Principles of the Strategy 1. What do we need to consider as we implement services and system reform guided by these principles (total 9) over the next 10 years? As we implement services and system reform guided by these principles over the next 10 years, the ahi suggests the following approaches be prioritized: Workforce planning should be a key focus in the first rolling action plan (2025-2027), with an emphasis on forecasting the ongoing skills and competency needs throughout the life of The Strategy. This will ensure the workforce is equipped to meet evolving demands. Increasing the supply of dwellings to address crisis, transition, and permanent housing needs must be matched by a parallel increase in the workforce. This includes expanding both paid employees and volunteers within social housing, community housing organizations, and Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS). A well-supported workforce is essential to ensuring the successful and sustainable delivery of outcomes envisioned by the Strategy. Skilling workers who assist First Nations people experiencing homelessness should be prioritised. This requires a culturally competent workforce at all levels to provide high-quality services and ensure that First Nations people do not experience repeated homelessness. By focusing on cultural competence, we can foster better outcomes and long-term stability for these communities. 2. Which Principle should be prioritized and why? The ahi fully supports all nine Principles, with particular emphasis on Principle 8: Workforce is Strong and Capable, as being foundational. Addressing homelessness is a person-centered solution that requires culturally competent employees and volunteers who can establish strong, supportive networks with wraparound services at the local community level. This is essential to meeting the evolving needs and remains a high priority in the First Action Plan (2025-2027). Ongoing professional development for workers is crucial to ensuring long-term success in meeting the changing social, economic, and environmental needs of those living in quality housing. It is also vital for ensuring tenants not only live well but stay connected to their communities. Supporting the workforce’s safety and wellness is key to maintaining a capable, resilient workforce, which in turn ensures the best possible quality of housing, management, and support for tenants. SECTION 2: Strategy focus areas: 1. To make homelessness rare, what should NSW prioritise for action and why? The ahi believes that adequate funding for SHS’s is essential to ensure they are properly resourced to assist individuals at risk of or in a crisis state of homelessness at the point of need. The ability to identify risks and allocate resources effectively for intake assessments and service coordination is key to early intervention and prevention. A triage system is vital for facilitating positive outcomes, aiming to make homelessness a one-off experience. The ahi also supports dedicated funding for staff training and development in this field, recognizing its importance in preventing homelessness from becoming a long-term issue. Investing in training allows for timely and appropriate interventions, helping to break the cycle of homelessness early on. 2. What opportunities and risks are there for implementing actions under this outcome? Delaying action in assisting individuals experiencing homelessness can lead to a loss of faith and hope in the NSW housing system, pushing them toward the justice system or, in the case of older people or women escaping domestic violence, even premature death. Implementing this outcome presents an opportunity to build a culturally competent, and trauma-informed workforce, a key factor to transforming lives while simultaneously increasing the supply of housing. Supporting a resilient workforce, where high job satisfaction is fostered, creates committed and effective workers who can make a lasting difference. 3. What types (s) would be most useful to measure our impact and why? A key target in the First Action Plan (2025-2027) is to reduce the number of people on the social housing waitlist during the reporting period. This measure will serve as an indicator of success and validate the effectiveness of early intervention policies in preventing homelessness. Additionally, setting targets for the number of employees and volunteers in the social housing and SHS sectors, as well as tracking turnover rates, is essential to assessing the success of building a stronger, more capable workforce. 4. To make homelessness brief, what should NSW Priorities for action & why? Domestic violence, family abuse, and coercive control are major causes of homelessness among women, with the number of homeless women and children increasing according to the latest data. Adequate funding for this vulnerable group is a top priority. Supporting these women has a profound impact on their recovery, resilience, and ability to raise their children, leading to positive generational outcomes in the long term. The rising trend of older women experiencing homelessness for the first time also requires early intervention to prevent premature death. 5. What opportunity and risks are there for implementing actions under this outcome? The continued trend of women dying as a result of domestic violence and family abuse is deeply concerning. In 2024, 14 older women aged 55 and over were killed, a distressing statistic according to the Commissioner for Domestic and Family Violence, Michaela Cronin. These women are at a higher risk of vulnerability, often with no support systems to rely on. Implementing actions under this outcome presents a crucial opportunity to save lives, reduce the number of women experiencing both domestic violence and homelessness, and help them rebuild their lives. 6. What types of target(s) would be useful for measuring our impact and why? Reducing the number of women who die as a result of domestic violence and family abuse during the First Action Plan (2025-2027) is an important metric to track and report, demonstrating the efficacy of The Strategy. Individual success stories are powerful testimonies that show the goals of the Strategy are benefiting both individuals and the housing system. The skills required for employees and volunteers in this area demand dedicated funding and training resources. Implementing a measure to evaluate the outcomes of training courses would be valuable, helping to refine and improve the content and application of these programs. 7. To ensure homelessness is not repeated, what should NSW prioritize for action and why? First Nations people are overrepresented in experiencing homelessness and face significant challenges in breaking the cycle. Priority should be given to this group under the Housing First Principle, supported by skilled and capable staff and volunteers, to empower them and prevent repeat homelessness. Rental tenancy laws in NSW should be reviewed, particularly regarding the cessation of tenancy due to prolonged absences. Cultural customs related to death and bereavement (Sorry Business) should be recognised as acceptable reasons for absences and incorporated into tenancy policies. 8. What opportunities and risks are there in implementing actions under this outcome? The risk of not achieving the goals outlined in the National Agreement on Closing the Gap for the NSW Government is significant if priority is not given to properly housing and supporting First Nations people. There are valuable opportunities in collaborating with Aboriginal leaders through a co-design, co-evaluation, and co-delivery approach. Their collective commitment to improving the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can lead to positive outcomes in housing, health, education, employment, justice, safety, and inclusion. 9. What types of target(s) would be most useful to measure the impact and why? Increase the number of Aboriginal workers with certified qualifications across various areas of the Aboriginal housing sector. Aboriginal tenants depend on highly qualified and culturally competent workers and volunteers to help build their resilience and prevent repeated homelessness. Regular customer satisfaction surveys should be conducted to measure tenants’ satisfaction levels and identify areas of strength and improvement. Conclusion The ahi supports an ambitious supply growth program throughout the life of the Strategy to address homelessness in NSW. With 63,260 households (based on 2023-2024 data) currently on the waiting list, it is crucial to reduce this number over the next 10 years through the rolling action plans. Successfully delivering the Strategy will require a skilled, trauma-informed, and competent workforce to implement an integrated housing system. While workforce planning is mentioned as one of the nine principles, its lack of detailed planning is concerning. The ahi strongly suggests that the principles of co-design, co-evaluation, and co-delivery be incorporated from the outset in developing the rolling action plans. The ahi thanks the NSW Government for the opportunity to submit feedback and for its ongoing consideration of building a strong and capable workforce that is recognised and supported by a broad range of industries. The value of including people with lived experience and their unique knowledge and skills cannot be overlooked as an essential voice in this transformative process. Contact NSW Branch Committee - Australasian Housing Institute admin@housinginstitute.org www.theahi.com.au (02) 6494 7566 Date submitted: 11/2/25 Submitted to: Homelessness.strategy@homes.nsw.gov.au

Appointment of new auditor

October 24, 2024
Australasian Housing Institute (the Company) wishes to announce that effective from today, 24th October 2024, Accounting & Audit Solutions Bendigo (AASB) has been appointed as auditor of the Company. The change of auditor has occurred due to the resignation of Kelly Partners (Sydney) as the company’s auditor. The company received approval from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to change its auditors in accordance with section 329(6) of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). Accordingly, the Company has accepted the resignation of Kelly Partners (Sydney). AASB’s appointment is effective until the next Annual General Meeting of the Company. In accordance with section 327C of the Corporations Act, a resolution will be put to members at the 2025 Annual General Meeting to appoint AASB as the Company’s ongoing auditor.
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