Celebrating ingenuity, traditional knowledge and subversive tactics, The Excellent City Series: Festival of Design invites attendees to interrogate processes of design and how we might work together to evolve them. The festival will unpack City of Melbourne design projects as we explore interdisciplinary co-creation, designing for Country, and how unlikely partnerships and perspectives may influence ways of doing things, for the better.

Join artists, agitators, Aboriginal Elders, professionals and academics for an afternoon of sequential collaborative discussions and activities. Designed for diverse participants to freely contribute and interact through a range of activities, the festival welcomes people of all ages, genders, cultures, abilities and walks of life. The afternoon will culminate in a celebration of co-production and community, bringing together students, industry professionals and diverse subject matter experts with celebrated designers and government decision makers.

As the City of Melbourne’s in-house interdisciplinary design practice, City Design is dedicated to creating a City of Possibility for all. The festival draws on City Design’s experience in curating and delivering events at MPavilion, for Melbourne Design Week and the World Congress of Architects. In 2024, our focus is ‘design in action’ as we invite the broader public to collaborate with us on shaping City of Melbourne projects.

City Design is excited to partner with Aboriginal Melbourne for what will be an insightful and inspiring event. The Excellent City Series was established in 2021 to promote public debate on design excellence in Melbourne.

schedule

• 12pm – Welcome to Country
• 12.30pm – Introduction and welcome remarks – Lord Mayor Sally Capp
• 12.45pm – Session 1: Designing for storytelling
• 2.45pm – Session 2: Designing for water
• 4.45pm – Session 3: Designing for belonging
• 6.15pm – Reflection and closing remarks – Deputy Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece
• 6.45pm to 8pm – Celebration of design

Session 1 — Designing for Storytelling

Good design, like good storytelling, brings ideas to life. This session will explore the role designers play in facilitating storytelling, cultural awareness and education in public spaces, and how design can amplify the narrative power of diverse communities and cultures. Be inspired by exemplary projects and processes changing how we interpret and understand Melbourne’s stories.

With Jason Tamiru, Heidi Everett and Hoang Tran Nguyen

Session 2 — Designing for Water

Melbourne’s water story has been irrevocably shaped by progress and the impacts of our changing climate. This session will explore how original, creative approaches and traditional knowledge are delivering innovative outcomes for improving our urban water environment. Be inspired by traditional owners, ecologists and artists who are re-shaping how designers approach connecting people to Melbourne’s waterways.

With Kirsten Bauer, Jefa Greenaway, Luke Cunningham and Sara Lloyd

Session 3 — Designing for Belonging

Our everyday lives are touched by the places that surround us, affecting how we understand, interact with and feel about our cities. This session will explore how conscious design practice can facilitate connection and a sense of belonging with the built environment, in turn creating culturally safe spaces. Be inspired by community leaders whose visionary projects are celebrating living cultures in creative and educational ways.

With Emily McDaniel, Jennifer Tran, Fatuma Ndenzako and Aretha Brown

Collaborators:

Jocelyn Chiew is an Architect, Landscape Architect and Urban Designer. As the Director City Design, at the City of Melbourne, she plays a key role in creating inclusive and enduring public spaces. Jocelyn leads the city’s Design Excellence Program and is Deputy Chair of the Melbourne Design Review Panel. Her practice, City Design, is a multidisciplinary studio, which develops and delivers urban design strategies, design standards and public works.

Jason Eades is a proud Aboriginal man born and raised on Gunnai country in south-east Victoria who brings a deep passion and experience in Aboriginal affairs to his role as Director, Aboriginal Melbourne. Aboriginal Melbourne is a Branch within the City of Melbourne that is responsible for working with the Aboriginal community to ensure their needs are heard, respected and influence the delivery of a wide range of Council services and outcomes. Before joining the City of Melbourne, Jason was the inaugural CEO of welcometocountry.com a tech startup that created an online marketplace to connect travellers to First Nations tours and experiences across the country and an online store of products either made by First Nations people or genuine collaborations. He is a previous CEO of the Koorie Heritage Trust, and one of four Aboriginal co-owners that founded PwC’s Indigenous Consulting.

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Session 1: Designing for storytelling

Jason Tamiru is a proud Yorta Yorta man passionate about supporting his people’s creativity by building frameworks that complement cultural expressions. He has worked with many of Melbourne’s most iconic performing arts companies, museums and festivals, as a producer and arts director. Jason is also the Creative Director of Yalinguth.

Hoang Tran Nguyen is an artist working in social practice. His work explores the social politics of place, language and labour. He has devised projects across institutions such as the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Footscray Community Arts and West Space. Hoang is a founding member of the language advocacy group ViệtSpeak, based in Narrm Melbourne’s western suburbs. He is currently a PhD candidate at the Victorian College of Arts, University of Melbourne.

Heidi Everett is a neurodiverse disability advocate and community arts producer, with a specific focus on complex mental health. She is the founder and CEO of Schizy Inc, Australia’s foremost mental health disability-led arts organisation, as well as a published author, illustrator, filmmaker, performer (music, comedy, theatre), teacher, workshop facilitator, public speaker and arts access consultant. Heidi has won multiple awards including Victorian Government Disability Volunteer of the Year and the Victorian Mental Illness Awareness Council Human Rights Award.

Session 2: Designing for water

Luke Cunningham is an environmental engineer, director and co-founder of Rain Consulting, a firm that provides innovative solutions for urban water management. Luke has a passion for communicating complex engineering concepts to diverse audiences, using storytelling, cultural awareness and creative design. Luke draws on historical knowledge and traditional practices to inform his work, and is currently leading several projects in Melbourne that address stormwater issues in the CBD using innovative and sustainable approaches. Luke and Rain Consulting’s work aims to create water-sensitive cities that enhance liveability and climate resilience for those that live and visit our great city.

Sara Lloyd is a highly experienced practitioner in integrated water management, stormwater management and water sensitive urban design, having led the development of keystone projects in Victoria over the last 20 years. She is widely recognised for her contribution to driving change across industry through applying latest research insights into policy change and urban design. She has a long working history with state and local government authorities and water corporations to embed sustainable land and water solutions into all projects to deliver high value community outcomes while enhancing the natural environment.

Kirsten Bauer is the Global Design Director for ASPECT Studios, a global place design practice with is origins in Australia. She is a respected design leader focusing on the governance, planning and design of the public realm. Kirsten has led significant award-winning projects across Australia and internationally such as Greenline, Tweed Heads Harbor Foreshore, Yagan Square, Prahran Square, Caulfield to Dandenong LXRP and Linear Park, Monash University and the New Student Precinct at University of Melbourne, Victorian Desal project and various parks and squares in Melbourne. She was an inaugural member of the Birrarung Council, a member of the Victorian Design Review Panel, Adjunct Professor at RMIT, former member of the Public Open Space Expert Panel – SRL, curator of the International Festival of Landscape Architecture and Competition in 2020 – The Square and the Park, past President of AILA Victoria, and has held various advisory roles and positions with University of Melbourne, RMIT University and the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects.

Jefa Greenaway is a founding Director of Greenaway Architects, an Adjunct Industry Fellow as Swinburne University, an Honorary Fellow of Design at Deakin University and an Australian Institute of Landscape Architecture (AILA) National Cultural Ambassador. He’s championed Indigenous led design thinking for 3 decades as a registered architect across three States, as founding Director of Indigenous Architecture + Design Australia (IADA), and as co-author of the International Indigenous Design Charter, with a particular interest in design equity and Country-centred design. His current projects include the $11B North East Link Project, winner of the 2022 WAFX Future Infrastructure award, the Marvel Stadium Upgrade and the UTS National First Nations College. He was a 2020 Design Institute of Australia’s (DIA) ‘Hall of Fame’ inductee, signifying an outstanding contribution to Australian design and was recently named in the Qantas 100 Inspiring Australians, celebrating their centenary and was included within the INDE.Awards 2023 ‘The Luminary’ (special prize) recognising an individual whose entire portfolio represents a lifetime of design finesse and distinction.

Session 3: Designing for belonging

Jennifer Tran is a performance designer, community engagement practitioner and project coordinator, proudly rooted on the lands of the Boon Wurrung and Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation. She holds degrees in Industrial Design with Honours from Swinburne University, Interior Design from RMIT and Arts and Community Engagement from the Victorian College of the Arts (University of Melbourne). With a diverse background spanning architecture, performing arts and community events coordination, Jen has demonstrated her passion for fostering creativity and connection. She has collaborated with numerous arts organisations, festivals, and councils, delivering workshops and projects that enrich communities and celebrate cultural diversity.

Emily McDaniel is an independent curator from the Kalari Clan of the Wiradjuri Nation in central New South Wales. She consults on curatorship, cultural narratives, learning, engagement and interpretation for cultural institutions and public spaces. Her practice applies Country-centred curatorial methodologies in collaboration with First Nations communities, cultural and creative practitioners, architects, and designers to story and truth-tell. She is the curator of Yananurala, a City of Sydney public art program and interpretation strategy spanning nine kilometres of the Sydney Harbour foreshore, highlighting Aboriginal stories. Formerly, she was the inaugural Director, First Nations at the Powerhouse museum and has held curatorial positions at the Museums of History NSW, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Museum of Contemporary Art and the Biennale of Sydney.

Fatuma Ndenzako is the co-founder of Collective Closets, a Melbourne-based slow fashion label that bridges the gap between the rich cultural heritage of Africa and empowered, cosmopolitan women of all generations. Established in 2016 by Fatuma and her sister Laurinda, the brand is driven by a profound desire to weave narratives, contribute positively, and foster unity among women through the language of style. At the core of Collective Closets lies an unwavering commitment to female empowerment. With a steadfast focus on promoting inclusivity and embracing diversity, the label strives to cultivate a space where women from all walks of life feel recognized, empowered, and cherished.