Sydney’s young people deserve to be heard – before we lose them for good

“Policy footnote”.

That is how one young urban planner has described our governments’ attempts to solve the housing crisis.

Since the beginning of 2016, the words “housing crisis” have appeared in a headline on the Herald’s website more than 300 times. That is a lot of policy footnotes.

James Ardouin, Genevieve Heggarty, Zachary Moore, Sakshyam Pandey, Amanda Eessa and Matthew Thrum comprised The Sydney Morning Herald’s Gen Z housing panel.Credit: Nick Moir

On Monday, the Herald launches a special series, Saving Sydney, to float bold ideas to solve the worsening housing situation facing our city.

It is authored by our Generation Z trainee reporters, who convened a panel of experts in their own age group to listen to their ideas, no matter how big and bold, to address the crisis that affects their generation the most.

The series will also delve into the intergenerational wealth divide, the perils of house-sharing, and the genuine impact the crisis has on the lives of our young people.

Among the panellists was Matthew Thrum, a 23-year-old senior urbanist at Ethos Urban, who has a background in urban planning.

“They’re just treating [the housing crisis] like another policy footnote,” Thrum told the Herald. He said the federal government has “the deepest pockets of any level of government, and it’s time for them, like they did after World War II, the last time we’ve meaningfully solved the housing shortage, to step up and start getting involved in actually delivering housing and delivering infrastructure”.

And they also have an answer to the question, who is paying for that? Economist Sakshyam Pandey, 22, says Australia’s “giant” superannuation industry – worth $4.1 trillion in 2024, but with only 7 per cent of its assets in property – could make a greater contribution.

“The housing market does provide pretty stable and low-risk returns. That aligns with what a super fund already tries to do for investors,” he said.

Many of the six panellists – a councillor, an ecologist, an economist, an architect and two with backgrounds in planning and transport – agreed the state’s transport-oriented development was good policy, but none saw it as a comprehensive solution.

Architect Amanda Eessa held fears about poor building standards and a lack of innovation in construction. Woollahra councillor James Ardouin and urban planning student Zachary Moore raised the issue of supporting infrastructure. Ecologist Genevieve Heggarty said green spaces needed to be included in plans from the outset. Said Ardouin: “You need that infrastructure to front-run any supply, because without infrastructure there, you’re going to have really bad outcomes for communities. You’re not going to have green spaces, you’re not going to have transport and you’re not going to have industry.”

Pandey said genuine, game-changing solutions needed policy that stretched beyond one term of government. “You can’t just have one party who’s in for three or four years, just consistently being churned out by another party. You need a party with more vision.”

Thrum: “I don’t think the opposition’s throwing up any good policies either.”

Perhaps both parties can come up with something effective together. That NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman invited Premier Chris Minns to hold a bipartisan roundtable to discuss housing is a step in that direction.

If our governments do not start thinking and, importantly, acting bigger and bolder, our great city remains at risk of losing its smart and talented young people.

We owe it to them to listen to their ideas.

Bevan Shields sends an exclusive newsletter to subscribers each week. Sign up to receive his Note from the Editor.