The Value of First Nations Knowledge in Planning Places and Spaces, with Elle Davidson

Summary: Hi #smartcommunity friends! In this episode of the Smart Community Podcast, I have a wonderful conversation with Elle Davidson. Elle is a Balanggarra woman from the East Kimberley and descendant of Captain William Bligh, and describes herself as being caught in the cross-winds of Australia's history. With a passion to empower the voices of First Nations People, Elle combines her Town Planning and Indigenous Engagement qualifications to shape our places and spaces. In this episode, Elle begins with Acknowledgment of Country, before she tells us about her interesting and unique background as a town planner and current work with her consultancy, Zion Engagement and Planning, as well as her passion for bringing First Nations perspectives to planning. Elle then tells us what drew her into the town planning profession, what a Smart Community means to her, then discusses some of the projects she has been working on including a career highlight working on the Western Sydney aerotropolis project. We then discuss the importance of asking questions and having an open minded approach when working on projects. We finish our chat discussing the emerging trend of First Nations knowledge and the value it can add to projects. As always, we hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed making it! Find the full show notes at: www.mysmart.community Connect with Elle via LinkedIn Connect with me via email: hello@mysmart.community Connect with My Smart Community via LinkedIn or Twitter and watch on YouTube The Smart Community Podcast is produced by Perk Digital