Earlier this month the influential business magazine, The Economist, released its annual global liveability report. The report ranks the world's major cities on 30 indicators in 5 categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
Cities in Australia and Canada dominate The Economist's top ten. First on the list is Vancouver (Canada) followed by Vienna (Austria), Melbourne, Toronto (Canada), Calgary (Canada), Helsinki (Finland), Sydney, Perth and Adelaide, with Auckland in 10th spot.
This is a very impressive performance by our cities.
In one sense it confirms what an overwhelming majority of Australians believe: that where we live is about as good as it gets.
Yet the list can also be seen as contradicting the view of Sydneysiders that our city really isn't performing the way it should. Certainly, regular readers of Sydney's major metropolitan newspapers are seeing daily descriptions of a city in serious decay.
But The Economist is telling is a different story. It says life in Sydney is about as good as it gets.
To me the apparent contradiction is easily explained. Yes, Sydney is right up there as a place to live. At the same time, though, Sydneysiders are frustrated at the standard of infrastructure and government services compared to what we know could be delivered through very basic attention to consistent, efficient planning and management practices.
Rather than mercilessly exploiting the city's existing assets, Sydneysiders think it common sense to invest in new assets to make the city a more efficient place to do business, a more just place to live, and a more sustainable city into the future.
The alternative -- complacency -- is arrogant, or stupid, or both. Complacency makes us undeserving of our privileged lifestyle.
The Economist lists these cities as the bottom 10 of the 140 cities on its list: Harare (Zimbabwe), Dhaka (Bangladesh), Algiers (Algeria), Port Moresby (Papua New Guinea), Lagos (Nigeria), Karachi (Pakistan), Doulala (Cameroon), Kathmandu (Nepal), Colombo (Sri Lanka), Dakar (Senegal) and Tehran (Iran).
As we complain our way to and from work on a crowded train or bus, or in an air-conditioned car on a crowded motorway -- having left a pretty decent house or apartment en route to a fairly decent job -- an occasional thought for how well off we are compared to the rest of the human race might freshen up the values we live by; and smarten up our management of the city we live within.
Phillip O'Neill is Professor and Director, Urban Research Centre, The University of Western SydneyPhillip O'Neill is Professor and Director, Urban Research Centre, The University of Western Sydney
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