The 2019 Australian Infrastructure Audit outlined four major sustainability and resilience challenges and opportunities for the infrastructure sector.14
Improve governance and decision-making: Infrastructure users are rarely at the centre of decision-making, despite growing community demand for transparency and effective engagement. Governments need to build community trust by harnessing the knowledge of local communities and incorporating what they learn into infrastructure investment decisions.
Progress resilience strategies: Australia's assets and networks, places and communities lack comprehensive resilience strategies. This is despite the change, disruption, interdependencies and social, economic and environmental challenges that this country faces now. These are all combining to create risk, complexity and opportunity for infrastructure planning, delivery and operation. To protect Australia against an uncertain future, resilience must be embedded into assets, networks and places.
Be a global leader in sustainable infrastructure: Australia is well-positioned to lead the world in investing in and developing approaches to infrastructure that enhance sustainability. This work will benefit current and future generations. It will also protect and increase Australia's international reputation as a sound, reliable, well-governed and low-risk environment for sustainable investment. To maintain this enviable position, the Australian Government needs to manage current and emerging risks.
Reduce carbon emissions: The 2019 Audit suggested governments should prioritise addressing risks around the emissions intensity of infrastructure and services, and frame progress on emissions reduction. Doing this would improve Australia's sustainability, sequence emissions reductions and ensure progress against international commitments.
As the 2019 Audit identified, the Australian Government will need to actively ensure Australia aligns its policy objectives with its commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Australia has signed on to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which commits this nation to working towards 17 SDGs.15 They include good health and wellbeing, responsible consumption and production, and climate action.