The FACTBase project is a collaborative research project with UWA to benchmark the liveability of Perth and its global connectedness, by examining its economic, social, demographic and political character.
The project is headed by Professor Matthew Tonts and will utilise the skills and expertise of academics recruited from an international field of researchers.
The UWA team will not only condense a plethora of existing information and databases on the subject, but map what’s happening in Perth in pictures as well as words. They will examine how Perth compares with, and connects to, other cities around the world.
Research projects commenced in 2009 include:-
- Reinterpreting the dynamics of Perth’s regional economy
- Economic governance for a globalising Perth
- Exploring ‘urban liveability’ in Perth
- Perth’s venture capital landscape
- Perth’s local government and governance landscape
- Perth’s sporting landscapes
Interim research findings will be released regularly, with the main body of research expected to be completed in 2012, providing an important resource for academics, planners and decision-makers.
FACTBase Bulletin 1 - Westward Bound? Perth's Emerging Corporate Power
FACTBase Bulletin 2 - Economic Stress in Perth
FACTBase Bulletin 3 - Perth's Decade of Prosperity
FACTBase Bulletin 4 - Can a Resource Based Economy be a Knowledge Economy?
FACTBase Bulletin 5 - Is Perth Becoming More Unequal?
FACTBase Bulletin 8 - A Brief Overview of Perth's Retail Trade Landscape
FACTBase Bulletin 9 - Perth's Economic Base: A Comparative Assessment
FACTBase Bulletin 10 - Perth's Most Competitive Sectors: An Exploratory Study
Professor Matthew Tonts
Professor Matthew Tonts has a background in human geography and is presently Director of UWA’s Institute for Regional Development. His research is concerned with the economic and dynamics affecting cities and regions. His research has focused on issues such as enterprise and economic development, labour market change, and public policy.
Dr Steffen Wetzstein
Dr Steffen Wetzstein is an economic geographer recruited from Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, where he has been studying the effects of globalisation on economy and governance structures.
Dr Paul Maginn
Dr Paul Maginn is the Coordinator of UWA’s Urban and Regional Planning programs. His research is focused on planning policy, local government and governance, and the social and cultural dynamics of cosmopolitan cities.