Stark divide between Millennials, Gen Z and older generations regarding Australia's future
New research from global professional services company GHD reveals a stark contrast between younger and older Australians in levels of optimism about the future, suggesting we need to explore alternate leadership models and better engage today’s youth in community-shaping decisions.
GHD’s CROSSROADS intergenerational equity research was based on a comprehensive survey conducted across ten countries: Australia, Canada, Chile, New Zealand, the Philippines, Qatar, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States. A total of 13,000 adults, sampled to be representative of age, gender and region in these countries, participated in the survey in mid-May 2024.
Asked to look 30 years into the future and consider “…whether the decisions being made by the current generation of leaders will leave your community in a better or worse state than it is today,” Gen Z and Millennials respondents are nearly twice as optimistic as older generations. 42% of Gen Z and 36% of Millennials agree the state of their community would be much better or a little better, compared to just 19% for Gen X and 27% for Baby Boomers.
According to GHD Future Communities Leader, Michelle Cramer, the findings highlight the importance of engaging today’s youth as much as possible to help shape the world of tomorrow.
GHD’s research also reveals that Australians of all ages perceive affordable housing as the country’s number one priority. 63% of Australians surveyed agree there is a need for more varied, cheaper housing options, and alarmingly, more than 60% of respondents believe we are heading off track in solving the housing affordability crisis.
Other common areas of concern include the cost of living and the accessibility and reliability of transportation, while only 44% of Australians believe they have experienced climate change effects, such as extreme weather events, compared to a global average of 64%.
“What we’re seeing is the extreme impact of rapid inflation and cost of living pressures in the post-pandemic years on people’s outlook and priorities,” says Michelle. “Despite the prevalence of extreme weather events such as widespread flooding in recent years, financial pressures are now the dominant concern throughout our society across all generations.”
CROSSROADS is a thought-provoking exploration of intergenerational equity, through an infrastructure lens. By overlaying community sentiment with GHD’s technical insights, the report is intended to spark an informed discussion of what can be done today to support the delivery of fair and fit-for-purpose infrastructure for tomorrow.
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GHD es una empresa líder de servicios profesionales que opera en los mercados mundiales de agua, energía y recursos, medio ambiente, infraestructura y edificaciones, y transporte. Comprometidos con la visión de lograr que el agua, la energía y las comunidades sean sostenibles para las futuras generaciones, GHD ofrece soluciones en asesoría, servicios digitales, de ingeniería, arquitectura, medio ambiente y para la construcción a clientes del sector público y privado. Fundada en 1928 y propiedad de sus trabajadores, GHD cuenta con una red de más de 11.000 profesionales conectados en más de 160 oficinas en cinco continentes.