Australia’s earliest Local Government
Australia currently has 564 local councils, although with amalgamation on the agenda that number is likely to change.
Population revision – where have all the people gone?
On July 31st, the ABS released the first 2011-Census based population estimates for Local Government Areas and smaller areas. These are based on the 2011Census results which are adjusted for the under count and...
Sydney’s population in 2011 – growth and change in the last five years
In late July, the ABS released what we demographers call the rebased population estimates (new Estimated Resident Population – ERP), including revisions of the annual estimates back to 2007. This data can be...
Hobsons Bay – steady growth, diverse community
From a demographic perspective, the very mention of Melbourne’s western suburbs conjures up images of rapid urban expansion and strong population growth. While this is certainly the case in growth area councils...
2011 Census – Where are the most multicultural communities?
In an earlier article, I looked at the rise of India, Nepal and Malaysian communities, with falls in older European migration, and spectacular increases in some of the smaller sources of immigrants, like Bhutan...
2011 Australian Census – How have our religions changed?
The old adage, not to discuss sex, politics or religion at a dinner party can be sound advice for avoiding arguments. While nothing about politics is collected in the Census, and sex is limited to “male” and...
Pitfalls in presenting Census data
With the array of data visualisation tools available these days, it may seem pretty easy to present Census data for small areas and draw conclusions from it. Since the release of data on June 21st, quite a few...
Census 2011 – where do retiring baby boomers live?
In one of our previous Census blogs, we drew attention to the fact that 60-64 year olds were the fastest growing five year age cohort between the 2006 and 2011 Censuses, due mainly to the baby boomer generation...
Latest population figures – Australia’s Capital Cities
On July 31st, 2012, the ABS quietly released the official population estimates (Estimated Resident Population, or ERP) for small areas in Australia. These are the first official population figures available for...
Demographics is for the nerds… discuss!
It was a pleasure to spend time in Wanganui recently at the Wanganui District Council-run TechEx (checkout their website www.techex.co.nz ). It was a three day IT expo focusing on the opportunities that their...
It's time to update the .id link page on your website
Check the link text to the .id resources on your council website. Does it still say it has the “new” data from the 2001 census? We’ve checked and lots do!
In 2012 adult diapers outsell baby diapers in Japan for the first time
It’s true – and apart from being a weird, interesting fact that you can use at your next quiz night, it indicates a much broader issue – an ageing population in a country with little immigration. As a result,...
Census to move entirely online in 2016? We doubt it!
A few days before Census release, the Canberra Times had an article about possible changes for the next Census in 2016, from an interview with the Australian Statistician, Brian Pink. It contained some...
Census 2011 – the impact of the twenty-somethings boom in Western Australia
At .id we like 25-29 year olds – not because that’s how old we are – but because they are possibly the most challenging age cohort to define demographically. Much as the media would have us believe, they don’t...
2011 Census – Australia’s changing multicultural mix
Every Census, one of the topics that gathers the most interest is the changing mix of origins of Australia’s residents. Country of Birth is the easiest way to measure this. Australia is a multicultural society,...
Census 2011 – the where and how of vacant dwellings
While many people get excited about the population characteristics revealed by Census data, many forget that it is a Census of Population AND Housing. The type, structure and composition of dwellings and...
Census 2011 – Tasmania is the oldest state
Perhaps because it is the smallest State, Tasmania is often neglected in population analyses yet there are some significant demographic trends occurring. Data from the 2011 Census shows that on the measure of...
Census 2011 – where do the children play?
Much has been made in the media in recent years about a baby boom, baby bounce – whatever fancy name you want to give it – but there’s no doubting the evidence base. In the last ten years or so the total...
Census 2011 – our ever changing age structure
How old are you? Some would consider this a personal question but there’s no getting away from the fact that our age is part of who we are. The age structure of a population is an important determinant as to...
Census Australia 2011 – A quality result?
Well the Census Australia 2011 results are out now, and we will be blogging about our discoveries over the coming weeks, months and years. We’re working away now to get the 2011-based community profile and...
What do demographic characteristics tell us about who sets the local agenda?
Who responds to invitations for public consultation? Demographic analysis shows they are more likely to be male, older, Anglo Celtic, well-educated and to have a higher income. Missing are the submissions from...
