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Australia is currently experiencing a housing crisis, with high costs of living and low rental vacancies. This crisis is affecting both major cities and regional areas, leading to an increase in homelessness. Insufficient construction activity is causing an undersupply of homes, driving up prices. While cutting migration numbers could create economic insecurities, a more thoughtful approach to migration, regional development, and housing supply is necessary. The article also discusses the specific challenges faced by Sydney, Melbourne, and Darwin in terms of housing. Additionally, the Northern Territory is experiencing a population decline, resulting in a sluggish property market and talent shortages in various industries. The government and corporate sector are implementing initiatives to address these shortages, but the remote location and unique living conditions make it difficult to attract and retain skilled professionals. The article emphasizes the importance of long-term planning, increased housing supply, investment in social housing, skills training, productivity increase, and labor force participation to address the housing crisis and skill shortages in Australia. It calls for a more balanced vision for Australian cities that considers housing, skill shortages, and regional development. [Extracted from the article]

Family planning programs have made significant contributions to lowering fertility levels in several developing nations. These advances often focus on women as the main agents of population control, ignoring the important role of men. However, in many countries/cultures decisions about fertility are highly embedded in social relationships at all levels, which make it imperative to investigate men’s position in the social structure. This study explores the relationship structures between men in Bangladesh using social network analysis to explore new possibilities for cost-effective healthcare strategies that have more far-reaching effects than the status quo. The results of this research show that men are embedded in un-fragmented and diffuse communication structures, formed across age and educational divide, beyond the bounds of kinship relations and village boundaries. Not only do men not shy away from discussion of contraceptives, but also approve and support their use. Men’s networks, thus, provide a potentially rich, but untapped, channel of communication for effectively and efficiently disseminating population control initiatives.