Travis Jordan
@grugstan.bsky.social
professional good boy // democracy, cities and tech
// travisjordan.work // these are my own opinions and not those of my employer
he/him // living in Meanjin Brisbane
// travisjordan.work // these are my own opinions and not those of my employer
he/him // living in Meanjin Brisbane
The objective should be 100 million people in the capital cities, next question
November 25, 2025 at 1:37 AM
The objective should be 100 million people in the capital cities, next question
Some absolutely STUNNING designs in the new NSW Mid Rise Pattern Book.
The smaller designs can be built on lots as small as 13 metres wide, smaller than the average lot in Brisbane!
There’s no reason why these shouldn’t be permitted by right everywhere in Brisbane too. (well except flood zones)
The smaller designs can be built on lots as small as 13 metres wide, smaller than the average lot in Brisbane!
There’s no reason why these shouldn’t be permitted by right everywhere in Brisbane too. (well except flood zones)
November 24, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Some absolutely STUNNING designs in the new NSW Mid Rise Pattern Book.
The smaller designs can be built on lots as small as 13 metres wide, smaller than the average lot in Brisbane!
There’s no reason why these shouldn’t be permitted by right everywhere in Brisbane too. (well except flood zones)
The smaller designs can be built on lots as small as 13 metres wide, smaller than the average lot in Brisbane!
There’s no reason why these shouldn’t be permitted by right everywhere in Brisbane too. (well except flood zones)
Today in local development antics, West End's rallying against the sale of the Visy Glass recycling site under the banner of Save Southbank 2.0 (named for a loose plan to extend Southbank around Kurilpa peninsula that was never more concrete than vague aspirations twenty years ago).
November 21, 2025 at 6:07 AM
Today in local development antics, West End's rallying against the sale of the Visy Glass recycling site under the banner of Save Southbank 2.0 (named for a loose plan to extend Southbank around Kurilpa peninsula that was never more concrete than vague aspirations twenty years ago).
Isn’t (workplace) democracy beautiful?
Join your union and run in union elections.
Join your union and run in union elections.
November 20, 2025 at 11:01 AM
Isn’t (workplace) democracy beautiful?
Join your union and run in union elections.
Join your union and run in union elections.
My proposal is to actually INCREASE the amount of public money allocated by shifting from this arbitrary approach to a parallel per vote allocation. This combined with a bureaucratic oversight mechanism and making the grants competitive would enliven our civic discourse.
November 13, 2025 at 12:14 AM
My proposal is to actually INCREASE the amount of public money allocated by shifting from this arbitrary approach to a parallel per vote allocation. This combined with a bureaucratic oversight mechanism and making the grants competitive would enliven our civic discourse.
The fifth and final recommendation looks at the blackish box of non-campaign public funding for parties. It's not common knowledge that — on top of the $131 million in campaign funding each term — parties receive $25 million in OTHER funding, for admin costs, research and international outreach.
November 13, 2025 at 12:14 AM
The fifth and final recommendation looks at the blackish box of non-campaign public funding for parties. It's not common knowledge that — on top of the $131 million in campaign funding each term — parties receive $25 million in OTHER funding, for admin costs, research and international outreach.
Staffer numbers have exploded in recent years, mostly imo because we haven't created more elected positions to reduce MP workload.
November 12, 2025 at 11:45 PM
Staffer numbers have exploded in recent years, mostly imo because we haven't created more elected positions to reduce MP workload.
The third, which I also canvassed in my Inflection Points article, is to rethink our approach to the regulation of political parties, reimagining political parties as essential utilities within a constrained market and needing to be regulated with that anti-competitive impulse in mind.
November 12, 2025 at 11:45 PM
The third, which I also canvassed in my Inflection Points article, is to rethink our approach to the regulation of political parties, reimagining political parties as essential utilities within a constrained market and needing to be regulated with that anti-competitive impulse in mind.
I also try to build a legislative checktest to replace the current "when the status quo gets too bad and Parliament gets around to it and we're not unpopular and we have a supermajority" approach that uses the smallest state to trigger further expansions automatically to ensure one vote one value.
November 12, 2025 at 11:34 PM
I also try to build a legislative checktest to replace the current "when the status quo gets too bad and Parliament gets around to it and we're not unpopular and we have a supermajority" approach that uses the smallest state to trigger further expansions automatically to ensure one vote one value.
I go in a slightly different direction to Ben, sketching out five different scenarios based on ABS's population projections out to the point where we're likely to revisit this question again.
I try to make the point that the cost of doing the minimum is nearly as bad as not acting at all.
I try to make the point that the cost of doing the minimum is nearly as bad as not acting at all.
November 12, 2025 at 11:34 PM
I go in a slightly different direction to Ben, sketching out five different scenarios based on ABS's population projections out to the point where we're likely to revisit this question again.
I try to make the point that the cost of doing the minimum is nearly as bad as not acting at all.
I try to make the point that the cost of doing the minimum is nearly as bad as not acting at all.
Two months ago, I wrote a paper for the Electoral Matters Committee. It clocked in at 23,000 words with 16 data tables, 11 graphs, 204 footnotes and 30,000 datapoints.
I made the case that we should take advantage of this historic juncture to expand participation in our representative democracy.
I made the case that we should take advantage of this historic juncture to expand participation in our representative democracy.
November 12, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Two months ago, I wrote a paper for the Electoral Matters Committee. It clocked in at 23,000 words with 16 data tables, 11 graphs, 204 footnotes and 30,000 datapoints.
I made the case that we should take advantage of this historic juncture to expand participation in our representative democracy.
I made the case that we should take advantage of this historic juncture to expand participation in our representative democracy.
One chart that didn't make it in the final paper was looking at party membership more recently. The result is steady decline for all parties except for brief flash-in-the-pan bursts around successful elections (further complicated by NSW Labor's strange habit of offering three-year memberships)
November 9, 2025 at 11:15 PM
One chart that didn't make it in the final paper was looking at party membership more recently. The result is steady decline for all parties except for brief flash-in-the-pan bursts around successful elections (further complicated by NSW Labor's strange habit of offering three-year memberships)
As it stands though, Brisbane residents right now have their votes valued far far far less than people in just about any other city. For Brisbane City Council residents, that residents per municipal representatives ratio is 51,000.
November 3, 2025 at 7:11 AM
As it stands though, Brisbane residents right now have their votes valued far far far less than people in just about any other city. For Brisbane City Council residents, that residents per municipal representatives ratio is 51,000.
Toasted marshmallow crispy treats with dark chocolate chunks. And boy I have so much of it.
November 1, 2025 at 4:49 AM
Toasted marshmallow crispy treats with dark chocolate chunks. And boy I have so much of it.
I spend more time writing my To Write list than actually writing the damn things.
October 27, 2025 at 1:33 AM
I spend more time writing my To Write list than actually writing the damn things.
It was insane watching it move across
October 26, 2025 at 9:26 AM
It was insane watching it move across
Freddo’s all tuckered out from the storm
October 26, 2025 at 8:54 AM
Freddo’s all tuckered out from the storm
Bit of a front rolling in. It’s Summer.
October 26, 2025 at 6:40 AM
Bit of a front rolling in. It’s Summer.
But it’s not a PARTY conference. It’s just a conference for organising a political movement with elected representatives with an almost perfect whip discipline headlining.
October 16, 2025 at 10:24 AM
But it’s not a PARTY conference. It’s just a conference for organising a political movement with elected representatives with an almost perfect whip discipline headlining.
To assess against these criteria, we analysed how other state assemblies operate and included councils too, because the ACT Assembly does both.
Here we found two key takeaways:
1. there is a clear workforce and deliberative capacity problem and
2. ACT voters are still underrepresented
Here we found two key takeaways:
1. there is a clear workforce and deliberative capacity problem and
2. ACT voters are still underrepresented
October 14, 2025 at 4:39 AM
To assess against these criteria, we analysed how other state assemblies operate and included councils too, because the ACT Assembly does both.
Here we found two key takeaways:
1. there is a clear workforce and deliberative capacity problem and
2. ACT voters are still underrepresented
Here we found two key takeaways:
1. there is a clear workforce and deliberative capacity problem and
2. ACT voters are still underrepresented
Our argument is built on three different but related metrics (and you'll note that these are different again from the ones I use in assessing larger assemblies like Commonwealth Parliament).
October 14, 2025 at 4:39 AM
Our argument is built on three different but related metrics (and you'll note that these are different again from the ones I use in assessing larger assemblies like Commonwealth Parliament).
I'm back again telling everyone who'll listen and a lot of people who won't that we need more politicians!
Today, the ACT Assembly's inquiry into the 2024 election published a submission from @francismarkham.bsky.social and myself arguing it's time to make the Assembly bigger... again.
Today, the ACT Assembly's inquiry into the 2024 election published a submission from @francismarkham.bsky.social and myself arguing it's time to make the Assembly bigger... again.
October 14, 2025 at 4:39 AM
I'm back again telling everyone who'll listen and a lot of people who won't that we need more politicians!
Today, the ACT Assembly's inquiry into the 2024 election published a submission from @francismarkham.bsky.social and myself arguing it's time to make the Assembly bigger... again.
Today, the ACT Assembly's inquiry into the 2024 election published a submission from @francismarkham.bsky.social and myself arguing it's time to make the Assembly bigger... again.
We must go back... further...
October 13, 2025 at 2:07 AM
We must go back... further...