Webinars

Cumberland’s vision for equity and empowerment

Rachel Baker: Welcome everyone to the Careers at Council webinar in the Local Legends Community Career Story series. So my name is Rachel Baker. I am the Northern Branch Convener for the Planning Institute of Australia, NSW, and I’m also a Planner/Urban Designer at the City of Coffs Harbour and I’ll be your host today. Please note that we’ve turned off your microphones and cameras to avoid any background noise.
I’d like to acknowledge the Gumbaynggirr people and the traditional custodians of all the lands on which we meet today and pay my respects to elders, past, present and emerging. Welcome also to any First Nations people joining us today.
So I’m very pleased to welcome our guest speaker for today’s session. Esra Calim is the Coordinator of Planning Operations at Cumberland City Council, and she’s also the 2025 Dr Helen Proudford Women in Planning Award winner.
Esra brings over 20 years of experience in the planning field, marked by her dedication, innovation, and passion for advancing inclusive planning. Her work exemplifies leadership, mentorship, and the empowerment of women.
So her work, sorry, Esra’s exceptional planning skills are significant impact on recent projects and advocacy for women in the profession are truly remarkable.
So throughout today’s webinar, we do encourage you to submit any questions that you might have through our Q&A function and then we will address them at the end of the session.

So moving on before we really get deep dive into this discussion with Esra, I’d just like to introduce you to our Careers at Council facility. So Careers at Council is created by councils for councils. It is an initiative of the States and Territories Local Government Associations and was established by industry to inform and attract the future workforce of local government, so as you’ll see, it’s much more than a jobs board.
Careers at Council can be accessed through the website careersatcouncil.com.au and it also has a dedicated LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram page, as well as a YouTube channel. So make sure you spend some time after this to give it a check out.
So all our member councils are provided with the opportunity to shine a light on their exceptional work and achievements through the Council spotlight section. So this section covers a range of topics, including innovative projects, community initiatives and success stories that highlight both the positive impact councils have on their LGAs.
Joining the Careers at Council community can be a great way to explore job opportunities and connect with local government communities across Australia. You can sign up for job alerts, you can attend webinars and you can also view vodcasts.
So make sure that you connect with Careers at Council on social media.
Now very specially today’s webinar is also brought to you with the support of the Planning Institute of Australia. PIA is the peak body representing planning and the urban and regional planning profession. PIA’s mission is to inspire planners and elevate their role in shaping Australia’s future. They do this through championing the values of planners, leading the profession and providing strong advocacy and contemporary education. So if you’d like to know more about the Planning Institute of Australia, be sure to check out their website planning.org.au.

Now what we’re all here for, it’s now time that we’re going to hear from Esra.
Welcome, Esra. Thank you so much for your time and joining us today. We are very fortunate to have you share your wisdom with all of us today. So thank you.

Esra Calim: Thank you. Thank you for having me.

Rachel Baker: So I think let’s jump in. I’ve got some, I’ve got some burning questions, I’d love to know. So what inspired you to pursue a career in planning? And then I guess eventually take on the operations role at Cumberland City Council?

Esra Calim: Yeah. So I actually started my career in local government approximately 20 years ago and I initially started as a trainee through WSROC. At the time, I had no idea that planning would become my passion. I simply love the idea of serving the community.
That early exposure I guess, opened my eyes to how deeply planning effects people’s lives. From there, I moved on to customer service and then various roles within administration, administration planning, duty town planning and then eventually it led me to the coordinator position that I’m in today. So I saw first-hand, I guess that planning wasn’t just about policies or paperwork. It was also about shaping places where people would live, belong and grow, ultimately. During that time, as I progressed, I realised that I had strength in problem solving and bringing teams together. And during my time in my coordinator playing operations role it was a natural step for me, I guess, because he allowed me to support both the community as well as the staff members. It also meant that I could drive for improvements within the organisation, especially during the times of major changes with when council had the amalgamation, the merger process. During that time we had a lot of changes happening. The LEP/DCP system changes, template changes.
So what inspired me the most was the opportunity to influence positive change from within, ensuring that processes were fair, it was efficient and accessible for everyone, and my workplace is technology-forward to improve efficiencies.

Rachel Baker: Wonderful. And you, was there a pivotal moment, I guess in your career that really shaped your approach to leadership and inclusion?

Esra Calim: I would say that during the council amalgamation period, it was, everything was uncertain at that point. Teams were changing, policies were changing. There’s a lot of shifting happening and understandably people were very anxious during that period.
During that time, I was asked to support the transition of our systems and our templates for assessments or DAs and to help create a new template. So then our planners can work off, make it a bit more simplified.
So that required a lot of collaboration and a lot of listening ultimately. And throughout that process I learned that good leadership is not just about having all the answers, it’s also about creating an environment where people were feeling heard, valued and supported. Inclusion wasn’t something that you just tick off the box, it was something that you had to practise daily and how you treat people. That experience shaped how I approach, I guess my team today, and that everyone’s voice matters and everyone contributes to the bigger picture.

Rachel Baker: Really great perspective, I like that. And what challenges have you and do you face as a female planner, noting that it is a traditionally male-dominated field and in turn, how have you overcome those challenges?

Esra Calim: I guess like with any woman in planning, there were moments in my early in my career where I felt underestimated or overlooked. I did start at a very young age, straight after high school so I realised that sometimes you need to speak louder or speak twice as loud to be heard. What helped me overcome this was consistent performance. Letting my work speak for itself. It was the support of my mentors and my colleagues, which were both men and women who recognised my potential at the time, it was building confidence, believing in myself, reminding myself that I deserve a seat at the table and creating a strong woman operations team that I’m currently leading today.

Rachel Baker: And so you’re now working at Cumberland City Council, which has a strong focus on equity, I believe. So what does that look like in practice for your team and your community?

Esra Calim: Equity at Cumberland means fairness, access and representation. In practice this would look like the recruitment, the values, the diverse backgrounds that we have, work environments where contributions are recognised regardless of gender, culture or experience level. Providing flexible working arrangements to support work life balance, especially in these times and also having clear transparent processes in making planning decisions.

Rachel Baker: Excellent. And what strategies do you think have proven most effective in creating pathways for women to thrive in the planning and urban design area?

Esra Calim: It would be, some points would be starting, maybe with traineeships, graduates, student planners, just like how I entered the field at the time.
Visible female role models. Women who need to see other women succeeding gives you that boost. Mentorship and sponsorship is really important because it allows for doors to open, not just by giving advice. Flexible work policies, and I guess encouraging leadership at all levels, not just waiting for that title.

Rachel Baker: Yeah. Really, it’s really good advice and perspective. I like that. Now, I just want to sort of touch on something that you’d mentioned a bit earlier. So I think when, you know, explaining your career trajectory, you mentioned, you know, the role that technology and, you know, procedural changes had placed. So what role do you think technology plays in making planning processes more inclusive and transparent?

Esra Calim: Technology has become one of the biggest equalisers in planning through the NSW Planning portal, which we now have in our council systems, TechOne and the API integration that we implemented that I’ve worked on. We’ve seen a great transparency, where applicants can now track their own applications in real time. Providing the consistency, so digital templates which reduces errors. And also accessibility, so where people can lodge and view applications anytime, anywhere, whether it’s through their phone nowadays or through their laptop devices. As well as better communication between the council and the applicants, as well as the community, because the community’s concerns are important to us. Time efficiency –
this is achieved through what we’ve now recently just rolled out as a trial period for the use of the emerging technology, which is artificial intelligence, Daisy, which it removes barriers and helps people understand what is happening, which builds trust.

Rachel Baker: Yeah. OK. Yeah, I guess being in a transition phase of technology, how do you balance innovation with the need to maintain accessibility for all community members? So you know, not everyone is, I guess accepting of technology and what that brings. So how do you balance that?

Esra Calim: Well, innovation is only valuable if everyone can use it. Our approach to it is to introduce new systems gradually, like baby steps, provide support materials and help customers.
But also be able to maintain that face to face options where it’s needed for the community. Simplifying processes, not to overcomplicate them, which in essence technology should be able to enhance the experience, not replace the human connection.

Rachel Baker: That’s great. And are you finding, I guess from your own experience that that has proved successful with the community?

Esra Calim: I believe so.

Rachel Baker: Excellent. I just want to sort of shift our focus away to something new a little bit. You mentioned earlier about encouraging things like traineeships but also mentorship. So, I find mentorship is often cited as a key driver of career progression.
I’m curious to know how has mentorship shaped your journey and also how do you foster that within your team?

Esra Calim: I guess I can say mentorship has changed my life. Being in the organisation for 20 years I’ve had multiple leaders come and go and during that time I’ve had leaders who actually, who believed in me long before I actually believed in myself. They encouraged me to take on challenges and they guided me through uncertainty and they’ve reminded me that I belong in the organisation. And within my team, I guess I would foster mentorship by being approachable and open, encouraging continuous learning and creating opportunities for the team members within the team. But as well as celebrating their wins and supporting their challenges and making sure that everyone feels as though they are progressing.

Rachel Baker: Lovely. And what advice would you give to those young professionals or even career changers who might be considering a role in local government planning?

Esra Calim: I would say do it. It’s full of opportunities. I didn’t picture myself honestly to be in local government. The one person that I just pushed me and encouraged me into local government was my late father. And once I got my foot in the door, I’ve noticed that once you build those relationships, the opportunities they just open – the doors open for you. Planning offers a meaningful community focused work. You don’t have to be perfect in the background. Many of us started at entry level like myself. And you just gradually grow into the role and it shapes you to be who you are today.

Rachel Baker: Working at Cumberland City Council, how do they support professional development for the women and emerging leaders?

Esra Calim: We’ve got internal and external trainings, we’ve got leadership programs. We’ve also got mentorship programs. We’ve got opportunities for acting, acting opportunities or stepping up and acting arrangements.
We provide flexible working, we’ve got access to our mentors and our senior leaders and a culture where taking initiative is encouraged. Cumberland, I guess is committed to building an environment where women can grow confidently into their leadership roles.

Rachel Baker: Let’s talk a little bit about the community impact and future vision in relation to planning. So, how do you see the roles of councils evolving in the next five years, but particularly in terms of equity and sustainability?

Esra Calim: Council, I guess, will increasingly lead the way in sustainable development aiming towards net zero, it’s community focused infrastructure and transparent public engagements.
Digital innovation in planning, including the greater use of the AI to assist the planners to do their jobs and providing and creating equitable access to services. With local government, because it’s so close to the community, we are often the first people to respond to the changing needs, and with the increasing presence of women in leadership, councils will continue to become more inclusive and I guess community-driven.

Rachel Baker: Yeah OK. Thank you. And finally, if you could implement one bold initiative tomorrow to accelerate gender equity in local government, what would that be? What would that look like?

Esra Calim: I’ve thought about what I can do and what I can change, but I guess I would introduce a leadership accelerator program for women in planning. It’s structured like a pathway that combines mentorship as well as targeted training for peer networks and guaranteed leadership with acting opportunities. When women are given, I guess the tools and the support and the visibility, they don’t just grow, they uplift the entire team and they strengthen council as a whole.

Rachel Baker: Yeah, that’s really great. That’s very wise words to end with. I do like that.

 

Esra Calim: Thank you.

 

Rachel Baker: So I guess that’s what brings me to the end of my questions that I sort of have focussed for today, but I would really like to hear any of our attendees, if you’ve got some questions for Esra, whether it be in relation to her career, lifelong advice, you know, equality and, you know, gender issues or just planning in itself, this would be the time to pop those questions in our Q&A and we can ask Esra while we’ve got her here with all of her wisdom. All right, we’ve got some questions coming through now, so let me have a look. So, Esra, the first question we’ve got is for young planners exploring different planning roles could you share what a typical work day in your life looks like? Well, that’s a great question.

Esra Calim: In mine?

Rachel Baker: Let’s start with like your I guess a day in the life of yourself. What does that look like?

Esra Calim: So in my previous experiences in normal on a normal day it would be assisting the customers with their duty town planning inquiries as well as providing advice and guiding them through navigating the NSW planning portal, the lodgement of their applications and ensuring that the documents are up to the standard for ready for council’s assessment. That doesn’t necessarily just mean that it’s over the counter. We also do receive the email inquiries and phone inquiries. It’s ensuring that those calls are returned within the set timeframes and emails are responded to and actioned.

Rachel Baker: Thank you.
Do you have any insight, I guess you know, if you’re an emerging or new planner looking to get into the planning industry. First of all, I guess, do you have any advice on what side of planning, strategic or non-strategic, do you think is better, strategic or?

Esra Calim: I think both! Exposure to the both, because then you get an understanding of how planning works hand in hand.

Rachel Baker: Yeah, absolutely. I would agree with that. It comes as a package deal. So it’s nice to hear that, yeah, your advice would be to try and get experience on both sides. So moving on, we’ve got some more questions here. So does your council accept applications from migrant planners?

Esra Calim: Yes, I believe we do, yes.

Rachel Baker: Yeah. And do you, I guess, is there a certain pathway that I guess seeks planners from different backgrounds and pathways to come into Cumberland Council, or is it, you know, just opportunities for everyone?

Esra Calim: With Cumberland, generally from my knowledge, is they come through as work experience or work experience students from universities. Once they come in as a work experience student, we give them that exposure to our planning.
And then provide them support and training.

Rachel Baker: Excellent. Sounds like a good opportunity to get your foot in the door. So, we have another question here. Were there any pivotal moments or decisions that you made that you feel shaped your career?

Esra Calim: I would say it was the establishment of having my own team.

Rachel Baker: Yeah, you want to? How was that a pivotal moment for you?

Esra Calim: Because I, because I’ve had so many different roles and different positions, I was always, not necessarily working for myself, but I never had anyone report to me. So having a team within under youth, especially being all women dominated, gave me the opportunity to teach them and guide them, and support them as well as share my knowledge and my experiences of what I’ve achieved and how far I’ve come to encourage them that they’ve got that opportunity as well.

Rachel Baker: Yeah. OK, that’s really, really nice to, yeah, explore what that pivotal moment meant to you. So thank you for sharing. And then we have another question here. So first of all, I would like to thank you Rachel and Esra. Well, our pleasure, I’m sure. So my question is, is that possible or is it possible to get an opportunity in the council without having enough experience here in Australia? So I’m assuming please, Roza, thank you for your question. If I interpret this incorrectly, please feel free to correct us, but I’m wondering if so if Roza had studied as a planner in another country and was looking to relocate to Australia. Do you think there would be barriers in that by way of changing planning frameworks from countries, if you don’t have a lot of experience in Australia?

Esra Calim: Hmm. I believe yes, and we provide that opportunity through again, as I’ve said earlier, as a trainee role or work experience role.

Rachel Baker: Yeah, OK. It’s probably a good yeah pathway just to find your feet in, in the planning system and framework just to be able to apply those foundational skills you’ve probably learnt, you know, in another country.

So we’ve got another question here. I love, I’m loving all these questions. Thank you so much, everyone. So how do you maintain passion and motivation in planning, especially when we are always faced with routine tasks and challenges that can feel draining and repetitive? Yeah, that’s a good question.

Esra Calim: Well, planning is not really repetitive because legislation changes almost every hour, so you’re always on your feet trying to adapt to the change and finding solutions and answers. With planning, not every application that you receive is the same.
So you’re constantly finding avenues to find a solution to a problem when navigating through that, so you’re constantly challenging yourself, you’re constantly learning, and if you’re not learning, you’re always bouncing off other people’s ideas to be able to implement that understanding of, oh OK, well this is what I’ve got to do for the next one, so it’s really not repetitive. If it was repetitive, I don’t think I would have been here this long.

Rachel Baker: Personally, I’d love to hear what advice you would give to someone if they were feeling, you know, perhaps they’re working in development assessment and they just feel like they’re seeing, you know, pool and shed DA after DA and they’re not feeling like they’re challenged enough that they are feeling like it’s a little bit repetitive, I’d love to know what your advice to them is on how they move on from that. How do they remove themselves from that feeling or that position where they might be thinking that they’re not getting challenged?

Esra Calim: Well, they can always explore other options within planning. We’ve got strategic planning and it is different. So you’ll be able to learn different, different aspect of planning where it provides an insight of how LEPs are made, DCPs controls, that would be able to shift them away from what they think is repetitive every day

Rachel Baker: Mm-hmm.

Esra Calim: to a different exposure.

Rachel Baker: Excellent. That’s really great advice. So we’ve got some more questions coming through as well.

 

Esra Calim: Yeah. OK.

 

Rachel Baker: So, thanks for giving us an insight into your career. What one thing would you tell a girl leaving school about thinking of doing planning?

Esra Calim: Well when I left school, I came into council and I would suggest explore it. It’s definitely worth it. You’ve got potential to grow and if it’s planning, that’s not what you wanted to undertake, you can always fit within different roles within planning. So you don’t necessarily have to be doing assessment tasks. You can, you don’t have to do an assessment role or assessment position. You can… to be able to, I guess, see your work within an area that you’re working in and to be able to understand what you’re wanting to do, start off with I guess planning and then just explore and you can always change and if it’s not something that you’re finding interesting or it’s repetitive, as I said earlier, there’s always different areas within council that you can explore.

Rachel Baker: Yeah. And I’d say just from you providing your career trajectory at the start of today’s session, it does show that, yeah, even once you are working with the council, there are many pathways within that council that you will find interest and opportunity that what you may set out to start as you may not finish as, so definitely some good opportunities.

 

Esra Calim: Definitely, definitely yes.

 

Rachel Baker: Now I’ve got, oh so, thank you, Roza. So we had a question from Roza earlier about possible to get an opportunity in the council without having enough experience here in Australia. So Roza just provided some clarity. So I guess what is your advice and do you think it’s possible for someone that’s an Australian citizen and studied a Diploma of Civil Construction Design at TAFE? Do you think it’s possible for them to find the pathway into the planning profession in Australia?

Esra Calim: Yes. There are there are, I think. I believe there are diplomas now available that will be able to get their foot in the door for that.

Rachel Baker: Yeah, OK, great. And I would think too, if you were curious about that, I’m sure you’d be able to pop into your local council as well. I know a lot of the HR departments and councils will help provide, you know any information on different careers that they have and provide work experience as well. So Roza, that could also be something that you explore into. But I think that might be now all of our questions. So unless anyone has any final thoughts or questions. Esra and I do have a little bit of time, if you have anything else to ask. But I thank everyone that has joined today, especially I thank you, Esra, this has been a great conversation. I know I’ve enjoyed it and I’ve learnt a lot and taken away a lot of golden gems and advice, so I’m sure most of our attendees have as well so, thank you so much. It’s been a really great chat that we’ve had.

Esra Calim: Thank you so much, Rachel, and thank you for having me.

Rachel Baker: You’re welcome. Well, thank you, everyone. I think that’s the end of the session. So thank you once again for joining us.