Mahendran has joined the Sydney YIMBY (Yes In My Backyard) group, a fledgling grassroots movement seeking higher density housing in opposition to those branded NIMBYs (Not In My Backyard) that fight new and large developments, particularly in gentrified inner-city areas. For a continent as large and sparsely populated as Australia, it is almost counter-intuitive there could be a housing shortage. While the YIMBY movement is in its infancy in Australia, it marks a shift in community attitudes towards development as affordability worsens and a push for shorter commutes and better facilities become features of post-pandemic urban living. "The future is up by way of density," said Liz Allen, a researcher at Australian National University in Canberra. Greater Canberra, the YIMBY group in Canberra, has received support from both Labor and Greens for its push to lift density across the Australian Central Territory.

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Persons: Stella Qiu, Mahendran, Sydney YIMBY, Liz Allen, Justin Simon, they've, Simon, Philip Lowe, Lowe, Anthony Albanese, Albanese, Simon Welsh, Lincoln Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Sydney, New South, New South Wales Productivity, Australian National University, Reuters, Labor, Greens, Australian Central Territory ., Senate, Redbridge, Thomson Locations: Parramatta, Sydney, today's Australia, Australia, New South Wales, Canberra, Greater Canberra, May, Victoria