Director Stephen Dredge established Meridian Urban to offer a high-quality, high-value professional consulting service with a unique difference – one that combines his passions of strategic land use planning and settlement resilience.

Stephen brings more than 20 years of experience in Australia and overseas as an urban planner and public policy expert with a passion for helping people think differently and improving the way we plan. He provides thought leadership and executive level direction to dealing with the modern-day challenges of settlement systems, risk-based land use planning, resilience, climate adaptation, and statutory planning.

Director Laura Gannon brings 20 years of experience in strategic and risk-based land use planning, climate adaptation, bushfire risk and community resilience with diversified skills developed across a career in both the public and private sectors. Laura specialises in management consulting approaches to the integration of natural hazard risk management into land use planning policy, strategy, and governance processes. She has extensive experience in the areas of risk assessment, climate resilience and disaster risk reduction accumulated through a number of senior leadership positions.

Kim Kirstein is an Associate Director and governance and statutory planning specialist at Meridian Urban, with over 20 years of industry experience at the local, state and national government levels. Kim specialises in navigating and identifying opportunities to streamline government processes and statutory frameworks and she has been at the forefront of identifying improvements and developing fast tracked planning and assessment processes in Queensland and New South Wales.

Kim also has extensive experience in strategic and statutory land use planning and preparing and reviewing planning policies, strategies, guidelines and plans. She brings cutting edge statutory advice in translating higher order government strategies and policies and supporting technical assessments (including natural hazard risk assessments) into assessment / performance criteria, development controls and land use and zoning criteria.

Josh Walker is passionate about planning for cities and regions and has held senior and executive-level positions in both the public and private sectors in Queensland.

As a trusted advisor, he brings a depth of expertise across the full spectrum of planning processes, from policy inception and grass-roots engagement, to planning scheme drafting, policy advocacy, and implementation through development assessment and expert evidence in the Planning and Environment Court (Qld). This well-rounded experience gives him valuable knowledge to develop policy that is clear, effective and practical.

Josh values fresh thinking, practical solutions, and strong relationships that help deliver better outcomes for communities.

Sam Evans is an is an Associate Director with extensive experience working in government and private practice in various fields including land use and development, spatial analysis, policy review, policy development and infrastructure planning. Sam specialises in utilising spatial analysis to solve land use planning challenges. Sam has long-held interests in statutory frameworks and resilience and is passionate about improving planning systems to better respond to the threat of natural hazards. Sam bolsters his planning and resilience capabilities with qualifications in bushfire assessment from the University of Melbourne.

Julie Brook is a Principal and local and regional planning specialist with over a decade of experience across the public and private sectors. Julie also holds an MBA, providing her with diverse business and project management skills for a holistic governance, policy and strategy outlook. Julie is experienced in translating complex legislative frameworks, planning instruments and policy formation, land use strategies, risk-based planning and planning for resilient communities, in addition to significant development assessment experience. Her strong analytical skills compliment her specialist capabilities in judicial practices. Julie has been accepted as a Building Tribunal Referee, as an expert on senior industry panels, has briefed expert witnesses, and assisted counsel in various court matters.

Amy Adamson is a Principal with over 17 years of experience in the private sector. Amy specialises in the interpretation of complex legislative framework into practical planning outcomes, particularly in the realm of statutory and environmental planning.

Amy maintains an extensive understanding of the Queensland planning framework, governance processes and planning policy and strategy. Her background in the management of complex development applications and enforcement matters across multiple jurisdictions highlights her extensive project management skillsets.

Amy has also acted as a town planning expert for various matters in the Planning and Environment Court and Land Court. Her experience in these proceedings as an expert witness provides Amy with a unique insight into the formulation and statutory drafting of planning instruments to ensure they meet their intended effect.

Amy provides assistance to local governments across Queensland with various aspects of planning and policy, including planning scheme drafting, environmental management, disaster risk reduction and resilience.

Ashleigh Slater is a Senior Associate with over 20 years of experience across state and local government planning environments in Queensland. Ashleigh specialises in development assessment and statutory planning, bringing a strong understanding of regulatory frameworks, strategic priorities, and practical implementation.

Ashleigh is committed to producing high‑quality, evidence‑based planning advice that supports sustainable and well‑considered development and growth management across Queensland’s rapidly evolving urban environments.

David Brady is a Senior Associate with over 10 years of experience in local government, specialising in policy development for strategic land use, local and precinct planning, natural hazard assessment, subtropical design and green infrastructure.

With strong expertise in planning scheme review and drafting, David excels at translating complex technical matters into clear, practical guidance that supports sustainable, on the ground outcomes. He is also deeply committed to meaningful community and stakeholder engagement throughout the planning process.

David holds qualifications in Green Infrastructure from the University of Melbourne and is passionate about delivering design solutions that enhance environmental performance and long-term resilience.

Damien Scalora is a Senior Associate with experience across the private and public sectors in Queensland, the Northern Territory and the UK. His experience spans strategic and statutory planning, community development and environmental planning, with a particular focus on natural hazard planning.

Damien holds a degree in Urban Development (Urban and Regional Planning) and a Master of Environmental Management. His technical planning background is complemented by a strong interest in natural hazard resilience and climate adaptation.

Ed Waters is an Associate with over 9 years’ experience across the UK and Australia. With a strong foundation in strategic and statutory planning across a variety of sectors, Ed is passionate about delivering projects that create lasting outcomes for communities.

Ed brings strong critical thinking and communication skills, providing practical solutions and ensuring results are presented with clarity and accountability. His experience in project management and stakeholder consultation ensures that Ed understands how best to coordinate inputs and deliver projects that align closely with client needs.

Lucy Bennett is an Associate specialising in risk-based land use planning. She is a well-rounded planner with over 10 years of experience in statutory and strategic planning, policy development and stakeholder engagement across the UK and Australia at both the local and state government levels.

She has contributed to a broad range of projects, including strategic land use plans, growth management strategies and natural hazard adaptation programs, with a strong focus on delivering sustainable and liveable communities. Her experience provides valuable insight into best practice approaches for drafting and implementing planning policy that enhances efficiency, functionality and equity within planning systems.

Lucy is a pragmatic, solutions-focused planner who excels in navigating complex planning challenges and has a strong commitment to delivering high-quality outcomes.

Mitchell Stoter is a Senior Planner with more than 6 years of experience in strategic planning across Queensland and Victoria. Mitchell brings specialist capabilities in project management, community consultation, strategic planning and structure planning.

Mitchell specialises in urban growth management, housing strategy, statutory plan drafting and natural hazard risk analysis. His experience working across regional Victoria provides him with a depth of appreciation of issues that affect regional and rural communities. Mitchell’s key planning interests include building climate resilient cities, master planning and sustainable development, social and affordable housing and heritage planning.

Ryan McNeilly Smith is a Senior Planner specialising in urban climates and design. He works across strategic planning, urban design, and climate adaptation and risk management. Ryan is a past Young Planner of the Year award recipient.

Ryan has specialist capabilities in strategic, policy and design responses to urban heat and heatwaves. Ryan also has a key focus on how the latest climate science can support governments respond to the climate risks and opportunities we collectively face. This stems from his frontline experience in human and social recovery during past disaster events in Queensland. Ryan is passionate about using his practice to create and sustain just and equitable settlements.

Brooke Cameron is a Spatial and Data Specialist who brings more than five years of expertise in GIS-based hazard and risk assessment. With a Bachelor of Science and postgraduate qualifications in automated spatial analysis from the University of Waikato, Brooke’s background in Earth Science offers her a strong understanding of the natural systems underpinning spatial analysis.

Brooke is passionate about enabling pathways to visualise complex data using the power of innovation.

Yvearna Bailey is a Spatial and Data specialist who brings extensive knowledge in data engineering, statistical modelling, machine learning, as well as spatial and data analysis. She excels across the full data lifecycle from collection and processing of complex datasets to technical analysis and the generation of actionable insights. Yvearna holds a Masters with Distinction in Data Science and a Bachelor of Software Engineering, and is passionate about creating statistical models and applications that support evidence based urban and environmental strategies.

Jessica Dumbell is a corporate services and resilience professional with over 16 years of professional experience across government and private sectors in Australia and abroad. As Associate Director – Corporate Services she has an expansive knowledge across a broad range of corporate areas including finance, human resources, operations, and business systemisation. Jessica further supports this with professional experience in program and project management, having a proven ability to coordinate complex teams and initiatives. Jessica has a Double Bachelor’s Degree in Business (Management) and Psychology from Griffith University which supports her enduring interests in resilience and organisational psychology.

Amanda Nicol is a highly experienced business coordinator with exceptional capabilities across corporate administration, business operations, and executive leadership support. Amanda thrives in fast-paced environments and is known for her ability to keep complex projects and teams on track. Her passion lies in developing efficient, organised processes that enhance team productivity and drive organisational success. Amanda combines these with her strengths in design to offer unique perspectives to Meridian Urban’s work.

Heidi Dredge is Meridian Urban’s Co-founder and Corporate Advisor. With qualifications and experience in Business Management and Social Science, Heidi has 20 years of professional experience in Australia and abroad across a range of sectors including planning and governance. Heidi brings a big-picture perspective to Meridian Urban, providing corporate leadership, strategic advisory and mentoring.

Heidi’s focus is on ensuring Meridian Urban operates and grows in line with its vision, mission and corporate values to provide a meaningful and inspiring work environment for the team and to pave the way for ongoing business success, sustainability and impact.