The Southbanker looking to shake up the City of Melbourne through innovation

At only 29, Aishwarya Kansakar has made her mark within the Australian tech industry and she is now looking do the same at Town Hall having nominated as a councillor candidate in October’s local government elections.

Ms Kansakar, who was inducted into the Victorian Honour Roll of Women in 2022, has dedicated her career to empowering people in complex STEM fields and is now looking to change the way the council uses technology.

Through her work as the Chief Operating Officer of the non-for-profit Women 4 STEM she leads a team of more than 300 people and is at the forefront of technological innovation in Australia.

However, the Southbank resident admits that the reason behind her decision to run for a spot at Town Hall is the state of Melbourne and the dire issues that are affecting the city.

Unaffordable rent, unsafe conditions for women and children, rising homelessness, struggling local businesses and new enterprises are issues that Ms Kansakar sees technology as the answer to.

“Modern-day issues require modern-day solutions,” Ms Kansakar said, adding that technology was not something anyone could implement, and that her experience and success within the field would be a great asset to the council.

Ms Kansakar told Southbank News that last year when looking to find a place to live, she almost ended up becoming homeless for six months despite being financially stable.

Not only was this a wakeup call, but also a key reason that led to her decision to run for council as she realised that if she was affected by the current housing crisis, it could only be much worse for more vulnerable and financially unstable people.

If elected, Ms Kansakar said she would look to lead the way in implementing smart urban planning using AI, data analytics and predictive modelling to identify areas where affordable housing could be integrated into new developments.

She added that there was also an opportunity to develop citywide platforms that streamlined housing applications and made the process of finding and securing affordable housing more achievable.

“Because I’m an entrepreneur myself, I know the struggle of funding and running operations,” Ms Kansakar said.

Ms Kansakar believes that a digital platform, that serves as a marketplace for local businesses that are not digitally present, would be a great way that the council could increase brand awareness for local traders.

“It would use the power of technology so that businesses get new avenues to sell their products and services,” she said.

Additionally, to better support start-ups and pave the way for Melbourne to become a genuine innovation hub, Ms Kansakar wants to see a central accelerator established for the whole city. •