A Sustainable Design Industry
How architects and designers are pledging sustainability in the wake of Australia’s natural disasters.
Words: Emma-Kate Wilson
Casata Uno designed by Luigi Roselli Architects, interiors by Alwill Architecture and Interiors. Photo - Prue Ruscoe.
Sustainable design is on everyone minds in the industry as, while we are still reeling from the bushfire disasters, extreme rain hits NSW causing flooding across the state. This is not normal weather and acknowledging the role of climate change, and how to prevent it, is needed to bring an ethical future.
Over the last month, via Instagram, we began to notice architects and designers putting up images declaring action and pro-bono assistance in the wake of the fires. We also saw a Mexican wave of companies pledging to go carbon neutral in 2020. But we wanted to know what this really means, and what architects and designers can do to help.
Already implemented in the UK, over 800 Australian architects have signed up for Architects Declare — acknowledging there is a climate and biodiversity emergency and they need to take responsibility for their carbon emissions. Jeremy McLeod, the Founder and Design Director of Breathe Architecture — who are one of the firms behind Architects Declare — explains that the built environment industry is the single biggest emitter of carbon. “Once we go carbon neutral, we can show our clients and consultants how simple and how critical it is to implement carbon neutrality into the DNA of every project we work on going forward.”
“We must be organised and have a governance structure — designers are pretty wide thinkers, and we can contribute more than we are,” says Mark Loughnan from Hassell Studio. Pictured - inside the Geelong Arts Centre designed by Hassell Studio. Photo - Rory Gardiner.
Inside the Geelong Arts Centre designed by Hassell Studio. Photo - Rory Gardiner.
Chromacolour House designed by Alwill Architecture and Interiors. Photo - Chris Warnes.
“With the combined corporate power of Australian companies switching to products like 100% Certified GreenPower, we will see large scale market change from coal to renewables. This shift can signal to the broader marketplace that now is the time to change. Not 2030. Not 2050. Now. ”
“Aside from rebuilding in a particular way with particular materials, we need to think about water and landfill — we need resilience master plans,” says Mark Loughnan. Pictured - the Geelong Arts Centre designed by Hassell Studio. Photo - Rory Gardiner.
Jeremy shares that according to the 2018 Building Code Energy Performance Trajectory Project Report, buildings consume over half of Australia’s electricity. However, rather than falling into despair, Architects Declare believe going carbon neutral is a genuinely impactful change. Why? Because moving away from coal to renewables can cause a nation-wide shift in the market.
Architects Assist also emerged during the crisis from the Australian Institute of Architects, headed by Jiri Lev. It brings together collective pro-bono assistance for those who have lost their homes from 1000s of architects and designers across the country. These projects will rebuild but are also pioneering for a 'greener' future. Using materials like sustainable timber, hempcrete, and moving away from “oversized, expensive paper boxes.” “Each time we build something, we should not only create a place for ourselves but also improve the habitat of plant and animal life," Jiri adds.
Chromacolour House designed by Alwill Architecture and Interiors. Photo - Chris Warnes.
Halo House designed by Breathe Architecture. Photo - Dianna Snape.
The global architecture firm, Hassell Studio, have engrained sustainable design throughout their entire practice. After the bushfire news broke, the firm immediately donated $50,000 to Red Cross and have pledged to rebuild. But the Head of Design, Board Director, and Principal, Mark Loughnan, believes it will take a collective mindset and a tide of change across the entire industry. “There's lots of different ways that we as an industry can have an impact, and designers have to be upfront with that and try to push that,” Mark adds. “But at the end of the day, we also need clients and contractors and governments and all these things to get on board this conversation to have a real impact.”
“We must be organised and have a governance structure — designers are pretty wide thinkers, and we can contribute more than we are.”
“Productivity, pollution and population are to blame for this imbalance along with greed. We don’t need to consume so much, but we do need our drinking water, oxygen and ecosystem,” shares Romy Alwill. Pictured - Casata Uno designed by Luigi Roselli Architects, interiors by Alwill Architecture and Interiors. Photo - Prue Ruscoe.
Romy Alwill from Alwill Architecture and Interiors was another designer struck by the horror of the bushfires and believes every home should embrace the principles of Ecologically Sustainable Design (ESD), using timeless design aesthetics, and reducing the number of disposable objects. During the unfolding weight of the climate crisis, designers have to ask themselves how they can help. “It all seems dramatic and catastrophic and beyond our control at times,” Romy explains. “Still, I think that message coming across the airwaves is harmful and overwhelming, and that can stunt the ability to make change — we need solutions, and the baby steps count.”
“Indigenous cultures around the world need to be revered, and we should be seeking their consultancy at this time. ”
The effect on the entire industry moving away from coal, taking audit and stock of emissions, is a dizzying amount of people power. But for even a chance of halting the climate emergency, we need a zero-carbon future. And, when we think of sustainable design, we have to really consider what sort environment we want to ‘sustain’ — because it can’t be the one we have right now. As Romy shares, “there are cultures across the globe who live sustainably and have wonderful homes, lives and existences, and we can make this change and be inspired by them and learn from them.”