Comment | Architecture And Design

Green space – how much is enough, and what’s the best way to deliver it?

Half of the world’s people now live in urban areas. This creates competition for resources and increases pressure on already limited green space.

Managing demand can save two power stations' worth of energy at peak times

The management of Australia’s looming energy crisis has so far focused almost exclusively on the supply side of the equation: exploiting new gas reserves, expanding the Snowy Mountains hydro scheme, and building new infrastructure. Meanwhile, the huge potential of improving efficiency and demand management, which could save vast amounts of energy, has largely been ignored.

Sustainability Awards judge in profile: Frasers Property's Rory Martin

Rory Martin, sustainability manager for residential at Frasers Property Australia, will be one of our judges for this year's sustainability awards.

Explainer: why we should be turning waste into fuel

A federal announcement, coupled with an uptake in state funding, a New South Wales parliamentary inquiry and several new projects in the pipeline, signals a growing interest in waste-to-energy and waste-to-fuels.

Australians don’t loiter in public space – the legacy of colonial control by design

Old imperial concepts of planning still have direct impacts on how Australians interact with public space in the inner city.

Sustainability Awards judge in profile: Linarch's Steve King

Steve King, consultant at Linarch, will be one of our judges for this year’s Sustainability Awards.

Sustainability Awards judge in profile: GECA's Kate Harris

Kate Harris, CEO of Good Environmental Choice Australia, will be one of our judges for this year’s Sustainability Awards.

GreenTag’s new ‘PhD’ helps stakeholders become product risk scholars

Global GreenTag's Product Health Declaration tool is the “first system globally to assess the health impacts of the final product – and not just the hazards of the ingredients”.

Biophilic urbanism: how rooftop gardening soothes souls

What do an engineer, a building surveyor and a mental health nurse have in common? The answer is a retrofitted rooftop garden. This was a project developed to evaluate the impact of horticultural therapy on the health and well-being of people recovering from mental illness.

To get the 'good debt' tick, infrastructure needs to be fit for the future

In distinguishing between “good” and “bad” debt, federal Treasurer Scott Morrison equates good debt with infrastructure investment. However, not all infrastructure investment announced in the budget is necessarily “good”.

From 'white flight' to 'bright flight' – the looming risk for our growing cities

If the growth of cities in the 20th century was marked by “white flight”, the 21st century is shaping up to be the era of “bright flight”. The young, highly educated and restless are being priced out of many of the world’s major cities.

Q&A: Peter Elliott AM on the enormous satisfaction of designing for the arts

Peter Elliott AM was this week awarded Australian architecture's highest honour: the AIA Gold Medal. In light of his recent recognition, A&D picked Elliott's brain on the subject of educational architecture.