Australian Architects Declare

Want to know what we’ve been up to and what we’ve got planned!? Join us for our Annual General Meeting + Party (in person & online)!! Wednesday, December 10 6:00-7:30pm (+ continued after party) In Person: Sydney COX office & Melbourne COX office Online: meeting link to be sent out with RSVP Yummy FOOD & DRINK will be provided!! Please RSVP: https://lnkd.in/gJ73sX-c Big thank you to Cox Architecture for sponsoring/hosting this event!! #AustralianArchitectsDeclare #ClimateAction #VolunteersRock #SustainableDesign #SustainableArchitecture

Perth, we’re heading your way this Thursday for the final ProductAware National Symposium. If you’re a specifier, architect, manufacturer, supplier, or builder, this event is designed to support better decision-making through access to transparent sustainability information and real industry insights. There’s still time to secure your place — register here: https://lnkd.in/gCrQ-YAa

ADVOCACY ALERT: Last month we joined over 120 other organisations to support the Healthy Homes for Renters joint statement calling for improvements to the quality, affordability, and energy efficiency of rental homes around Australia. Help us amplify this call! Everyone deserves a healthy and sustainable home!! Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/gifaeb5N #HealthyHomesforRenters #HousingCrisisAustralia

Attn: all AAD members, signatories, volunteers and enthusiasts Mark your calendars!! Our Annual General Meeting is penciled in for Wednesday, December 10th from 6-7:30pm! In-person and Online options for attendance will be available. Stay tuned for more information coming soon!

The interiors industry is full of creativity, craft, and innovation. But behind the beautiful finishes, furnishings, and materials, there’s a less visible side of the story: the people who make them. And the uncomfortable truth is that modern slavery and labour exploitation remain widespread across global supply chains, particularly in products and materials commonly used in interiors — from textiles and timber to metals and furniture. If you’re an architect, designer, specifier, or supplier, understanding where the risks lie in your supply chain is a key step to taking meaningful action. The good news? You don’t need to wait for a perfect strategy to start making a difference. In my latest article I share 5 practical actions you can take right now that will make a difference. What could you start this week? https://lnkd.in/gFypWimk

I have attended the Australian Architects Declare series on Material Shift, a fantastic conversation about the future of materials in our built environment. The first conversation centred on one truth: our material crisis is inseparable from our energy crisis.
We’ve built a world dependent on petrochemical materials — and in doing so, we’ve drifted far from our relationship with the natural world. 4 key insights that resonated: 🔥 We’re exceeding the planet’s safe limits
Many of the materials we specify today are made from oil byproducts.
Standardisation and “pre-approved” products have replaced curiosity.
We are designing inside an inherited system — not questioning it. 🌍 Fossil fuels are embedded in more than energy
Plastic is fossil fuel and cement releases ancient carbon back into the atmosphere. Even timber supply chains rely on fossil-powered machinery.
To solve materials, we must also face the energy transition. ♻️ Waste is a design decision
As Amy shared, the volume of construction waste is enormous — and composite materials are particularly difficult to reuse.
Circularity demands new business models, like deconstruction and material recovery partnerships.
Design must consider disassembly from the start. 🧑🤝🧑 Sustainability must also be ethical
As Libby reminded us: a “sustainable” product may still involve modern slavery, child labour or debt bondage.
And as Kendall noted: if we can’t pronounce a material, should it really be in our homes or in our bodies? The role of the architect is shifting.
Not just a designer but a material custodian, systems thinker, advocate, and collaborator.
We must ask harder questions, expand our boundaries, and build less — but build better. Well done Corey Arkins, Lucy Humphrey and Kendall Claus LFA, LEED AP for organising such a fantastic event. And thank you to the panellists Libby Staggs, Ben Berwick, Amy Seo and Kendall Claus LFA, LEED AP. #MaterialStewardship #CircularEconomy #ClimateTransition #RegenerativeDesign #ArchitectsDeclare #SustainableConstruction #EthicalSupplyChains #DesignForDisassembly #BuiltEnvironment #EnergyTransition #AustralianArchitecture #HealthInDesign

Last night’s final Australian Architects Declare event was a powerful reminder that the future of building our cities won’t come from improving the status quo — but from rethinking it entirely. Here are 3 key insights that stayed with me: 🚀 1. The future must be irresistible, not just sustainable When people wanted a faster horse, Henry Ford built a car. Incremental change isn’t enough. We need solutions that are compelling, desirable, and better than mainstream options. Urgency alone won’t mobilise change — aspiration will. 🧪 2. Material experimentation is an opportunity. Trying a new material always feels risky until you do it — and discover a whole community already exploring the same path. Whether working with waste streams or biomaterials, we can let materials guide design, rather than treating them as an afterthought. 🌏 Material stewardship is a way to connect with Country. Materials carry stories of labour, ecology and care. We’re entering a time where “Who grew your building?” may become as meaningful as food provenance. This is an opportunity to reconnect with Country through practice, not symbolism. We are not just designing buildings — we are designing relationships: with place, with materials, with communities, with the future. Thanks Corey Arkins, Lucy Humphrey and Kendall Claus LFA, LEED AP for organising the series! And thanks to the panel for sharing your insights! Libby Staggs, Michael Jones, Alex Symes, Hannah Carlon and M. Hank Haeusler #ArchitectsDeclare #MaterialStewardship #CriticalRegionalism #RegenerativeDesign #CircularEconomy #Localisation #ConnectionToCountry #SustainableArchitecture #BuiltEnvironment #FutureOfDesign #AustralianArchitecture

To build sustainably with impact the numbers must stack up. So, we need to discuss how we can connect climate risk, sustainable design and return in real estate value. Our next event, this year's second last in Melbourne, will exactly do this on Tuesday evening 18 November. Here's a link for details and tickets: https://lnkd.in/eArQpkmS We have a great line up: Georgia Warren-Myers – Associate Professor in Property, Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning The University of Melbourne Rob Quadara – Manager, Impact Assets at Bank Australia Liam Wallis – Founder and Managing Director, HIP V. HYPE David Harrap – Director, Forum Studio (doing a Passive House townhouse development) Lisa Roberts - Belle Property 18 November, 6-8:30pm, MicDrop Carlton, 333 Drummond Street, Carlton Hope to see you there and voice your opinion.

Announcing the 3rd and final event in our Materials Shift Series! The Path Forward: How do we shift specification culture? In this session we’re looking forward…toward the materials future we want to shape together. This event invites both established and emerging voices to explore: 💡What kind of material world do we want to create? 💡What are the tools and mindsets we’ll need to get there? 💡What role can design, technology, policy and education play in making it real? We’ll be sharing ideas, hearing from 5 inspirational speakers, and opening the floor to possibilities!! ⏰ WHEN: Nov. 11 | 5:30pm 📍 WHERE: Sydney | UTS DAB ✔️ RSVP: https://lnkd.in/gJxgCtXP Speakers include: 🔹 Libby Staggs – Director of Sustainable Business Matters 🔹Alexander Symes – Architect & Director at Alexander Symes Architect 🔹 Prof M. Hank Haeusler – Director at ArchManu, UNSW 🔹 Michael Jones – Architect & Studio Lead at AJC Architects 🔹 Hannah Carlon - Graduate Student at USyd School of Architecture #futurematerials #regenerativedesign #specculture #studentvoices #architectsdeclare #buildingforabetterfuture #climateaction