Future Architecture

Architecture has traditionally incorporated a number of fields in its complex processes. From mathematics to the arts, architecture involves a highly varied skill base. But one area that has not been incorporated into architecture is biology. Until now. In recent years, the correlation between biology and architecture has aligned and the two are increasingly become more intertwined. In light of increasing carbon emissions and the rise of the green building sector, architects are becoming increasingly more innovative in their design schemes.

With the release of the federal government's newest Urban Policy Forum the green building community will feel a new found sense of confidence in the future plans for urban development in Australia. Planning for a sustainable urban community has come as a priority in the new policy, which has been influenced by a wide range of experts across different industry sectors including Chief Executive of the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) Romily Madew. Upon his latest announcement, Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Anthony Albanese has assured the future planning processes will come as a culminated effort between the green building sector, government and the community in what has been labeled as an 'ideas generator'.

Queensland has seen some devastating effects as a result of natural environmental disasters such as the powerful floods they experienced at the beginning of this year. In light of the damage caused by the floods, both the federal government and Queensland state government have banded together in order to use the excess water more effectively. In the latest reports, the combined government entities plan to harness the wet season floodwaters and channel them into irrigation systems. In creating an irrigation system that puts the floodwaters to positive use, the government hopes to protect infrastructure from the effects of the environment, as well as harness the water efficiently.

In 2008, Marita Cheng identified a problem: too few girls in engineering, the field of her passion. Deciding to do something about it, Cheng and a number of her peers formed Robogirls, a student club which would set up and run LEGO robotics competitions for girls' schools around Melbourne, with teams receiving training and support in the lead up to the completion. What started from there has now grown into an organisation introducing girls to engineering in schools not just across Australia but also in England, Ireland, Holland and New Zealand.  Robogirls' success has now earned Marita the 2012 Young Australian of the Year.

A Melbourne school is creating great industry waves for its mix of stunning architecture and environmentally responsible principles. Acting as an incredible promotion of green thinking to both the young students attending and the wider community, is the junior building at Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School (PEGS). While the striking building, transformed by architectural firm McBride Charles Ryan is completely passive in its design, an absolute feat in its own right, it is its aesthetic that truly stands out. Oftentimes in green building projects a building's visual appeal is ignored in order to focus on the sustainable building aspects. While environmental responsibility may be more important than design greatness, it is incredibly positive to see such a prime example of a culmination of these ideas executed so elegantly.

Helsinki's Vantaa airport is taking the saying 'making yourself at home' to heart with the interior design for their newest travellers' lounge. No matter how hard airport designers try to make these international, heavy trafficked areas romantic and luxurious, there is no doubting the dread that most of us feel on a 6 hour lay over or extended visit. While there can be no denying the luxuriousness of this interiorly designed space, what the designers have cleverly done is steer away from the clinical coolness of traditional airport lounges and thrown a knowing look back towards creature comforts. The aptly named 'Almost @ home' lounge features interior aspects that have been chosen to most correctly reflect a Finnish, or any, home.

When moving towards a sustainability goal in the architecture and construction industry, eco-technologies are often the first choice that builders and designers make. While these additions are successful in decreasing, or even eliminating, excess carbon emissions expelled during the construction or running stages of a building's life, there are much simpler organic processes that can be used to simply decrease a reliance on brown energy use. Orientation Planning is a prime example of a simple, zero technologically driven sustainable building concept. Through the careful positioning of a building, its reliance upon technologies, green or otherwise, to control the interior climate can be dramatically reduced, or even eliminated entirely.

Urban farming, vertical forests and sky garden design concepts are currently seeing a huge amount of global attention. The reason being is that they offer to answer a huge question for most living in city spaces: How can we live a greener lifestyle in the city? That question is answered through these incredible designs. Urban farming offers to cater to the food needs of cities in a way that is sustainable and doesn't involve high levels of carbon emissions through transport processes, vertical forests add extensive green spaces in areas that are space short and sky gardens add a sense of community and a greener lifestyle to otherwise 'brown', boring living spaces.

Architecture in China can so often be polarising. In fact, the entire industry seems to have that affect on the world. There are those who applaud the Chinese for their extensive and rapid construction work, which includes the world's fastest apartment construction, the creation of entire cities in just five years and of course the developments in Shenzhen, one of the world's fastest growing cities. And then there are others who critique the country for having a 'fake' and 'blood soaked' GDP due to high levels of what some have labeled 'dangerous and unnecessary' industry work. Well, the design debate has been sparked yet again with the unveiling of China's latest industry venture.

Due to its incredible benefits, both physical and mental, the connection between interior and exterior architecture has increased in popularity. This is especially relevant in neutral climes, where temperatures tend not to be too extreme, especially in terms of the colder months. Here in Australia, the inside/outside design element is often essential, as our mostly warmer climate allows us to embrace the fact that open-air spaces work best. Landscape architecture plays into this reality, and is now really finding its relevance as we move further into outdoor spaces. One design located in Melbourne is showing the power of landscape architecture in creating community spaces without walls.

The city of Melbourne has just unveiled their latest industry show-stopper with the government announcing its Melbourne CBD expansion plan. The major redevelopment, announced by Planning Minister Matthew Guy, will see the city centre grow from 180 hectares to 900 hectares in an unprecedented growth spurt. Aesthetically, Melbourne will change. In the same vein as Sydney's Barangaroo, this latest southern development is going to change the face of a city that is growing in both size and popularity; with current population growth at an enormous 85,000 people per year. Named as the world's most liveable city in 2011, both the Melbourne industry, especially those in the architecture and construction facets, and government are standing behind this expansive redevelopment.

A line between art and architecture has truly never been formed. Throughout history the two different disciplines have interlinked, with the latter, for the most part, strongly reflecting, and often relying upon the former. However, functionality, building codes, economic shortages and a number of different factors can often get in the way of artistic freedom in the modern industry. In fact, many critics have argued about the displeasing aesthetics that the rise in green building is having on this industry. While that may be debatable, the relevance of art to architecture has not been forgotten. In fact, one new project has used the strategic inclusion of artistic modes throughout in order to reflect the zeitgeist of an era.

In architecture,  it is a rare occasion that an image of a built structure is as striking as the concept drawings. It is a sad truth, but often the structure has to be walked in and felt in order for its true aesthetic to shine through. In fact, often the more innovative and arresting the concept image, the less chance that the building will even be built. However, there are the rare few that actually outshine their concept images and intrigue us as to how they were ever constructed. World-renowned architects Daniel Libeskind have done just that with the completion of the incredibly 'Reflections at Keppel Bay' development.

While feeling safe and secure is a universal need, the strategies through which this need is met have changed over time and across cultures. Recent natural disasters and terror attacks have contributed to a heightened level of interest in how best to protect public buildings and associated structures from natural or man-made events. Within Australia, the National Construction Code (NCC) defines types of building and associated structures, in addition to providing technical advice for their design and construction. The NCC covers such matters as structural integrity, fire resistance, access and egress, services and equipment, and energy efficiency as well as aspects of health and amenities.

The idea that the environment can aid healing is not a new one. In her book 'Healing Spaces", Dr. Esther M. Sternberg has explored the health benefits to patients on both a mental and physical level when exposed to plants and larger organic environments. Australian industry giants Brookfield Multiplex and HASSELL are taking on these principles and shaping their design and construction processes with environmental healing as a key foundation of their latest Perth healthcare development.

Australian architecture authority Archicentre has sent out a warning to the national architectural community that aging city buildings must be properly maintained in light of a recent, and dangerous, building related incident. The accident occurred when a large slab of marble located on the façade of a commercial skyscraper on Melbourne's Collins Street became unattached and fell causing damage to both the building and side walk area, highlighting the potential threat that these unmaintained buildings hold. Defects that the architecture authority have urged building owners to crack down on include façade staining or discolouration, sealant failures, efflorescence, rising dampness and water penetration, corrosion, buckling or deflection and plaster of tile delamination, says Manager for Archicentre West Australia Maureen Letter.

One major green belt that has seen the devastating results of deforestation is the Amazon jungle. From 1991 until 2001 the total area cleared jumped from 415,000 km2 to 587,000 km2, proving that this massive, unsustainable deforestation effort has not been just a thing of the past. In fact, it was only last year that deforestation figures slowed to their lowest numbers yet. For many in the green building industry, that is how they would like it to continue. Offering to lead this conservation effort is London-based architectural firm Marks Barfield. Who have impressed architecture and environmental communities worldwide with their £6.4m proposal for a research centre in the Amazon, which will include a central, tree-shaped observation tower and 6 miles of tree top canopy walkways. Due to the nature and function of this tower, in addition to the limitations that the rural, fragile Brazilian environment holds, a sustainable building ideology forms the foundation of the proposal.

Even with all of the effort going into infrastructure and damming solutions to support flood-ravaged areas of Australia, Queensland and New South Wales continue to battle against water levels that are simply too high. The latest floods up north have been so extreme that some areas still remain completely isolated with more storms and extreme weather conditions to continue. While these areas face the brunt of the flooding in this country, and have a long history of these events, the support, ongoing and present from both government and public entities, means that responsive action has been swift with future irrigation planning in place. However, these freak weather incidents will still occur, and several architectural bodies have called for a push in further resilience planning

We in the construction and design industry are currently going through a greenwash, a saturation of sustainability. In fact, we may be creating it. This public sense of exhaustion and lack of understanding in response to environmentally conscious mentalities and building processes, anything labeled 'green' to be precise, is causing an increased apathy in the entire sector and is impacting the communication of projects and concepts. Yet we are only adding fuel to the fire. We in this industry, and even those who are not, are confusing two key terms; that of Green Building and Sustainability, in turn creating confusion through misrepresented and easily misunderstood jargon. The thing is, it's universal. And ever so easy to accidently do.

Shaking up the Perth Skyline is a construction venture that brings together architecture acumen and functionality. A mix of these two parts can only create statement-making buildings. Developed by Leighton Properties, Stage One of the Kings Square development is set to have a substantial impact on the area both visually and in terms of market value with the project featuring as a major commercial venture in our most recent market analysis. After an unsettled 2011, its seems the construction giants are coming back in full force with a number of what promise to be statement making developments. The Kings Square development will be located on the former Perth Entertainment (PEC) site and will have a mixed-use function.