It’s tempting to blame building certifiers and the fact they are privately employed. But the cracks in the quality of our apartment buildings go deeper and can be fixed.
The Parthenon has been seen as central to the history of Western civilisation. But the building has a troubled past that is somewhat at odds with our ideas of democratic values.
When large companies move into an area, the result is often gentrification. When this happens, the economic and social costs for displaced residents is typically high.
People living with the change and uncertainty of this century need flexible and adaptable housing. Here we look at a couple of examples of what’s possible.
Federation Square may be less than 20 years old, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be heritage listed. Heritage value depends on many things including cultural significance
Design principles, known as ‘crime prevention through environmental design’, are used all over the world to make cities safer. But some of these principles can be discriminatory and hostile.
Studies show that people’s environments influence their mood. The same is true of homeless shelters, which can either help or hurt residents’ psychological well-being — and, possibly, their futures.
Mexico City desperately needs a new airport. It also needs more green space. One landscape architect thinks the Mexican capital’s new Norman Foster-designed international airport can be both.
Sixty two countries are represented at this year’s International Architecture Exhibition. In the Australian Pavilion, 65 species of grassland plants fill a black cube.
Middle-class houses in the US have grown ever larger. The average single-family home is almost twice the size of a home in the 1960s. It’s time to consider the downsides of sizing up.
Of the thousands of churches erected to serve the fast-growing communities of post-war Australia, very few are protected. Are we happy to lose buildings that are so much part of our modern heritage?
By expanding our understanding of streets and enhancing their design, every street corner could become a space to socialise, to exercise, to play, or to trade.