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By Monique Alfris 23 September 2011 – For the past few months I’ve been working with Good Return an Australian non government organisation which works with microfinance partners across South East Asia Read More > >  
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By Ashak Nathwani 20 September 2011 – Here’s one for the books: “The single-minded pursuit of GreenStar and NABERS sustainability ratings for buildings is leading directly to compromises on indoor environmental quality and productivity.”... 
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By Tony Arnel, chairman, World Green Building Council 19 September 2011  – In Charles Dickens’ final novel, Our Mutual Friend, dust is literally transformed into gold by an entrepreneurial dustman who understands the value of waste. In Victorian... 
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By Rod Leaver,  chief executive officer for Asia at Lend Lease, based in Singapore 14 September 2011 – From The Business Times: This week marks the opening of Singapore’s third Green Building Week since it was established in 2009.... 
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By Lindsay Bevege 13 September 2011 – Australian cities were prominent in the top 10 most liveable cities based on the Economist Intelligence Unit’s global liveability index. But we are also in the top 10 of another index that shows us in a less... 
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By Amanda Stanaway, Woods Bagot 13 September 2011 – The refurbishment of the GPT Property group headquarters at the MLC building in Sydney’s CBD was a unique challenge and could re-shape industry concepts of older buildings. Read More >... 
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By Ann Austin, head of sustainability, Australia, project management & construction, Lend Lease 13 September 2011 – Letter: I read with interest the argument occurring in the architectural ranks about whether sustainability requires separate reward.... 
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By Michael Mobbs 14 September 2011 – It was the “cheep” that did it. Tiny. Almost inaudible. And the vet’s question, too. That did it. “Has it been vaccinated for Marek’s disease?” Little things like that. Changed my mind,... 
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By Amanda McCluskey 8 September 2011 – Colonial First State’s Amanda McCluskey, head of responsible investment and sustainability, and David Gait, senior portfolio manager of emerging markets recently travelled to India to examine key sustainability... 
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By Richard Nicol 7 September 2011 – An opportunity for adequate and accurate information about residential building efficiency lies with the continually postponed Residential Building Mandatory Disclosure Proposed Measure . Read More > >  
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By David Gait, Senior Portfolio Manager of Emerging Markets, Colonial First State, Global Asset Management 8  September 2011 – We are in the office of the CEO of an Indian bank, struggling to make ourselves heard. Just to the right of the sofa... 
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By Andrew Grant 6 September 2011 – The Carbon Farming Initiative which was recently passed through Federal Parliament brings a regulated carbon offsets market to Australia. The CFI is a national scheme that provides accredited carbon offsets and will... 
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31 August 2011 – They’re in our lives every day. Whether it’s the helicoptered observer, his staticky radio voice saying they’re “at a stand still”, or “blocked”, or “a free run’, or “avoid at all costs”. Read More > >  
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By Tony Arnel, chairman, Green Building Council of Australia 31 August 2011 – The world lost a remarkable green leader recently, with the passing of Ray Anderson in the United States. Ray founded Interface in 1973, now the world’s largest... 
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By David Parken, chief executive officer, Australian Institute of Architects 31 August 2011 – There has been some recent speculation in industry circles about the future of the Australian Institute of Architects’ National Architecture Award for... 
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By Michael Heenan, and Tim Elgood 31 August 2011 – The Green Building Council of Australia’s master class of 60 senior professionals in government, architecture services and construction pooled their resources In Brisbane on 25 August to... 
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By Lindsay Bevege 23 August 2011 – A common theme in the London riots was that the young rioters felt no stake in the neighbourhood in which they lived and so had no compunction in trashing it. Read More > >  
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By Chris Olde, general manager, HFM Asset Management 27 August 2011 – When the CBD Tenancy Lighting Assessment for offices  becomes compulsory in November, commercial building owners will be forced to become more conscious about the lighting systems... 
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By Richard Nicol 23 August 2011 – Only weeks after the details of the upcoming carbon tax were released public support is slowly turning in favour of the tax. Ad campaigns for and against the tax are running and one would hope they discount each other... 
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By Peter Scuderi, senior associate, Arup Brisbane 10 August 2011 – Governments in the UK, Singapore and Australia are moving to building information modelling, or BIM systems,  for new buildings, but are these three dimensional, real time programs... 
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By Adam Murchie, vice president, Property Funds Association 21 August 2011 – The Property Funds Association recently voiced its support for a carbon pricing system.  However, we believe the scheme needs to be widened to include complementary measures... 
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By Michael Mobbs 16 August 2011 – What does a generation of failed leadership look like? It depends where you’re looking from. During World War I, when the leaders sent millions of young men to certain, stupid and avoidable deaths, the war was... 
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By Richard Dinham 9 August 2011 – Linking Sydney from north to south by cycle and pedestrian bridges would be a great enhancement for connectivity,  argues Richard Dinham. The Bridges of Rome, Paris and London are an integral part of those cities.... 
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By Lindsay Bevege 26 July 2011 –It’s easy for economists to  love carbon pricing because they can “wave Adam Smith’s magical, invisible hand, and then leave implementation to the market”. The problem is this leaves the real... 
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By James Morgan-Payler and Lucy Watts, partner and associate respectively with the international  legal practice, Norton Rose. 27 July 2011 – The residential and commercial building sectors produce 23 per cent of Australia’s greenhouse emissions. Although... 
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By Michael Mobbs 3 August 2011 – To hear the author of these lines read them aloud is to feel something whisk away in my heart: Read More > >  
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By Belinda Strickland 23 June 2011 – The City of Melbourne, Owners Corporation Victoria and others are embarking on a project that could transform Victoria’s existing multi-unit residential buildings to become more sustainable. Here is how it came... 
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By Dick Clarke past president and fellow of the Buiding Design Association NSW 28 February 2011 – FAVOURITES: Mandatory disclosure of thermal performance and/or energy consumption is slowly but surely being implemented across the nation. The commercial... 
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By Brian McMahon, principal planning consultant, PlaceMaking and Planning, Parsons Brinckerhoff 20 July 2011 – With the release of its draft consultation plan, Public Transport for Perth in 2031, the state government in Western Australia cannot be... 
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By Richard Nicol 19 July 2011  – I’m sure most of you remember the compact fluorescent light bulb “swap for free” scheme  under the NSW Greenhouse Gas Reduction Scheme and the Victorian Energy Efficiency Certificates... 
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