The Fifth Estate
Our pick of the jobs: Arup; Laing O’Rourke & Maitland City Council
Go and work for Arup, the innovative engineering firm that’s had a hand in everything from the Sydney Opera House to the Melbourne Cricket Ground, as a senior environmental consultant. The company is currently working with a multidisciplinary team embedded in alongside Sydney Water to approve and renew its assets. Australian construction and infrastructure company […]
Rob Adams: Challenging the status quo on urban planning
On our latest podcast, our managing editor, Tina Perinotto, spoke with urban planner Rob Adams.
Coke you’ve done it again. In a bad way
Coke and Lion trashed Queensland container deposit scheme and now they want Victoria’s
Amy Marks, the “queen of prefab”: Why building and construction is not an industry, it’s an ecosystem
In this episode of our podcast How to Build a Better World, our managing editor, Tina Perinotto, spoke with Amy Marks from Autodesk, the “queen of prefab”, on why building and construction is not an industry but an ecosystem.
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On looking forward and looking good
Everybody needs a fresh look from time to time, and The Fifth Estate is no different.
Ed Cotter takes reins at Better Building Finance, job losses + our pick of the jobs
What’s happening in job news this week.
On the thin line between satire and dismay
News from the front desk: Who says satire is dead?
Flick the Switch – the ebook
Flick the Switch! to net zero and how to create all electric buildings, precincts and cities was a great event – 25 speakers and 4.5 hours jammed with content. But it’s never enough! So we’re building out a major ebook to cover both the content from the day and new material by way of case […]
Announcing GreenKeeper: so everyone can be part of The Green List
We’ve got HomeBuilder, JobKeeper, JobSeeker. Now we’ve got GreenKeeper!
Market pulse: activity remains strong as sustainability is equated with efficiency
Covid might be stalking the land but in many areas there’s no let up in activity. Especially in sustainability. The pandemic looks to have stirred up new opportunities for companies in the position to expand and pivot into new markets. In June, SEEK’s marketplace for selling businesses observed the highest month ever of traffic and […]
Jobs news: Victoria’s second wave starting to bite + our pick of the jobs
Victoria’s job market is really starting to feel the pinch of its second lockdown, with the state seeing SEEK job ads in July decline by 12.8 per cent on a month-on-month basis. The decline was not as sharp as the first lockdown, however, with SEEK ANZ managing director Kendra Banks suggesting that small and medium […]
On why personal responsibility is just part of the picture
News from the Front Desk, Issue 493: Sometimes urging people to take personal responsibility is a fraudulent strategy for positive change. A con that says it’s all our own fault if the planet blows up. We need to take shorter showers, recycle, don’t buy plastics, travel less. If we’re fat or sick or work in […]
On what we learnt at Flick the Switch – that we want more net zero
News from the front desk, issue 492: Here at The Fifth Estate our heads are spinning after what was an action packed five hours at our Flick the Switch event yesterday about the transition to all electric, net zero buildings and cities. The subject matter certainly struck a chord – we had record numbers in […]
What we’re reading in Australia and overseas
BNP Paribas does good French bank BNP Paribas SA released A$140 million in green bonds as a reward to 100 companies on the Australian Climate Transition Index. All of these eight year bonds pay a fixed coupon with a potential return based on performance of the index, comprised of 300 Australian companies expected to thrive […]
Flick the Switch! A Fifth Estate symposium and ebook
It’s the biggest, most exciting and critically important challenge we face in the built environment. How to Flick the Switch to a Net Zero future and all electric buildings and cities.
Flick the Switch is on – we’re really excited (and just a tad busy!)
You’ll have to excuse us for this lighter edition of our newsletter because we’ve been busy bees working on our Flick the Switch event tomorrow, which has attracted more attendees than we’ve ever had at any previous events!
On why the net zero all-electric challenge deserves the biggest brains trust we can manage (on 5 August at Flick the Switch)
News from the front desk, issue 491: There’s pretty much consensus, in The Fifth Estate’s circles at least, that going all-electric is the most straight-forward way for most buildings to hit net zero targets. It makes sense when Australia’s energy network is tracking towards the “biggest and fastest” clean energy transition in the world according […]
Jobs news: Jane Fitzgerald GSC’s interim CEO + our pick
A green recovery is on the agenda for Western Australia, with the state government pouring $60 million into environmental projects to create more than 1000 conservation jobs. The plan is part of the government’s recovery plan and will target revegetation, habitat restoration and protection of existing vegetation. The package includes new funding commitments, environmental offset funds […]
Green Gigs: Penrith biodiversity corridor, Rockhampton recycling and connecting walkways
A round up of business opportunities in sustainability, including government tenders, grants and accelerator programs.
On why we shouldn’t devolve environmental protections to the states (without extreme caution)
It’s always sobering to be reminded that Australia is the extinction capital of the world.
Spotlight on the Sustainable Australia Fund unique offer for developers and more
Tomorrowland19 – I, human: AMP Capital’s Quay Quarter Tower refurbishment in Sydney and a major water treatment plant in regional Victoria are among the sustainable projects that have tapped into Sustainable Australia Fund’s range of loans.
Cooling demand to heat up in coming years
The cooling industry will need to improve the efficiency and affordability of its units by 2030 if it is to meet a surge in demand, a new report finds.
ARENA backs Sustainable Australia Fund with $630,000
IN BRIEF: The Australian Renewable Energy Agency has today announced
$630,000 for the Sustainable Australia Fund (SAF) to expand its fixed-rate, long-term
loans for environmental upgrades to NSW and SA.
Architecture and construction can create a better world, WSU students say
Tomorrowland19 – I, human: Today’s architecture, engineering and construction students are tomorrow’s builders. Tomorrowland 2019 heard from two Western Sydney University students – Manuel Hankoo and Lavender Liu – whose passion for the built environment promises hope for the future.
83 organisations sign letter to PM urgently demanding social housing investment
More than 80 organisations from Australia’s community, housing and corporate sectors have signed an open letter to the prime minister Scott Morrison demanding greater investment in social housing.
3XN’s Fred Holt on why buildings need to be beautiful, sustainable and perform well
Tomorrowland19 – I, human: Fred Holt, partner in charge of 3XN, one of the most exciting architectural studios in the world, explained some of his firm’s sustainability philosophy in relation to AMP Capital’s Quay Quarter Tower.
Peter Poulet on the new role of the architect
Tomorrowland19 – I, human: “But it is more obvious now than ever that the architect can’t make a building on their own,” Peter Poulet says.
AMP Capital’s new “vertical village” QQT pushes out the envelope for design and sustainability
Tomorrowland19 – I, human: There’s been huge collaboration between, architects, engineers and council with a strong eye to social as well as environmental sustainability, in one of Sydney’s new skyscrapers.