People
Experts, thought leaders, trail-blazers, academics. Committed to climate advocacy and knowledge sharing.
Joost Bakker
Future Food System
Joost Bakker is an Australian environmental designer and sustainability advocate, celebrated for pioneering zero-waste systems and regenerative architecture. His innovative projects, such as the "Future Food System," showcase closed-loop living environments that integrate food production, waste recycling, and sustainable construction
Recently, Bakker collaborated with Woodleigh College on the "Futures Studio," a regenerative learning centre exemplifying his principles. The project utilizes carbon-sequestering materials like hemp, emphasizing the distinction between net-zero and truly regenerative design. By incorporating hemp as both a building material and soil regenerator, Bakker demonstrates how architecture can actively contribute to environmental restoration.
Professor Dan Hill
Melbourne School of Design, University of Melbourne
Professor Dan Hill is a renowned designer, urbanist, and educator, currently based at the Melbourne School of Design at the University of Melbourne. With a career spanning over two decades, Hill has led transformative projects intersecting design, technology, and urban development across global cities, including Manchester's Northern Quarter and Google's campuses. His expertise lies in crafting social and cultural infrastructures that respond to contemporary urban challenges.(Melbourne School of Design)
In the past year, Hill has concentrated on addressing embodied carbon emissions in construction. Through initiatives like the Environmental Performance in Construction (EPiC) database, he provides open-access life cycle inventories to inform sustainable building practices. His work emphasizes the necessity of reducing embodied emissions to achieve climate targets, advocating for a comprehensive Australian roadmap to decarbonize the built environment
Sam Peart
Hassell Studios
Samantha Peart is the Global Head of Sustainability at Hassell, an international design firm. With extensive experience in sustainability leadership, she has held senior roles at Development Victoria and Arup, driving transformative environmental strategies across various sectors.
Peart has led Hassell’s integration of sustainability into architectural practice. Her work encompasses promoting material and product provenance, advocating for certified sustainable timber like FSC and mass timber, and emphasizing adaptive reuse of buildings. She leads initiatives to embed sustainability frameworks within large organizations, enhancing environmental performance and fostering regenerative design practices.
Professor Paula Jarzabkowski
University of Queensland
Professor Paula Jarzabkowski is a strategic management expert at the University of Queensland, specialising in the intersection of insurance, risk, and climate change. Her research delves into how climate-induced disasters impact insurance markets and the broader implications for societal resilience.
In the last year, Jarzabkowski has explored the threats to home insurance posed by escalating climate risks, such as floods and bushfires. She examines the potential for insurance withdrawal in high-risk areas and advocates for policy developments to address the insurance protection gap. Her work also considers the wider regional and urban planning implications, emphasising the need for adaptive strategies in the face of climate change.
Doug Rennie
Outback Hemp
Doug Rennie is a leading figure in sustainable agriculture, focusing on the cultivation and commercialisation of industrial hemp in Australia. His work addresses the challenges of introducing hemp as a viable crop, including regulatory hurdles, harvesting complexities, and market development.
In the past year, Rennie has emphasised hemp's potential in carbon sequestration and sustainable construction. By promoting hemp-based materials like hexcore and hempcrete, he advocates for their role in reducing the carbon footprint of the building industry. His efforts aim to overcome obstacles hindering the growth of the hemp sector, facilitating its adoption across various regions.
Janis Fischer
Tract Consultants
Janis is a landscape architect with over 25 years of experience. She’s best known for her work in shaping urban infill neighbourhoods including Moonee Valley Park, Caulfield Village, and several social and affordable housing developments. She adds value from the inception of projects to shape masterplans and maximise nature-based opportunities. She believes that landscape architects play an important role in shaping the future of our cities and enhancing wellbeing, providing a sense of community, and mitigating climate change and biodiversity loss.
Janis advocates for nature positive design through her work on the Advisory Council of Nature Based Cities, having authored their Design Guidelines and Scorecard. An active member of AILA, Janis was awarded a fellowship in 2023 for services to the profession and the Institute.
Frank Burridge
Main&Frank
Frank partners with nature to create solutions of abundance that trigger positive economic, social and environmental chain reactions while cultivating the conditions for all life to flourish.
Frank has designed buildings, products and masterplans for leading organisations in Australia and abroad, strategically integrating their organisational goals with ecological thinking to deliver outcomes that are zero-waste, carbon-sequestering, habitat creating and provide myriad cascading benefits to the community and environment.
Frank's current work is at the intersection of biomaterial research & development, construction technology innovation and ecological design.