Innehållsförteckning för #106 Nov-Dec 2025 från Green Magazine

We have no theme covering this issue, just five houses, two gardens and a pile of other design initiatives that express individual needs, and tackle requirements relating to location, landscape, community, local fabric, waste and budgetary restraints. It's a callout to architects and landscape architects, designers, gardeners, farmers and visionaries, working hard to meet the needs and desires of individuals, communities and the environment. Every issue brings stories of passion and commitment, this one is no exception. Take our cover house, which came about after the architect, Jason Gibney, his clients and their young kids went on a car trip together to the bush site. Patience and collaboration with local fire authorities bought insight and resulted in a unique yet simple solution that allows the beloved landscape in close. Or…

ARCHITECT Jason Gibney Design Workshop (JGDW) jgdw.com.au PASSIVE ENERGY DESIGN The house is deliberately compact in scale and carefully oriented. Passive solar design principles have guided its orientation, maximising light and warmth while shielding against prevailing southerly winds. A permeable system of pebbles and swales manage hillside runoff, preventing erosion and channelling water into gentle cascades that flow around the building. Durable, pre-finished materials minimise maintenance, while rainwater harvesting underpins a self-sufficient water supply. MATERIALS The home is a timber frame structured on a hydronic heated concrete floor slab, that is wrapped externally with a multi-layer system of fireresistant fabric and waterproofing with an outer cladding of resilient compressed cement sheets reflective of the tones and textures of the surrounding bushland. In consultation with bushfire experts and using local trades…

ARCHITECT CARD cardpractice.com.au / @card_practice PASSIVE ENERGY DESIGN The new addition has been oriented north and east with deep overhanging eaves to provide protection from the summer sun and allow light deep into the house during winter. An operable east-facing façade allows control over sunlight and ventilation. A key driver for the project was to implement passive design principles to ensure minimal energy use for heating and cooling throughout the year. MATERIALS The project prioritises a durable, low-cost and low-maintenance material palette. Robust pre-finished sheet products that require no painting or oiling were used, such as corrugated Colorbond and Genesis “Rustik Board” fibre cement sheet to eliminate ongoing maintenance. Passive house construction techniques, including counter-battening walls and roofs to prevent moisture and condensation buildup were employed. An Oriented Strand Board…

ARCHITECT Topology Studio topologystudio.com.au PASSIVE ENERGY DESIGN The siting of the house maximises northern light to all living spaces by building right to the boundary on the south side of the block. South-facing glazing was deliberately avoided apart from one small existing window. High 2700-millimetre timber-framed windows and doors face north, allowing winter sun to heat the concrete slab while a metal canopy cuts off harsh summer sun. Two rear courtyard gardens allow for secure cross ventilation and night purging. The central courtyard fosters vertical planting to cool the building fabric. West-facing glazing is minimised. Operable external screen at the west-facing study window controls sun penetration and provides privacy from rear laneway and oval. Thermal compartmentalisation is achieved with cavity-sliding doors between original and new, and upstairs and downstairs. This…

LOCATION WHADJUK COUNTRY / FREMANTLE / WESTERN AUSTRALIA • Seems like everyone wants to live in Freo and this simple design by Philip Stejskal Architecture has made room for one more family. Fremantle holds the charm of gold and wool rush boom times combined with a healthy fishing industry and, in recent years, Notre Dame University has injected new life downtown. Along with many old buildings being developed for multiresidential use, the town has become a champion of making use of spaces. Local limestone can be seen in most of the old buildings and walls along with the gorgeous influence of Italian migrant architecture with its superb brickwork, ornate columns (and stone lions). The site for this project was once the backyard of one of these Italian villas. When Philip…

ARCHITECT Alexander Symes Architect alexandersymes.com.au BUILDER Skylar Construction PASSIVE ENERGY DESIGN The view is towards the east, and as such the living spaces are orientated in that direction. All the glass is high performing and shaded to reduce summer heat loads and meet the cooling demands as calculated under the Passive House EnerPHit standard. Due to the dwelling being designed for future cooling demand needs via significant shading, the design does not meet the heating demand under the Passive House EnerPHit standard. However feedback from the client notes the dwelling is operating comfortably during winter due to its high insulation and low air-infiltration. The design operates in mixed mode, where the house can be sealed up to operate in highperformance mode during peak summer and winter conditions, and opened up…

At Landing Bakery on Brisbane's bayside, Five Mile Radius and architect Mathew Reynolds have delivered a fit-out that treats lowcarbon design as non-negotiable. Every element was designed and fabricated in Five Mile's Brisbane workshop, showing how waste can be purposefully redirected when architects stay hands-on, from drawing board to workshop bench. Landing Bakery is hospitality operators Jack Wakefield and Tom Cooney's newest venture, located in Brisbane's beachside suburb Scarborough. The brief for its front-of-house was simple but strict: connect to the coastal context while keeping circular design principles to the fore. The outcome minimised waste, extended material lifespans and ensured the fit-out can be dismantled and reused if the bakery ever relocates, rather than discarded. Salvaged materials are front and centre in this fit-out. Over half came from local demolition,…

Yesha Patel, Masters of Entrepreneurship student at the University of Melbourne, was clearing out her wardrobe during the COVID pandemic, trying to responsibly dispose of her unwearable, unsellable clothes. “I couldn't find a solution that was both convenient and transparent about where the clothes would end up,” she recalls. “That personal moment led to a bigger realisation: the system was broken, and I could either wait for someone else to fix it, or build something myself.” That ‘something’ became After, a business that recovers a wide range of textiles - from fashion and uniforms to curtains, tablecloths, bedding and towels - helping consumers, hotels, stylists, interior designers, and even councils, responsibly dispose of their soft furnishings. After also works closely with furniture manufacturers to recover fabric scraps and offcuts directly…

ARCHITECT Philip Stejskal Architecture, Philip Stejskal and Yang Yang Lee architectureps.com PASSIVE ENERGY DESIGN The two-storey family home embraces its patchwork context of varied housing and materials while maximising light, privacy and borrowed northern views. The design employs passive solar principles including orientation to the north-facing garden, generous shading, thermal mass and natural cross ventilation. A central courtyard and sliding doors funnel the Fremantle Doctor sea breeze, ensuring year-round comfort with minimal energy use. MATERIALS The home's robust and low maintenance palette draws from Fremantle's portside character. Corrugated metal cladding is durable and maintenance-free. Framing and cladding is blackbutt which is sustainable and ages naturally. The galvanised steel and mesh is industrial strength and low maintenance. Concrete floors create thermal mass and a durable final finish. The timber joinery is…

Tubular For the first time in years, Tait presents a feature round table - the centrepiece of the Correa Collection, designed to thrive outdoors. Its bulbous base, shaped with specialised metal-spinning tools, echoes the bell-shaped correa flower, or native fuchsia. The range offers eight table variations with customisable tops, from powder-coated aluminium that matches the base, to cement, travertine or marbled porcelain for contrast. Tabletops may also feature a central cavity for an ice bucket, planter or umbrella. Accompanying seating spans three 1920s Bauhaus-inspired cantilever designs - the dining-height “Correa Chair”, alongside the more relaxed “Lounger” and gently rocking “Rocker” - each formed from a single sweep of metal. All seating is available in full metal with powder-coated finishes, or with upholstered seat and back pads. madebytait.com.au Elemental Rising just…