Design strategies that may include natural, mechanical and mixed-mode forms of ventilation and/or passive cooling measures to meet thermal comfort, while contributing to energy conservation.

This note was reviewed and approved for currency in November 2018. Life cycle energy analysis (LCEA) is a method of assessing both the operational and embodied energy of buildings over their lifetime. It is an easily-conducted form of life cycle ...

This note, originally published in August 2000, was reviewed by Stephen Pupilli in June 2005. Energy consumption related to Australia's non-residential buildings is expected to double between 1990 and 2010, unless a comprehensive program of energy ...

The previous version of this note (Energy Efficiency in Commercial Buildings by Deo Prasad May 1995) emphasised the need for including fundamental concepts of energy efficiency such as climatically suitable designs and forms, benefits of tailored ...

Read time: 25 minutes There has been a tendency to focus on energy efficiency measures when reducing building-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions – that is reducing heating, cooling, lighting and ventilation energy needs. However, the GHG ...

This note was reviewed and approved for currency in October 2018. The way we form our urban areas, the spaces they create and the values they embody, have a profound effect on the quality of people’s lives. Urban designer Jenny Donovan draws on the ...

This note was reviewed in October 2018 and retained for legacy. Co-housing emerged in Denmark and the Netherlands almost 40 years ago as a housing type that aimed to create neighbourhood communities that did not sacrifice the privacy of individual ...

This note was reviewed in October 2018 and retained for legacy. Co-housing has proven to be a successful and influential housing type. The reasons for its success also highlight the limits of its appeal, however, and some of the obstacles to its ...

This note was reviewed and approved for currency in November 2018. The physical destruction accompanying disasters typically creates an urgency to rebuild and help survivors get back on track. There are inspiring examples of how architects and other ...

Solutions and approaches for climate responsive design, consideration of microclimate and place-specific responses, and strategies for climate change adaptation and mitigation. Further resources: ABCB 2019 Construction of buildings in flood hazard ...