Hames Sharley understand that to fully serve our clients and projects we must first understand the cultural impact that the built environment has upon society. Within our work in the Public & Culture sector we understand that local communities need to immediately engage with the developments that we design.
Sometimes our worst experiences can be our best opportunity for growth. For Principal of People & Culture, Michael Wright, that was the case.
Michael shares his mental health journey in the hopes of encouraging ongoing conversations about everyday human struggles and how these experiences help us better understand our communities and each other.
Like many Australians, living through extended lockdowns has taken a toll on Fiona’s mental health.
Located in Victoria and currently going through lockdown number six, Fiona talks about why it’s so much harder to stay positive this time, and the lessons she’s learnt about the importance of self-care and social connections.
Thanks to a global health crisis, Director and National Portfolio Leader for Education, Science & Research, James Edwards, was forced to stay in Western Australia and catch up on some rather overdue medical tests. Despite having no symptoms, In April 2020, James was diagnosed with high-grade prostate cancer.
Having lost a close friend to suicide, Alex Quin has experienced first-hand the devastating impact mental illness can have on a community. In a bid to honour his friend, Phil, Alex writes about the need to de-stigmatise mental illness, and how the simple art of conversation can help those suffering feel less isolated.
Discussions around gender inequality are commonplace. From closing the gender pay gap and promoting more women into senior management positions, to supporting female athletes, historical gender imbalances are being rectified by addressing largely unconscious bias.
Hames Sharley, like the AFL is taking steps in the right direction to make significant improvements in this area and become more gender-inclusive; not just adding female teams, but by creating spaces which accommodate for women too.
In her book, Invisible Women, Caroline Criado Perez cites numerous examples of how women have been forgotten in a world designed by men, for men. From speech recognition software not trained to detect female voices to office air-con which is generally around five degrees too cold for women because it’s designed for male bodies; there are countless examples which demonstrate the ways in which women have been simply forgotten when it comes to designing the world they also live in.
For parents, getting out and about with little kids can be a challenging experience. From feeding ever-hungry newborns to dealing with toddler meltdowns and the sudden need for nappy changes - or head-to-toe outfit changes! - the parents’ room is a welcome respite for any parent in need of a break.
The lines between work and play are blurred as newer developments boast a diverse mix of residential, retail, commercial and entertainment spaces all in the one area. This new style of mixed-use design is increasingly being embraced for new developments across Australia, in the city centres and suburbs alike.
As part of the NEXUS // 1.5 venture offered by Curtin’s School of Design and the Built Environment (DBE), students were asked to undertake the design research through a project-based study of Wadjemup (Rottnest Island) between March – June of this year.
With homelessness affecting hundreds of thousands of Australians, this is no longer a situation we can ignore. It is time for Australia to follow the footsteps of countries such as France, Finland and Greece, to determine how we can implement urban planning tools to help alleviate homelessness.
As architects, we’re constantly asked about how we will adapt. New technologies, new ways of thinking, new societal expectations – they all affect how we design. Architecture is dynamic in its nature, constantly adapting and changing with society.
When it comes to gender equity in the workplace, considerable effort has been made by employers in the last decade to level the playing field. Even so, research shows women are still disproportionately underrepresented in upper management – without discriminatory intent, a very subtle ‘second generation’ form of gender bias still exists that can block women’s bids for more elevated positions.
Ann-Maree discusses the power of education and a love of learning as a foundation to success, regardless of gender, where a positive mindset is key. “It could be argued that, in focusing on difficulties related to gender equity, mindsets detrimental to success are deployed. Regardless of gender and one’s experienced difficulties at the time, thinking patterns of blame, self-doubt, envy and comparison are distractions to success.”
Almost a third of Australians perceived some form of age-related discrimination while employed or looking for work. Urban Designer, Master Planner and Graduate Landscape Architect, Hayley Edwards is raising awareness on age discrimination in the workplace. Check out Hayley’s article: Embracing Age Diversity in the Workplace and see how supporting policies will assist to create an equal and enabled world.
“Economic empowerment, in my opinion, is important to diversity because it enables the ability to act on a person’s authority, making financial decisions based on individual preferences.” Today we talk economic empowerment with Elise Miles Simonovski, a Principal at our Melbourne office. Elise believes women stand to benefit more from economic empowerment because they remain disproportionately restricted by discrimination and exploitation.
Today we talk sport with Madeleine Steele from our Adelaide office. Madeleine believes that sport has been an invaluable part of her progression as a young professional and would love to see women given more opportunities to flourish in both fields. Read her story today and help forge a gender-equal world. Read her story today and help form a gender-equal society.
In the lead up to International Women’s Day on Sunday the 8th of March, we spoke with Liesel Perks from our Melbourne studio on forging a gender-equal world.
See how Liesel is challenging stereotypes, broadening perceptions and celebrating women’s achievements through her article.
International Women’s Day is an opportunistic time for Grace to reflect on how growing a family and her career ambitions can coexist. But it hasn’t always been smooth sailing for the expectant mother to be. Read how Grace is raising awareness, providing forward-thinking ideas and calling out the prejudice for women of childbearing ages in the workplace.
How are you going to celebrate International Women’s Day on Sunday March 8th? We spoke with Rebecca Spencer from the Perth studio on achieving #EachforEqual in the workplace. Hear her story, her thoughts and the actions she is taking to promote equality in the workplace.
Dubai Design Week 2019, the Global Grad Show brought together the world’s top Graduates to showcase a diverse range of innovative design projects between 12-16th November. Hames Sharley’s WA Studio Project Assistant Georgina Spooner attended the event and presented her Honours thesis project in the ‘Planet’ category of the exhibition.
World Architecture Day is a celebration of both great architecture and the people who produce it. The brainchild of the Union International des Architects (UIA), its aim is to bring together architects, designers, planners and more to share their experiences and viewpoints.
It’s no big secret that one of the greatest problems facing the world in the 21st century is stemming the decline in the environment. Everyone can – and indeed should – do their part to ensure that future generations need not contend with climate change and a collapsing ecosystem.
While conditions in refugee camps are often insufferable, is it time to start thinking outside these boxes? Hames Sharley Project Assistant and Member of the National Sustainability Forum (NSF) Georgina Spooner looks at how architects and designers can help the displaced to feel like they belong in our communities.
Those in the industry have heard the same ‘hottest retail trends’ for a few years now; it’s all about experiences, niche offerings, personalisation, omni-channel, social media integration and the introduction of new technologies like virtual and augmented reality. But the truth is, these supposedly hot trends are dangerously close to becoming outdated.
Australia has a vast number of war memorials – something in the order of 6000 across the country – displaying a phenomenal breadth of design and variation. While you may be familiar with the war memorials in your own community, however, experiencing the full range of commemorative sites would be a massive undertaking.
With this week marking the twentieth anniversary of Harmony Day in Australia, we turned our thoughts towards the part cultural diversity plays in the design industry: why inclusivity is not just desirable in the workplace but essential, bringing a whole host of advantages that are lost in a less multicultural environment.
Many know Marion Mahony Griffin in relation to her work undertaken for Frank Lloyd Wright, and with her husband and business partner Walter Burley Griffin, but she was an incredible architect in her own right.
Industry bodies play a bigger part in our every day lives than many people realise. As well as unifying and supporting their members, industry bodies work hard to champion the rights of those not only within the industry, but also strive to make positive changes which benefit the wider community.
Brisbane Open House includes talks and seminars on all manner of architecture and design topics. As part of this year’s event Hames Sharley’s Queensland studio opened its doors to the public and hosted a panel event that covered the subject of urban hubs. We asked one of our recent Architectural Graduates to report on the proceedings, while broadening her own knowledge.
Adelaide has great bones. Its founding fathers planned a city which not only looks beautiful, but is highly functional and extremely liveable, but we need to be bold and seize the opportunity to create an even more vibrant and innovative place to live that is proudly local and yet globally connected…
Based on his paper titled The Biophilic City: Can it Improve Economic Prosperity, here, Darren Bilsborough summarises his paper into six key areas: biodiversity, climate change, urban farming, cooler cities, bio-sequestration and health and productivity.
The population debate is one of equal opportunity. While some Australian states and cities boom and expand rapidly, others progress at a slower rate or even decline. So, do our policymakers and society as a whole need to look carefully at putting measures in place to evenly distribute the population across the country?
Alarmingly, by 2022, Australians who have reached retirement age are predicted to outnumber children. There is also a current population shift of people from all around Australia moving to Melbourne and Sydney, leaving other cities to dwindle. What do these trends mean for our future?
It’s predicted that robots and Artificial Intelligence will play a large part in our lives by 2025, but as anyone who’s seen a Terminator movie knows, these are exactly the kinds of technology prone to misuse or mishap. Here we investigate a report highlighting the potential use of Artificial Intelligence for malicious means.
In recent years we’ve found great benefits in using 3D printers and virtual reality hardware, but it’s our investment in a time machine that’s really allowed us to experience what life is like for communities in the future.
Here we follow the Mancio family as they set out for a day at their local library…
At Hames Sharley, we like to invest in the latest technology, which allows us to provide a better service for our clients and partners. In recent years we’ve found great benefits in using 3D printers and virtual reality hardware, but it’s our investment in a time machine that’s really allowed us to experience what life is like for communities in the future. Here we follow the Mancio family as they set out for a day at their local shopping centre…
Approximately 85% of our population live within 50km of the ocean and our climate has facilitated a deeply embedded culture of life at the water’s edge. Therefore it is natural that our nation has become leaders in the field of waterfront urban design. But what are the factors that make a truly great waterfront? We present ten key considerations when for planning the perfect place at the water’s edge.
Hosting a major world event is in many ways seen as a coming of age for host countries. Seen as a way of putting a city on the map, World Expo organisers attempt to showcase their city to the world in an extravaganza of cutting edge technology, sustainability, design and architecture. But what happens when the fair leaves town?
Over the years futurists have predicted many innovations that have failed to come to fruition, from flying cars to hoverboards, but when you consider the cost implications and logistics of these inventions, it’s understandable that technology might fail to keep pace with our aspirations for the world of tomorrow. That said, one exciting and long-anticipated innovation is so close you can… well, you can almost touch it.
When unsightly concrete blocks were placed on the streets of Melbourne and Sydney, intended to provide security against terror attacks, the public outcry was vociferous and immediate. But never mind the bollards, because safety measures shouldn’t have to spoil the streetscape…
All buildings age and what was once an A grade building is eventually downgraded until its inevitable slide into obsolescence. That is unless it is retrofitted, refurbished and repositioned back to its former glory - and that’s where Building Upgrade Finance comes in…
Countless surveys indicate that an engaged workforce is more productive and profitable. Yet maximising employee engagement has become one of the 21st century’s biggest corporate conundrums, with alarming statistics showing far more than 80 percent of staff lack workplace engagement.
You can’t ever underestimate the value of face-to-face interaction. The benefits are many: you can bounce ideas off others, unlocking creativity that might not otherwise be accessed via email or text; you can gain more information when negotiating a deal, or you can simply gauge whether someone really likes that idea you floated.
It is proven that cultural diversity adds to the bottom line. The benefits of cultural diversity are many: improved decision-making, increased collaboration, better problem-solving, enhanced well-being and knowledge sharing, to name a few. But what does it look like in a real workplace?
Why do people resort to jargon as a means to look knowledgeable and authoritative when a simple answer would have done the job. These days, few people are fooled by five-dollar words when ten-cent ones will do, and jargon is all about big spending for slight return.
