Wellbeing

In an effort to better understand commuter behaviour, Hames Sharley recently assessed its own employees’ commuter behaviours in response to the relocation of its new Perth studio. The research, conducted by Hames Sharley’s Emil E Jonescu, Stephen Moorcroft and Dean Symington, made a surprising conclusion – that a simple office relocation and change in mode of working has the potential to increase employee activity levels, ultimately improving health and wellbeing in the workplace.

• Design
• Culture
• Workplace
• Wellbeing

Emerging from a crisis

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.⁠

• Culture
• Wellbeing
• Health

The importance of self-care and social connection – lessons from living alone in lockdown

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.⁠

• Culture
• Wellbeing
• Health

A series of fortunate events – how COVID-19 possibly saved my life

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.⁠

• Culture
• Health
• Wellbeing

Don’t worry about asking if you’re ok – just start a conversation

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.

• Culture
• Health
• Wellbeing

What can the workplace learn from lockdown?

Australian design firm Hames Sharley surveyed all staff across its six studios to investigate the impact of working from home and the lessons that could be translated back into the workplace.

• COVID-19
• Workplace
• Wellbeing

Ritual in apartment design – the interstice

The way people interact with a building and move within its spaces, finding shelter and comfort, is essential to architecture’s concerns. The considered accommodation of our day-to-day rituals within residential settings – arriving home, the reception of guests, the family meal, conversations around the coffee table, bathing, going to bed, waking up – is what humanises a space, makes a home and shapes our identity.

• Architecture
• Design
• Residential
• Wellbeing

Embracing the local in a post-Covid world

The idea focuses on the creation of ‘inclusive, vibrant and healthy neighbourhoods’ that are readily adaptable to the changing needs of residents while keeping to this time limit.

• Architecture
• Design
• Wellbeing
• Urban Design
• Transport

Getting back to nature

Pressure on the environment is increasing and more than ever, there’s a need to dissipate that stress and its effect on our health. It’s the perfect time to realise the benefits of Biophilic Design…

• Architecture
• Design
• Sustainability
• Wellbeing

How Covid-19 is Shaping the Future of Seniors Living

Gary Mackintosh, Associate Director / Seniors Living Leader at Hames Sharley, looks at how the design of aged-care facilities must change in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

• Seniors Living
• Residential
• Wellbeing
• Design
• Aged Care
• COVID-19

Doing your homework on working remote

For organisations new to or unfamiliar with running their businesses off-site, this can pose a challenge and leave many feeling unsettled. Here are some simple ways to ensure your chances of a successful transition are less…remote.

• Architecture
• Culture
• Diversity
• Workplace
• Wellbeing
• COVID-19

Architects and engineers, R U OK?

Architects and engineers rate worryingly high for risk of suicide. As part of RU OK Day on 12 September, we look at the factors behind this trend and what can be done to mitigate them.

• Architecture
• Technology and Innovation
• Wellbeing

The oral history of remote Australia

For more than 20 years, Professor Marc Tennant has worked to improve the plight of Indigenous and rural Australians suffering from poor oral health. We talk to him about the early days and how sometimes the best ideas are the obvious ones…

• Health
• Design
• Culture
• Wellbeing

Sufficient unto the data

A recent report from the BBC suggests that if at any point in the last week you’ve struggled to find a digital file on your phone or computer, you may well be guilty of digital hoarding…

• Workplace
• Technology and Innovation
• Wellbeing

De-stress flair

Ten easy ways to lighten your mental load and push through the new year slump.

• Technology and Innovation
• Workplace
• Wellbeing

Respecting your elders

Design for aged-care requires a very specific skill set. We take a look at the architectural, interior and urban design elements that need to be considered for a successful project.

• Architecture
• Design
• Wellbeing

Stable designs

Not only can design help settle your mind through creative pursuits, it can also result in products that enhance mental health in other ways. Here are five ideas that employ good design to improve mental wellbeing – from the very simple to the more complex and innovative.

• Wellbeing
• Technology and Innovation

A blessing or a curse?

We read about them with alarming regularity – from comedians and actors to writers, artists, architects and designers, lost to us by their own hand. Is there a greater risk of mental illness in creative people? And does new research have the answer?

• Design
• Wellbeing

Enhancing health and wellbeing through urban design

Human behaviour is intrinsically influenced by our surroundings, and as a nation predominantly made up of city-dwellers, our urban environment contributes a major part to making us who we are. Here Chris Maher, David McCarroll and Jason Preston uncover some of the tools used by designers of the built environment to enhance health and wellbeing.

• Urban Design
• Wellbeing
• Master Planning

Here we grow

Earlier this month, the population of Australia hit the 25 million mark, with the number of migrants outpacing the number of births at a rate of almost two to one - a figure reminiscent of gold-rush days…

• Culture
• Wellbeing
• Technology and Innovation

Why cultural diversity is vital in design

Cultural diversity is a critical consideration in the design sector. As our industry looks inward in an attempt to close the diversity gap, we recognise a number of advantages that a more multicultural workforce provides in enabling communities to flourish.

• Diversity
• Culture
• Wellbeing
• Design

Mitigating the potential threats of Artificial Intelligence on our cities

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.

• Technology and Innovation
• Culture
• Urban Design
• Wellbeing

The architects of remembrance

War memorials are an essential part of the Australian landscape – their beauty, symbolism and the quality of materials and craftsmanship illustrates the respect that communities have towards those who have paid the ultimate price.

To mark the ANZAC day commemorations this month, we look at the story behind three examples from around the country.

• Heritage
• Architecture
• Wellbeing

When design comes naturally

Architects and designers can learn a lot from Mother Nature – Peter Schwerzel looks at biomimetics and how taking cues from the world around us can produce outstanding results.

• Sustainability
• Architecture
• Wellbeing

Mental illnesses described through architecture

Mental disorders are something that will affect most of us at some point in our lives and Spanish-based, digital artist Federico Babina has created a new project which attempts to illustrate a number of conditions through architecture.

• Diversity
• Wellbeing
• Culture
• Architecture
• Design
• Health

Building cultural diversity through the language we speak

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?

• Diversity
• Wellbeing
• Culture
• Architecture

Feel good shopping: How retail architecture and interior design can improve wellness

When was the last time you went to a beautifully designed building and felt drawn to your surroundings in a way that made you feel better? Because the space spoke to you, ushered in relief, engaged your senses, enhanced within you a sense of… wellness? We investigate ‘The Architecture of Happiness’...

• Wellbeing
• Interior Design
• Retail
• Architecture

Begging for a better solution

The increase in homelessness has led to a rise in begging leaving cities asking the question, what is the best solution to street begging?

• Diversity
• Culture
• Wellbeing
• Urban Design