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Your location: Home > Smart Housing > News > Smart Housing Update - February 2003

Smart Housing Updates - February 2003

Download the February 2003 Smart Housing Update (40Kb) for printing.

In this update…

• Endeavour Prize Home showcases Smart Housing
• Welcome book: Design Ideas for Accessible Homes
• Accessibility and the Australian Building Codes Board
• Smart and Sustainable Built Environment Conference - call for papers
• Sustainability training through GILD
• Leadership in Sustainability workshop

Endeavour Prize Home showcases Smart Housing

Minister for Public Works and Housing Robert Schwarten officially opened the latest example of Smart Housing last month - an Endeavour Prize Home in Samford Valley.

The Queensland Smart Housing worked with the Endeavour Foundation and the builder, Waratah Colonial Homes, to include some of the principles of Smart Housing into the design of this house.

Mr Schwarten said the lucky winners of this house will enjoy its comfort and livability. "They will also feel safe and secure, have low ongoing maintenance costs and best of all, save money on costly energy bills. The house is also more environmentally sustainable, which is good news for everyone," he said.

Mr Schwarten encouraged anyone who is considering building, designing or renovating their home to visit this house to see the benefits of Smart Housing for themselves.

The Prize Home is open to the public from 9am until 5pm every day until Monday 3 March, with the winner being drawn on 6 March. The address is 56 Showgrounds Drive, Samford Downs Estate, Highvale. For more information about the Prize Home, visit Endeavour prize homes website or call the Endeavour Foundation on 1800 63 4040.

Welcome book: Design Ideas for Accessible Homes

As part of the Smart Housing initiative, the Queensland Smart Housing participated in a project to develop a publication describing universal design for Australian housing.

The book, Welcome: Design Ideas for Accessible Homes, is Australia's first comprehensive guide to designing more accessible homes. It was prepared by leading Government agencies in Australia and New Zealand with organisations in the building industry, to promote the design of more functional and accessible housing design.

Welcome: Design Ideas for Accessible Homes can be purchased for $54.45 (including GST) by phoning the Building Commission on (03) 9285 6413 or visiting the Building Commission website.

Accessibility and the Australian Building Codes Board

Draft measures to improve access to public buildings throughout Australia for people with a disability are expected to be available for public comment late in 2004.

The Australian Building Codes Board has been working on the measures since 2001 at the request of the Commonwealth Government and with the support of the various State and Territory Governments.

Board Chairman Peter Laver said the Board recognises the strong industry and community support for greater certainty in the area of accessibility and the built environment.

"The Board's objective and number one priority has been to codify the level of building access and facilities for people with a disability in a manner that is suitable for adoption as part of the Disability Standards for Access to Premises (Premises Standard) under the Commonwealth Disability Discrimination Act," Mr Laver said.

The proposed amendments will address access to all public buildings. While privately-owned residences are outside the scope of the Premises Standard, the Board has acknowledged the community interest in accessible, adaptable, and visitable housing and of changing community expectations.

Mr Laver said the question of whether or not individual jurisdictions wish to regulate for accessible housing, and how they do that, is a matter for the State and Territory Governments.

In keeping with its goal of promoting nationally consistent approaches to building regulation, the Board has decided to include accessible housing on its program for this year and has agreed that a discussion forum to develop a future work plan will be held early in 2003.

For further information about the Board's work program in relation to accessibility, please phone Matthew McDonald on (02) 6213 7289 or email Matthew.McDonald@abcb.gov.au

Smart and Sustainable Built Environment Conference - call for papers

The deadline for abstracts for the Smart and Sustainable Built Environment Conference (SASBE2003) has been extended to 24 February 2003.

This conference aims to encourage the development and implementation of smart and sustainable built environment strategies, while encouraging global networking, especially in the greater Asia-Pacific region.

The Conference is jointly organised by the Queensland University of Technology in Australia; the University of Salford in the United Kingdom; and Carnegie Mellon University in the United States.

Conference themes:

• Smart and sustainable buildings, districts, cities and the community.

• Management of knowledge on smart and sustainable built environment.

• Evaluation and assessment on the methods and techniques of smart and sustainable design and construction.

• Communication and education of smart and sustainable development principles.

• Innovative building systems and technology. High performance building materials and products.

• Sustainable energy use.

• Smart and healthy workplace.

• Sustainable development and construction processes.

For more details visit the International Conference on Smart and Sustainable Built Environment website.

Sustainability training through GILD

The Global Institute for Learning and Development (GILD) is offering the following training from February through to April:

1. Sustainability Practitioners' network breakfast

Triple Bottom Line Accounting and the Social Dimension:
What is it? Why do it?

Keynote speaker: Marcelle Holdaway (M.Env Studies)
Date: Thursday, 6 March 2003.

2. The Natural Step Framework: One and two day workshops

The Natural Step Framework is a strategic planning tool that provides a clear vision and a scientifically rigorous definition of what it means to be environmentally sustainable. It gives experts, non-experts, technicians, management, planners and accountants a common language with which to integrate environmental considerations into strategic business decisions and day-to-day operations.

"The Natural Step provides an elegant framework, a compass, to guide us on the road ahead and is a powerful tool for all seeking a new mental model to move their organisation into a sustainable future." ~ Maurice Strong (Earth Charter & Rio Earth Summit 1992).

Dates: Various in February and March 2003.

3. Sustainability as a Worldview: One day sustainability education workshop

What does sustainability really mean? How is our view of the world and its current social, environmental and economic problems conditioned by our existing values beliefs and assumptions? What is the way forward to a form of future development that integrates concern for people, planet and prosperity?

This one day facilitated course offers an introduction to the notions of sustainable development and sustainability. It is targeted to the learner who has little or no prior understanding of these topics. The workshop content will also be available in on-line mode from April 2003.

Dates: Various in February, March and April 2003.

For more information on any of these events contact Andrew Nicholson, Sustainability Education Manager, Global Institute for Learning and Development (GILD) on (07) 3856 0533, email andyn@gild.org.au or visit the Global Institute for Learning and Development website.

Leadership in Sustainability workshop

The Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) is hosting a Leadership in Sustainability workshop on Wednesday 26 February at the Stamford Plaza in Brisbane.

This workshop is a unique opportunity to hear about initiatives in the sustainable development industry. The workshop will focus on the attainable and achievable innovations and features to be included in the UDIA's champion projects to realise economic, social and environmental sustainability.

The workshop will be held from 3.00pm until 5.00pm with drinks to follow. The cost is $66 per person for members and $79 for non-members.

For more information call the UDIA on (07) 3229 1589.

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Smart Housing depends on your feedback, comments and suggestions. We also welcome contributions to this newsletter.

For more information on Smart Housing, please contact us on (07) 3224 4961, email smarthousing@publicworks.qld.gov.au

Last updated March 2007