This article discusses house energy regulations and argues that the rate of houses built to a minimum standard is a negligible proportion to an optimal performance standard. The standards should be reviewed regularly to ensure optimal economic and environmental outcomes.

This chapter provides a review and critique of the development and current status of approaches to improve energy efficiency and broader sustainability in the Australian built environment. The focus is on the minimum building performance requirements set through the National Construction Code—Building Code of Australia...

Energy justice is a social issue, and by leaving it up to vulnerable people to sort it out for themselves, we as a society risk making it even worse.

In the late 1990s a group of Victorian local government councils addressed a sustainability void in the building codes and planning regulations by developing capacity to implement Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) via the planning system. What began as a collection of largely independent initiatives progressed...

The current housing market is failing to deliver good design outcomes for higher density housing in Australian cities. As a result, dwellings are unaffordable and inappropriate for the wide range of households that are seeking medium density living. Amongst housing industry stakeholders, there is a...