We can all agree that architecture and design must, at a fundamental level, work to preserve and protect the planet. Words like biophilia, green design and human centrism are often thrown around to celebrate sustainable architectural achievements, but what do these words really mean? How do we know what features will help reduce a building’s carbon footprint, and who decides where they go?

CBE’s newest partners with CallisonRTKL feel that researchers don’t often get credit for developing the concepts and principles in these choices, or for the forward thinking that led them there. Pablo La Roche, associate vice president and sustainable design lead with CRTKL, says that he and his colleagues realized they would be doing a disservice to their practice and professionals if they did not look to academia for support — which lead them to join CBE as an industry partner this fall. Without forward-thinking research, today’s high-performance buildings would not be designed, and tomorrow’s regenerative buildings would never be conceived. The built environment that we need can only exist at the intersection of research and design, he says.

Through CRTKL’s focus on Performance-Driven Design (PDD), they implement strategies that improve the value of the built and natural environments at multiple scales. They believe in research that helps create compelling design while advancing the state of the art, so they regularly present and publish in peer reviewed conferences and journals.  As one of the largest design practices in the world, CallisonRTKL has an important influence on the state of the built environment, which gives them a tremendous responsibility and opportunity to create communities, buildings and interior spaces that have an enduring positive impact on the world.

Their design process enhances opportunities for the development of sustainable, high performance building solutions from pre-design to completion using eco-charrettes, building performance simulations and knowledge sharing. This process is fundamental to the work they are currently doing for the Chadstone Shopping Centre (pictured above) in Melbourne, Australia, reducing embodied and operational carbon along with conceptualizing schemes that could include urban agriculture. A longtime staple of their retail portfolio, Chadstone is known for its iconic gridshell roof and won the prestigious ICSC VIVA award in May 2019.

The team at CRTKL is excited to begin partnership with CBE to help make the world a better place to live for all of us.

Main image: Chadstone Shopping Centre in Melbourne, Australia. © Aaron Pocock Photography.

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