Australia’s built environment generates around 27 million tonnes of construction and demolition waste each year, nearly 44% of the nation’s total.
While much of this is recovered, vast quantities of materials are still lost, highlighting the urgent need to rethink how we design, build and reuse.
Building on the ideas set out in our initial Nothing New report, Asia Pacific Managing Director Tracey Skovronek and Head of Sustainability Laura Baron spoke to Build Australia to explore how the circular economy is not a new concept, but one deeply rooted in heritage practice.
Focusing on Sydney’s sandstone precinct, Tracey and Laura highlight how these principles continue to be applied. The adaptive reuse of the 19th-century government building into The Lands by Capella demonstrates the value of retaining and working with existing fabric, showing how heritage-led approaches can inform a more sustainable future for the built environment.
