Habitus Magazine | Issue 55 – The Sustainability Issue

Welcome to the sustainability issue of Habitus. With extreme weather events and the cost of living rising, climate change is no longer an intangible concept to be dealt with in the future – it’s here now. What does it mean to live an ecofriendly and conscious life?

While putting this issue together, I came across the thinking of William MacAskill, a Scottish philosopher and harbinger for the effective altruism and longtermism movements. His book What We Owe the Future tackles the idea of how the decisions we make now can have a lasting impact for future generations.

So what can we do in the world of design to keep the future safe? This issue has many different ideas that address this question. For Glenn Lamont (p. 42), he has crafted an utterly unique family home with upcycled and found pieces, alongside robust materials that coalesce in a home of originality.

In our features section (p. 82) we meet a family of entrepreneurs, each creating businesses led by sustainability. We also look at two properties that have been painstakingly rebuilt after the catastrophic Black Summer fires of 2020 (p. 92).

The homes that we dive into all address sustainability in different but equally valuable ways. ‘Every Window a Garden’ by Linghao Architects (p. 128) has had walls and windows removed to allow for gardens and plant life to flourish. View House in Hobart by Archier (p. 138) addresses the cool temperatures with modern comforts like hydronic heating and double glazing.

I hope this issue of Habitus inspires and uplifts, showing all the potential that design can contribute to a greener future. And don’t forget to vote in the 2022 Habitus House of the Year annual showcase for your chance to win an incredible Design Hunter prize pack! More details at habitusliving.com/houseoftheyear.

ALEESHA CALLAHAN | EDITOR