Construcciones Yamaro: Living Building Challenge Design Competition winners announced

The Living Future Institute of Australia (LFIA), in partnership with Development Victoria, has announced the winners of the ILLUMANATE Living Building Challenge Design Competition.

The competition, categorised into professional, student (university) and people’s choice, called upon the built environment sector to design the most regenerative and restorative heritage-listed building in Australia. Participants were challenged to meet precise environmental, self-sustaining standards, ensuring the proposed project could generate its own energy and capture and treat its own water.

The focal point of the competition was a heritage-listed building from the 1970s located in Melbourne’s Sunshine North, part of Development Victoria’s sustainable mixed-use plan.

LFIA CEO Laura Hamilton-O’Hara noted that the number and quality of entries in this year’s competition made the judging process particularly challenging. “Thank you to all the teams for the amount of time and care put into your entry,” said Hamilton-O’Hara. “To see the building come to life in many unique, regenerative and imaginative ways was inspiring.”

“Thank you to Development Victoria for partnering with us to run this world first ideas competition and congratulations to all the winners.”

The winners

Professional Category

Includesign & Mine in the Sky (Team members include: Dr Angelica Rojas, Marco Cubillos, Dr Dominique Hes, Elena Pereyra, Aimee Mehan and Alexander Arboleda)

This project created a narrative that moves between the two creeks onsite, drawing from the traditional practices of the Kurung-jang-balluk people who would have rested, feasted, hunted and told their stories in those surroundings. The design highlights the potential for residents and visitors to rediscover the relationship of caring for place and each other.

Student Category

Breathe on the Land by Chon Kei Lam, from the University of Melbourne

This project aimed to reintroduce the word “nature” to the site, leveraging the surrounding remnant grassland as an opportunity to reimagine the future life of living on grassland.

“In the contemporary world, there exists a clear boundary between human and nature,” said Lam. “Nature is often referred to as plants or animals from which we exclude ourselves.”

People’s Choice

Resonance by Arkee Studio (Team members include: Rean Zhuo, Dino Delotavo, Zilin Zhou, Yu Tiana and Hao Chen)

This project combined heritage preservation and sustainability to create a thriving community hub called The Sunshine Hub (SHiVE).

This innovative project embodies the vision of evolving into a cherished community hub that resonates with significance for individuals today and for generations to come.

Entry numbers soar

LFIA has reported a 94 per cent increase in the number of entries since the first competition ran in 2016. The initial competition inspired Burwood Brickworks Shopping Centre to pursue the Living Building Challenge (LBC), and as a result, it successfully obtained Petal Certification, making it the first and only shopping centre in the world to do so.

This year’s judging panel was impressed by the quality of the 33 complete submissions, highlighting a remarkable depth of understanding of the LBC. The LBC Certification is a high-performance program that sets a benchmark for buildings that surpass conventional sustainability standards by integrating regenerative design. It is one of the most advanced measures of sustainability worldwide.

In this year’s competition, LFIA shifted its focus to existing buildings. With estimates suggesting that up to 80 per cent of buildings that will exist in 2050 already exist today, achieving net zero by then necessitates deep retrofits.

Related stories:

• University of Canterbury takes out design and build competition
• Multiplex completes heritage Sydney redevelopment
• Sydney’s heritage-listed Corporation Building revamped

The designs underwent a meticulous two-stage judging process, with a focus on three core criteria that served as the guiding principles for evaluating each submission.

In the first stage, entries were evaluated against the LBC imperatives, leading to the shortlisting of those with the potential to attain at least Petal Certification.

The second stage focused on functionality and realisation potential. Designs were required to demonstrate practicality and functionality within the context of a repurposed, heritage-listed building concept. Furthermore, the assessment aimed to determine the realistic potential of these designs in meeting the Living Building challenge, thereby contributing to a sustainable and vibrant future.

Many entries shared a common emphasis on circular economy, nature-based and nature-positive concepts. This widespread focus indicates a growing awareness in the design community of the need for practical and regenerative solutions in the face of contemporary social, cultural and environmental challenges.

Penny Forrest, group head housing at Development Victoria said: “We are so proud to have partnered with LFIA in the ILLUMANATE Living Building Challenge Design Competition, which recognises innovation in sustainable design, and aligns strongly with our commitment to creating a sustainable future for all Victorians.”

Judges of the competition included Bohemia Hookham, Lendlease; Claire Martin, OCULUS; Kai Chen, Lovell Chen; Kelvin Walsh, Brimbank City Council; Penny Forrest, Development Victoria; Roger Nelson, Roger Nelson; Stefan Preuss, Office of the Victorian Government Architect (OVGA); Tim Miller, Development Victoria; and Yuyuen Leow, Hayball.

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