Innovative use of materials and the preservation and adaptive re-use of existing heritage were common themes among the winning entries in this year’s National Architecture Awards. Jury chair and immediate past national president of the Australian Institute of Architects Stuart…
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Renovating can be stressful, with timelines, budgets, noise, dust, or even living out of half the house at a time. If it’s tough on us, imagine the effect it has on our pets, who just don’t understand that knocking down…
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The super-cute native blue-banded bee has this week been named 2024 ABC Australian Insect of the Year. A total of 13,593 people voted in the inaugural ABC poll, with just over 50.1% (6,815 votes) choosing the blue-banded bee (Amegilla cingulata)…
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Stick vacuums have proved a boon for instant clean-ups, but some are invariably better than others, as shown this week with Choice’s latest Shonky Awards. Choice named the Acerpure Clean Lite stick vacuum the ‘worst stick vacuum we’ve ever tested’.…
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Values improved in patches around the country in October, new data shows. CoreLogic’s national Home Value Index (HVI) recorded a 0.3% rise in October, the 21st month of growth since the cycle commenced in February last year. The subtle positive…
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Lower inflation data was not enough to move the Reserve Bank of Australia this week, with the Board once again opting to leave the official cash rate at on hold at 4.35% for its eighth meeting in a row. Despite…
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Fewer than half of all Australians believe any level of government is adequately supporting recycling improvements, new research from Planet Ark has revealed. Just 43% of those surveyed agreed that the federal government was doing enough to increase recycling rates…
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Building approvals lifted Australia-wide during September, according to data released this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The new seasonally adjusted figures show that the total number of dwellings approved rose 4.4% in September to 14,842, following a 3.9%…
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Could you spend two minutes this weekend to check in on our local pollinators? The annual Australian Pollinator Count monitors the status of insect pollinator populations, including more than 2,000 species of native bee, along with thousands of species of…
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Used coffee grounds have been laid into a footpath in Melbourne, RMIT University announced this week. Major Road Projects Victoria (MRPV) and BildGroup have used concrete mixed with biochar made from spent coffee grounds, replacing a portion of the river…
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