Opening doors to better buildings
Early next month Victoria University of Wellington’s Faculty of Architecture will be co-hosting the fifth annual South Pacific Passive Housing Conference, in partnership with the Passive Housing Institute of New Zealand (PHINZ)
This year’s theme, Passive Houses for the Masses, will consider how the innovation, technology and comfort of Passive Housing can be made accessible to all.
“In our part of the world we are crossing significant thresholds with Passive House being adopted for multi-unit housing and large-scale buildings,” says Dr Kara Rosemeier of PHINZ. “Sydney has its first Passive House apartment building, and construction is underway on a 21-unit Passive House project in Dunedin.
“We are at the forefront of innovation in the industry and represent a huge opportunity to transform the built environment. Our vision is for the buildings where we work, learn, live and play to be enablers of health and wellbeing.
“The conference showcases Passive House projects at scale from destinations around the globe with the aim of making healthy and comfortable buildings available to everyone.”
The three day conference will include six events, and presentations from 25 speakers including both international experts and local practitioners, and is expected to be attended by more than 200 experts, designers, practitioners and students.
Victoria University of Wellington was approached by an alumnus of the Masters of Architecture program who is now a PHINZ board member, to establish a relationship between the two organisations.
“Much of the work in the School of Architecture’s Building Science program is closely connected with the aims and interests of PHINZ,” says School of Architecture Lecturer Morten Gjerde. “We should be leading the way through research on this topic for New Zealand conditions.
"I hope that having the conference here stimulates interest in this topic and others related to Passive House by staff and students.”
The conference will be held at the University’s Te Aro campus from 8-10 February.