Circular Cities Showcase - Launch Event

Join us for an immersive two-day immersive showcase event, highlighting cutting-edge circular solutions to drive a more sustainable and resilient city. 

The RMIT Circular Cities Showcase is your chance to explore groundbreaking circular solutions shaping the way we design, build and live in our cities. Hosted by RMIT Activator, in collaboration with the School of Property, Construction and Project Management and supported by the City North Precinct, this event connects industry leaders, innovators, researchers, and community changemakers who are reimagining the urban future.

What’s On: 

Across two action-packed days, dive into live panel discussions, collaborative workshops, and interactive exhibits — all set within the evolving City North Social Innovation Precinct, RMIT’s very own living lab for circular innovation. Whether you're a professional, student, policymaker or community leader, you’ll walk away inspired and ready to be part of Melbourne’s transition to a circular economy.

Launch Event & Networking 

📅 5-7 pm, Wednesday 5 November

Kick off the RMIT Circular Cities Showcase with an inspiring panel of thought-provoking leaders in sustainability and innovation - including members from Evitat, HIP V. HYPE and RMIT. Stay for drinks, networking and meaningful conversations.

• Doors open: 4.30pm

• Event begins: 5pm

• Panel / Q&A: 5.15pm

• Networking: 6pm

• Close: 7pm

Moderated by  

Claire-Louise Salles, Breathe Architecture

Claire-Louise is a sustainability consultant and architecture graduate with experience across France and Australia. Holding a Master of Architecture and a Specialised Master’s in Sustainable Construction, she has worked with Bouygues Construction and WSP to embed circular economy principles into major projects. Notably, she advised on circular design for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, bridging design, engineering, and policy to drive low-carbon outcomes for the built environment.

Guest Speakers 

Gary Rosengarten, RMIT University 

Director of the Sustainable Technologies and Systems Enabling Impact Platform at RMIT University, and leader of the Laboratory for Innovative Fluid Thermal Systems in Mechanical Engineering. Gary has previously worked at CSIRO and AECOM, and holds a double honours in Physics and Mechanical Engineering at Monash University and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering at UNSW. His research focuses on thermofluids and energy systems, and is currently working on thermal batteries and large-scale thermal storage. Gary is a fellow of the Asian Union of Thermal Science and Engineering, with over $20 million of research funding secured and over 200 refereed journal article publications.

Sonja Markovic, Evitat

Sonja is an award-winning impact entrepreneur and strategist with 20+ years of experience in digital innovation and sustainable design. As Co-Founder and CEO of Evitat, she leads efforts to make  sustainable, data-driven design and construction the industry standard, uniting systems thinking and technology to accelerate the transition toward low-carbon, climate-ready living, helping keep homes insurable and future-proof.

Liam Wallis, HIP V. HYPE

Liam is the Founder and Managing Director of HIP V. HYPE, where he leads award-winning sustainable developments. With a background in architecture, urban design and property, he guides strategic alignment across the business. Liam advocates for better outcomes in our built environment through advisory roles, public engagement, and platforms like the Hypecast podcast and Collective Exchange.

This event wouldn't be possible without the generous support of our incredible partners: City of Melbourne, Evitat, HIP V. HYPE, and the RMIT Sustainable Technologies and Systems Enabling Impact Platform. Thank you for championing innovation and driving the circular transition forward.