RENEW: Collaborative and Sustainable Practices for Multi-unit Housing Renovation Symposium

The RENEW symposium on 1st May 2025 shares insights on multi-unit housing renovation in Australia and across the world. It reports from the frontline of renewal practices, building on a wealth of insights from case studies, interviews, field work and reviews.

The RENEW project is funded by the Australian Research Council (LP200100053) and led by the University of Sydney with partners UNSW, COX, GANSW, AJC, Lannock Strata Finance and MaxBuild. It provides knowledge and tools to assist architects, owners and other stakeholders in renewing their buildings to better meet changing economic, social and environmental needs, delivering the RENEW Co-Design Guide for Transforming Ageing Apartment Buildings.

The symposium promotes the transformation of ageing housing into healthy, energy-efficient homes that are fit for a more sustainable future. It calls on architects and homeowners to commit to renewal rather than demolition, paving the way for a zero carbon and circular economy transition.

The symposium offers five thematic 90 mins sessions, consisting of short, snappy presentations with subsequent discussion panels.

GUESTS include: Graeme Stewart (ERA Architects, Toronto); Marianne Touchie (University of Toronto); Daniel Cheung (University of Toronto); Taryn Cornell (GBCA); Peter Lonergan, (Cracknell & Lonergan); Hugo Chan (Cracknell & Lonergan); Melinda Dewsnap (Resilient Sydney); Caren Chen (Tinworth); Ian McKnight (Sarvaas Ciappara Lawyers, Strata Advisory Services); David Glover (Owners Corporation Network); and others

RENEW research project partners: Ramin Jahromi (COX), Sharaan Muruvan (COX), Joe Agius (COX); Marco Geretto, Barnaby Bennett (GANSW); Maxbuild (James Meagher); Brian Mariotti (AJC); Paul Morton (Lannock Strata Finance)

For enquiries, please contact: sandra.loschke@sydney.edu.au

WHEN: 1st May, 9am – 5pm

WHERE: COX Architecture, 70 George St, The Rocks NSW 2000

COST: $136 (full price), $68 (concession)

CPD: 5 formal points

Project partners:

Symposium Program   

9.30am – Welcome and Introduction

Ramin Jahromi (COX), Sandra Loschke (USYD)

9.45am – Session 01 – Housing Renewal and the Profession: A love-hate relationship?

With a growing housing crisis and environmental pressures, how well is the architecture profession positioned to deliver multi-unit housing renewal? The session will focus on: (1) Current Australian and Canadian housing renewal projects and practices; and (2) Values and advocacy for housing renewal in the profession. What needs to happen to roll out housing renewal at scale?

• Housing Renewal – A Canadian perspective. Graeme Stewart (ERA Architects)
• A Sydney perspective on Multiunit-housing renovation. Peter Lonergan (Cracknell & Lonergan)
• Housing renewal and the Australian architecture profession. Sandra Loschke (USYD)

Panel chair: Sharaan Muruvan (COX), Panel:  Marco Geretto (GANSW), Brian Mariotti (AJC)

[short tea break 11.05-11.20am]

11.20am – Session 02 – Global Directions in Housing Renewal: Learning from Case Studies

• Ramsgate, Sydney. James Meagher (Maxbuild)
• Kensington Market Lofts, Toronto. Charlie Gillon (UNSW)
• Konala, Finland. Hazel Easthope (UNSW)

Panel chair: Barnaby Bennet (GANSW), Panel: Daniel Cheung (University of Toronto).

Housing renewal is a global problem that is only tackled locally. What are other countries doing, and what lessons can we learn from them? This panel presents multi-unit housing renewal case studies from Australia, Canada and Finland, and discusses their approaches.

[30 min. Lunch break 12:40- 13:10]

13:10 – Session 03 – How to ride the Green Housing Renovation Wave

Energy-efficient renovation is recognized as an effective way to decarbonize existing housing stock at scale and is expected to unleash a Green Renovation Wave. This panel reveals cutting-edge insights into energy-efficient, multi-unit housing renovations, discussing the challenges of navigating human, technological and regulatory barriers and opportunities.

• Beacon projects: Güterstrasse 30, Pforzheim/Germany. Sandra Löschke (USYD)
• Smart Green Apartments. Melinda Dewsnap (City of Sydney, Resilient Sydney)
• The Energy Performance Gap. Marianne Touchie (University of Toronto)
• Enabling Circular Renovation, Alysson Lucas (USYD)

Panel Chair: Taryn Cornell (GBCA) Panel: Joe Agius and Matthias Irger (COX)

[10 minute break]

14:40 – Session 04 – Derisking Renewal Projects: Navigating the Regulatory Landscape

Embarking on a multi-unit housing project is risky – it requires the navigation of a complex regulatory and legal landscapes involving, environmental, strata and multiple other regulations that are not necessarily clearly demarcated and well understood. Learn about their complexities and what could be done to derisk housing renewal.

• Financing housing renovations – Understanding risks and opportunities. Paul Morton (Lannock)
• Tax Matters. Caren Chen (Tinworth)
• Strata Regulations Challenges - Ian McKnight (Strata Advisory Services)
• The planning and construction landscape in NSW. Hugo Chan (Cracknell & Lonnergan)

Panel chair: David Glover (Owners Corporation Network)

[afternoon tea 16:00-16:15]

16:15 – The RENEW Guide for the Co- and Re-Design of Apartment Buildings

Housing renewal is complex, especially when multiple owners and stakeholders are involved. This session introduces the online RENEW Guide for Collaborative Apartment Building Transformation that supports collaboration between architects, apartment owners and other stakeholders to successfully transform ageing housing into healthy, energy-efficient homes.

17:00 – Closing Comments

Cover image: Guterstrasse, Pforzheim, Germany

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If you are attending for CPD points, the RENEW Sumposium will address the following criteria which will be tested through an online quiz which can be completed after the symposium, available for three weeks:

PC7: Apply and follow processes for clear and consistent communication with clients and relevant stakeholders throughout the project, including obtaining approvals from clients and stakeholders

PC 18: Be able to apply creative imagination, design precedents, research, emergent knowledge and critical evaluation in formulating and refining concept design options, including the exploration of three dimensional form and spatial quality

PC 31: Be able to identify, analyse and integrate information relevant to environmental sustainability – such as energy and water consumption, resources depletion, waste, embodied carbon and carbon emissions – over the lifecycle of a project.

PC42: Be able to prepare planning applications that comply with planning regulations.