Tony Edye - Architect

How I started in sustainability

My interest in all things solar started over 40 years ago as a second year architecture student at UNSW. The main project for the year was a town planning project to master plan a new village for workers and their families from the nearby Wallerawang Power Station, just north of Lithgow.

Observing that coal fired power stations were pretty ugly blights on the environment that had a limited life (that's long ago!) my design replaced this filthy power station with a sunflower shaped dome structure which acted as a huge solar collector on the north side with worker accommodation situated on the south side, whilst underneath biodynamic farming took place alongside cattle, goats and sheep and horses.

Needless to say there were no budgetary constraints, this being a 2nd year student project.

The project was not realised, but it did start me on a long period of geometric investigation, seeking to understand some of nature's geometrical strategies which resulted in the construction of nearly 50 geodesic domes, tensegrity and inflatable structures over the next 20 years.

Interest in inflatable technology initiated an invention of an inflatable baby bath known as the Tubby Bath, which was patented and sold in many countries over a 20 year period. We finally closed the company when we could find no alternative to the pvc material from which the product was made.

I also developed a kids climbing frame The Clymon, based on icosahedral geometry, using timber struts and balls with a non-toxic clear finish on the timber. Many of these frames were sold to kindergartens, schools and playgrounds.

During this time I assisted with the curation of many alternative technology/lifestyle events, including:

I commenced a PhD in Architecture in 1977, specifically in the field of energy conservation. Research in this field led me to the consideration of zero-emission buildings with low embodied energy that would drastically reduce the impact that we have on the resources of the earth.

As a result of this research I designed an autonomous living environment for a family which recycled all it's waste, produced biodynamic food and provided it's own energy from sun, wind, biofuel (methane) and waste.

Creating a family myself had an imperative which lead me into more traditional employment, however design continued to be a main focus and in 1984 I worked with yacht designer Ben Lexcen and surfer Cheyne Horan to develop a winged keel fin for surfboards, to be known as The Starfin. This was a revolutionary development and several thousand were sold in Australia, Japan and USA.

Since these early times, when passive solar design was a fundamental platform for architectural design, many other aspects of liveability, environmental health, optimising resource use and consumption, minimising waste and establishing better relationships with the other travellers on Spaceship Earth (people, plants and animals) have merged into the broader field of sustainability, which considers our long term impact and what we leave for following generations.

I completed a course at the Eco Design Foundation "Design and Ecological Sustainment" and learnt a huge lesson about the magnitude of resources used during the life of a building compared to the energy embodied in their physical manifestation, which compels one to consider the efficient use of resources and energy efficiency and how best to embed this concept in design.

It also alerted me to the importance of environmental education and working in the community.

To this end, I have or have had membership in the following organisations and networks:

Sustainable House Day 2009

Finally being in a position to again purchase some property in 2007, I set about renovating the house to create a small office for my architectural practise, whilst retrofitting the existing building with renewable energy and energy efficiency measures.

Sally my partner and I submitted our house in SHD 2009 as a way of communicating a message about sustainability, how it is easy and simple to start and how it puts you more in touch with both the environment and the community than ever before.

We encountered normal building problems arising from poor original construction, corrosion, termites and drainage, which have had to be fixed on the way to enable installation of solar and other infrastructure.

Future

Our long term aim is to be a zero emission carbon neutral home and office which can demonstrate what can be achieved. To this end, our next area of focus will be on:

We see that there is an enormous amount of work to be done retrofitting existing houses, which make up, by far, the bulk of housing stock in Australia.

Contact Details:

Ph: 61 2 9918 5277