Country holds embedded memory and narrative of place; landscapes hold knowledge, and we know that there is an interconnectedness of Country (Sky, Land, Water, Below). This architecture of Country is how we understand place. First Peoples in the industry share a commonality in appreciating and understanding that we are always on somebody else’s Country, and the work that we do primarily revolves around shaping places. So, how do we understand and respect the Country that we’re shaping? How has the Architecture of Country shaped the built environment, and where can we head if we all take the opportunity to care?

Our everyday lives are touched by the places that surround us, affecting how we understand, interact with and feel about our cities. This session in the City of Melbourne's Excellent City Series explores how conscious design practice can facilitate connection and a sense of belonging with the built environment, in turn creating culturally safe spaces. With Emily McDaniel, Jennifer Tran, Fatuma Ndenzako and Aretha Brown

Melbourne’s water story has been irrevocably shaped by progress and the impacts of our changing climate. This session from the City of Melbourne’s Excellent City Series explores how original, creative approaches and traditional knowledge are delivering innovative outcomes for improving our urban water environment. With Kirsten Bauer, Jefa Greenaway, Luke Cunningham and Sara Lloyd

From storage to scissors, egg cups to sake cups – good design is everywhere in Japan. Sori Yanagi, Riki Watanabe, and Masahiro Mori led the postwar design boom – renowned for their technical skill, application of materials, and simple design aesthetics. They created iconic household objects for everyone’s – everyday use. Recorded live at MPavilion 10 by Tadao Ando in partnership with the Robin Boyd Foundation, this talk is hosted by Japanese guide book author Michelle Mackintosh and features Jane Sawyer, Jenna Lee and Zenta Tanaka. Together they discuss the benefits of embracing good design in daily life, what makes Japanese design iconic, and how they have embraced Japanese design and craft philosophies in their practices. Below are links to some of the objects and projects discussed in this wide-ranging conversation. The Usu-hari (thin glass) Glass https://cibi.com.au/products/usuharitumbermfortwo-1 The Cibi Glass for kids + adults https://cibi.com.au/collections/drinkware/products/cibiglass1-1 Everyday Takeaway Cup – collaboration between Jane Sawyer / Slow Clay Centre x Cibi https://cibi.com.au/products/cibi-everyday-takeaway-cup Jenna Lee's collaboration with Kojima Shoten - https://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/melbourne-now/artists/jenna-lee-and-kojima-shoten/ Sori Yanagi Kettle https://cibi.com.au/collections/brands-sori-yanagi/products/kettlematte

Polyglot Theatre and guests come together for a panel discussion on the joys of engaging children and families in arts experiences that connect to nature and natural environments. From its large-scale touring theatre works to small playful interventions, Polyglot has increased its focus on the way nature and sustainability feed into the organisation and its members’ arts practice. Exploring the intersection of this mindset and the built environment allows for creative adaptations and site-specific activations.

Scent is often overlooked, yet it is an incredibly powerful tool in the context of design. In this informal discussion, our panellists discuss the science of olfaction and how it can influence our experience of space. Together, they explore some wonderful historical uses of scent, and examine how the emergence of cities created malodours that have shaped our modern-day built environments. Examining the different ways that scents can be deliberately incorporated into buildings, whether emanating from the materials used, the incorporation of plants and landscapes, or deliberate environmental scenting, this panel discussion looks at how scent intersects with history, socio-economics, and our collective memory of cities.

The way we dress is central to how we express our identity. Perhaps more than other settings, the workplace has been a site of radical cultural shifts, played out through changing dress codes. Part of the Paypal Melbourne Fashion Festival’s Independent Programme, Office Wear is a panel discussion that explores the impact, interpretation and subversion of workplace fashion standards, from power dressing, to the sartorial pragmatism of Silicon Valley and the loose bounds of post-pandemic workwear. The panel is moderated by Lucianne Tonti, fashion editor of The Saturday Paper and regular contributor to The Guardian. Speakers include Naarm-based fashion designer Erik Yvon, whose work is intended for all bodies and to bring joy to the wearer; Harriette Richards, Lecturer in the School of Fashion and Textiles at RMIT and founder of the Critical Fashion Studies podcast; and Jane Matthew, owner and manager of Swensk.

Explore the experiences, challenges, and stories of migrant female built environment practitioners working in Australia. Through discussing the challenges they have faced and overcome, this panel fosters a deeper understanding of the obstacles that female migrant designers encounter in their professional lives as well as how it plays into their interests in the chosen field. The discussion delves into the complex interplay between design, culture, identity, and migration, considering the diverse stories, tensions, and interactions these designers and academics have within the Australian context. By inviting these culturally and linguistically diverse designers and academics to speak about their experience, this talk provides a platform for these marginalised groups to build communities and bonds. This event is an outcome of the 2023 M_Curators program, which supports young and ambitious art, design, and creative workers to gain practical experience in developing and curating public events and programs. The M_Curators program is supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies.

Country is not just a physical place, but also a spiritual and cultural one. It is the land, the water, the air, and the creatures that inhabit it. It is the place where Indigenous people have lived for thousands of years, and it is the source of their identity and connection to the world. Come hear from Indigenous architects and non-Indigenous architects who collaborate with Traditional Owners on their projects as they demonstrate how architects can incorporate Indigenous concepts and materials into their designs to create beautiful, functional, and culturally significant buildings.

Place as Protagonist explores memories and place in the city through two modes of storytelling: online map-based community engagement platform CrowdSpot, and a storytelling event that brings a mix of voices together with a prompt to share a story about a time when the city made them laugh or cry. Come along to the event and hear a mix of storytellers share their stories through a medium that speaks to them, whether that’s spoken word, song, sound or dance.

BLAKitecture for MPavilion 10 will focus on the custodial relationship to Country as a means of furthering the conversation around First Peoples rights and perspectives around the impact we have to the built environment. Waterways are living ecosystems, with rights and agency. There are existing architectural vernaculars that relate to material, climate, sun, wind, seasonality etc and the Architecture of Country is embedded with memory, with traditional knowledge and fundamentally based on Care.