Perhaps neither when it comes to attempting to control climate change. Perhaps it will only be by the sum of the small actions of individuals that there may be some hope of progress.

Tall timber gets cheaper, better, faster — a construction technology update from recent conferences in Australia and Canada.

The most remarkable architectural legacy of the Canterbury earthquakes is the design community's realisation that engineered timber is a key material for innovative New Zealand buildings.

Future design and construction businesses will be influenced by disruptive business models, such as mass customisation, but with everyone quite comfortable with the status quo, an extremely compelling argument must be offered in order to change.

The New Zealand Building Code clause H1 (Energy Efficiency) requires minimum levels of insulation only to the exterior of the inhabited areas of a house. Is this enough?

A clear scope, well designed masterplan, building consent cohesion and coordinated infrastructure delivery are all needed to ensure that the government's latest housing plan succeeds.

Written by Jerome Partington, JASMAX: Declare labelling provides low-cost assurance to architects and consumers that your products are healthy for the environment.

The original WERS (Energy Efficiency Rating Scheme) for windows has been supplemented with WEERS — a more targeted system which considers, in more detail, the factors which influence the performance of the 'window element' of an exterior wall.

Strong leadership, development funding and less finger-pointing are needed to solve the affordable housing issue in New Zealand.

Looking around the Asia Pacific region we can see examples of how growing cities, like Auckland, need better infrastructure and more vertical building forms.