THE PRICE we have paid for skyscraper views and hot and cold running water may be steeper than we think.

In the frenzy to build homes and offices, and to fill these living spaces with everything we have come to believe will make our lives more ?livable? ? comfor- table, convenient and cushy ? we may have in fact been creating a scenario that threatens to choke the very life from the earth and eventually, from all its inhabitants.

Our oceans and rivers have become so polluted that coral reefs, fishes and sea birds have been put on the endangered list. The pollution from industrial waste, illegal logging and wrongful metals and oil mining have so messed up the earth?s natural balance that we have been visited by horrendous extremes of weather changes, leading to vast areas of drought and flooding.
The blessing perhaps is that we have come to realize this at least while there is still time to consider how we can reverse the seeming cycle of destruction.

Does going modern have to mean the eventual end of Mother Earth? Can we still continue to build without destroying what?s left of our world?

Faced with these questions, a young Filipina architect working in one of the most prestigious residential firms in Australia, has proven through actual projects that we can in fact have even more liveable dwelling places without inflicting further damage on the planet and on ourselves.

Aya Maceda is a project architect for medium density and single dwelling projects and leads the interior team at Popov Bass Architects. She has over 10 years of experience in design and administration of projects, ranging from single dwelling to high-rise as well as award-winning public and commercial buildings in Australia, Singapore and the Philippines.
Maceda believes that the needs of the world?s growing population must still be met. And the only way to meet those needs is to continue to build ? but with a new consciousness for the environment. The effort has to be integrated and total, she says, and we will certainly need laws and regulations that will punish ?environment transgressors? and reward companies for choosing to construct ?greener.?

In cities for example, ?the big idea for urban housing? is how much the building as a whole is able to save on energy. For PBA projects, Maceda explains, ?We use passive design as a base ? designing spaces with cross-flow ventilation, open spaces that let natural light in but orienting the building to block harsh afternoon sun. Our walls are well insulated so that we do not rely too much on air conditioning to achieve appropriate comfort levels.?

The key is to let the houses and apartments breathe and interact with the rest of their surrounding environment. ?As a standard, we collect rainwater on our roofs to flush toilets, for laundry and irrigation. We also use water-efficient taps and toilets to lessen water consumption in our residential projects. And for light and energy saving, we make sure our spaces are designed to take advantage of natural sunlight to lessen the need for artificial lighting.?

Solar power and energy efficient lighting are also essential ?compact fluorescent with warm color rendition and LEDs. ?We use very little halogen lights ? usually only as accents and art lighting ? and they would have to be energy efficient MR-16 halogen lights as a minimum.?

At 33, Maceda?s career is just beginning but already her vision to build better living spaces that reflect concern for the environment is evident. She designed a library in Sydney that received the Royal Architects Institute of Australia?s NSW Premier?s Award in 2007 and a Commendation for Public Buildings in 2006. Significantly, she received this award in a city that prides itself on clean air and quality of life, where buildings have to pass codes not just for safety but also for environmental impact.

Maceda credits her success and design aesthetics to her firm?s owner, Alex Popov, the leading modernist architect in Australia.

?I wanted to learn and be involved in a design studio that has a culture of empowering their designers. It is a true collaborative atmosphere in our practice. We have endless design dialogues within the office. Here, the type of modernism we do is warm. We subscribe to a calm modernism and create light-filled, warm, open spaces with clear structural systems that give joy to their users.?

She admits that while green designing is standard for her and her team, and is the easy part, it?s not always easy to get clients to invest in green technologies. The capital outlay can be huge, with investments coming back only after a number of years. In such cases, it?s essential to ?give the clients facts on how long it will take them to get their investment back, how much energy it will save them in the long run, how much maintenance will be diminished in the long run ? like changing bulbs every 10 years rather than yearly. Basically, it?s getting them to realize that having a sustainable house in itself is reason enough.?

This fairly vast experience so early in her career Maceda still hopes to expand, hopefully in the near future, in her own country.

?We?ve started doing residential work in Vietnam and we are keen to expand in the region,? she says. ?Since I am from Manila, I want explore finding work in the Philippines. It would be ideal to set up a Manila office if the right opportunity arises. And yes, I do want to participate in the evolving design culture here.?

Her dream project remains the one she will put up in the Philippines. ?There is nothing like going back to your roots and being a part of the energy here. The ideal project would be anything from a resort/residential development or a high-end sustainable house. With the combination of a visionary client who wants a modernist and sustainable product and a good consultant team with a common goal, the possibilities are endless.?

Maceda shares what she believes are the top three smartest and latest energy saving/green design ideas today:

Green roof for insulation and rain water collection. A good waterproofing and overflow drainage system is necessary for this.

Solar power/photo-voltaics to offset kilowatts used in the home.

An automation system in one of the buildings she worked on, which controlled louvres which moved with the sun, giving protection to the building?s glazing and resulting in less work for the air-conditioning system. At night, the building purges itself through high-level open windows, to release the remaining heat while the building is not in use.

There?s also this novel idea to get urban city planners to get on the ?green? bandwagon:

?A ?green star rating? should be applied any new buildings to be constructed. At planning level, the building should meet sustainable standards to be able to obtain a building permit. If a building gets the highest rating, this can serve as a marketing tool for developers too. There should also be government aid and incentives for applying energy efficient technologies, such as rebates for spending on solar power or installing rain water tanks.?

Whether in Australia where she gets to incorporate all these green ideas into actual projects ? or in the Philippines, where she hopes to also showcase her work ? Maceda insists that in the face of climate change, sustainable design should not be a choice but should be integral in the construction. ?