“I did a degree in environmental law to understand why we are going in the wrong direction. I should have learned more about criminal law; that would have been very helpful in understanding resource transfers." – why a multidisciplinary approach is the right one when it comes to sustainability.

Dr. Janis Birkeland, School of Resources, Environment & Society, Australian National University Faculty of Science, Canberra, Australia

Probably there are not many people in the world who have such a broad spectrum on professional and academic experience as Janis. She started with arts, holds degrees in architecture and law and a PhD in environmental planning. Environment has always been her passion and she studied it from different angles to now be able to approach the issue of sustainable development from various points of view. But next to knowledge, one needs passion and perseverance – and these also belong to Janis’ strengths.

Enjoy reading selected thoughts and you may be able to read more about Janis Birkeland’s diverse projects and perspectives in our book “MyImpact”.

Dr. Janis Birkeland’s selected quotations:
"I am strongly convinced that it is possible to design buildings and cities that would not only have a less negative impact but a net positive influence on their environment. That's better than zero waste!"

"We are still trying to mitigate the predicted impacts of future development rather than redesign existing systems.”

"Nature provides not only products and resources but also services. Today, nothing is charged for these services. We need to design buildings that create the conditions for eco-services to function and maintain themselves."

"Architects are trained to consider social needs, but not ecological ones."

"Studying art was disillusioning. It turned out to be all about marketing."

“I did a degree in environmental law to understand why we are going in the wrong direction. I should have learned more about criminal law; that would have been very helpful in understanding resource transfers."

"When we moved to Tasmania they were not really hiring women at that point. So, I took care of the kids, volunteered in a number of activities and did a PhD in eco governance."

“When I started teaching, there was a lot of resistance against ecological architecture from the other staff – the students were keen."

"Measurement is important but very often we measure the wrong things. We study the problem down stream; it's like carefully, very carefully recording how our home is burning."

"I see most things as design problems, although it is not always obvious at first that you could do things differently." The mal-distribution of resources is by design, which means they are not inevitable; they can be fixed by design.

"Meaningful work means for me creating some tangible, positive change and outcomes on the environment."

"Sustainability for me means systems that are reversible and that expand future options. This includes eco-technologies, reversible decisions and adaptability."

"I prefer the green optimum, where everybody is better off, to the Pareto optimum that just avoids anyone being worse off."

"One of the underlying problems that still characterize environmental management is over-specialization and linear reductionism."

"I think being skeptical and critical is essential to systems change. One should not be too critical of individuals but one needs to be critical of systems and organizations."

"I guess I have the ability to persevere beyond the point that would seem rational."

Some background on Dr. Janis Birkeland:
Dr. Birkeland qualified and practiced as an artist, architect (MA University of California, Berkeley, 1972), lawyer (JD University of California, Hastings, 1979), and city and regional planner. She worked consecutively as an advocacy planner, architect, urban designer, city planner and attorney in San Francisco and, in 1981, moved to Tasmania where she raised children and did her PhD in environmental planning and governance. She taught architecture in Tasmania and then at the University of Canberra, where she later started a suite of postgraduate courses in sustainable systems. She also served as senior environmental education officer for Environment Australia (Australian Government). In 2002, she published Design for Sustainability: a Sourcebook of Integrated Eco-logical Solutions. She is a director of the Sustainable Systems, a Canberra-based consultancy that uses Systems Design Mapping as a tool for eco-innovation, and teaches at the School of Resources, Environment & Society at the Australian National University Faculty of Science in Canberra.
Currently she also works on the Boards of three Australian environmental NGO’s.

Some background on the School of Resources, Environment & Society:
SRES focuses on the relationships between people and the environment: how societies shape and are shaped by the environment, how societies manage and use natural resources, and how people impact on the environment. The School focuses on degrees in: Environmental Science, Forestry, Geographical Sciences, Resources and Environment & Society.

If you would like to engage with the work of Janis Birkeland or get to know more about the School of Resources, Environment & Society, please visit http://sres.anu.edu.au/,
or, for more specific opportunities, contact joanna.stefanska@myimpact.ch or wolfgang.hafenmayer@myimpact.ch directly.