Monash University wins Premier’s Sustainability Award

Monash University has won the Built Environment category in this year’s Victorian Premier’s Sustainability Awards for their residential development, Gillies Hall, named in honour of Monash alumnus – political satirist, actor and director Dr Max Gillies AM.

Gillies Hall is a new six-level, 150-bed accommodation complex on the university’s Peninsula Campus in Frankston.

The project is the first large-scale building in the country to achieve Passive House certification and showcases the university’s commitment to deliver first-class student accommodation while achieving Net Zero emissions for its operations. Gillies Hall puts occupant comfort, health and wellbeing as a central focus, at an energy and carbon footprint dramatically lower than any similar type of building in Australia.

At the annual awards ceremony in Melbourne, the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change, the Hon. Lily D’Ambrosio presented Enable Social Enterprises as winner of the Premier’s Recognition Award for their work training and employing disadvantaged people in a thriving e-waste business.

The Premier’s Regional Recognition Award was presented to the Finnigan family from Kia Ora property out of Warrnambool, a wool producing family farm that runs an ‘Ethical, Sustainable, Profitable’ program right across its site and operations.

Sustainability Victoria’s interim Chief Executive, Carl Muller, said the awards showed how management of environmental issues was of growing importance for all Victorians – no matter age, no matter where they live or what they do.

“Each year, the Premier’s Sustainability Awards continue to discover Victoria’s best and most inspiring Victorian individuals, organisations and businesses who are developing and implementing new sustainable practices,” he said.

“Congratulations to all of this year’s winners. Your contributions will have positive long-term benefits for us all.”

For more information visit sustainabilityawards.vic.gov.au