Impact
In May 2019, Kosloff Architecture became a Certified B Corporation, formalising our commitment to build a better, more sustainable business model. A model that holds us accountable for our social and environmental performance.
In line with this new model for business, we have developed a charitable giving policy that is integrated into the practice’s operations, delivered in partnership with B1G1, ensuring all the work completed in our offices have a positive impact on our global community.
Our ownership structure reflects the genuine contributions of everyone in our team, therefore all Kosloff Architecture employees are now able to become shareholders and owners of the business. This ensures that dialogues are consistently transparent and that we are accountable for our decisions.
B Corp
Certified B Corporations are leaders of a global movement of people using business as a force for good™. They meet the highest standards of overall social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability and aspire to use the power of business to solve social and environmental problems.
There are more than 2780 Certified B Corporations in over 150 industries and 64 countries with 1 unifying goal – to redefine success in business. The performance standards B Corps™ meet are comprehensive, transparent and verified. They measure a company’s impact on all its stakeholders, not just owners, so that the interests of employees, clients, suppliers, the community and the environment are considered. BCorp certification evaluates the entire company and not just one aspect, such as what they produce. This includes employee engagement, community involvement, environmental footprint, and governance structure.
Learn more about B Corp...-
Be the Change You Seek
B stands for B the Change, inspired by Gandhi’s famous invocation that we must be the change we seek in the world. Environmentally sustainable design is at the core of every project and we see the BCorp framework as an effective way to embed this in everything we do.
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Good for All
Kosloff Architecture regularly conducts industry wage reviews to ensure we are paying above industry rates. We subsidise professional training and development for all employees, enable paid volunteer activities, and provide highly flexible work options for our employees, as well as providing five weeks annual leave per year. Employee engagement surveys are conducted annually and used to shape our policies and procedures.
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Good for the Community
We are committed to maximising diversity at all levels of our organisation and we have a formalised charitable giving program based on a percentage of our profits. Our procurement policies ensure preference is given to businesses with diverse ownership and commitment to minimum environmental standards.
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Good for the Environment
Kosloff Architecture utilises state of the art technology to minimise the need for travel in order to minimise our carbon footprint, and where travel is required, purchase carbon offsets. We calculate our carbon footprint each year and offset the entirety of our emissions to ensure we operate as a carbon neutral office.
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Good for the Long Term
A commitment to sustainable and ethical business forms an important part of our mission statement and we believe every project has the potential to deliver a broad range of social and environmental benefits which we work to define with our clients from the outset.
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Good to the Core
Environmentally sustainable practice is fundamental to the way we operate and we have a charitable giving policy that aligns key activities in our business with providing support to a wide range of not-for-profit projects that provide solutions to social and environmental problems.
Environmental Impact
Kosloff Architecture remains officially carbon neutral.
We calculate our carbon footprint using a tool developed by Carbon Neutral that assesses emissions from our waste, travel, electricity usage, and premises. During the 2022-23 financial year we produced 34.31 tonnes of Co2-e.
While we continually seek ways to reduce our emissions, in the interim, we choose to offset all our emissions and more by investing in the Biodiverse Reforestation Carbon Offset program operated by Carbon Neutral. In 2022-23, we funded 35 tonnes of CO 2-e emissions to be permanently surrendered.
As well as sequestering between 120-180 tonnes of CO 2-e per hectare over 50-year, the Biodiverse Reforestation Carbon Offset program goes beyond removing CO 2-e from the atmosphere by helping to fund habitat restoration and land conservation in Australia with demonstrable economic and social benefit.
The project has been independently verified to confirm that 1 carbon credit purchased results in 1 tonne of CO2-e sequestered.
Reconciliation Action Plan
Kosloff Architecture believes that cultural consultation with Traditional Owners is an essential part of the design process. Meaningful engagement with Elders from First Nations communities can create reciprocal benefits for students, staff, and community members, as well as fostering trust between Indigenous and non-indigenous people.
We have received endorsement for our Reconciliation Action Plan. Developed in consultation with Reconciliation Australia, it is part of our commitment to sustainably and strategically take meaningful action to advance reconciliation with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, increasing economic equity and supporting First Nations self-determination.
Within our practice, we have been working on our endorsed Reconciliation Action Plan to implement change within our processes and standards to acknowledge and celebrate Australia’s First Peoples. The framework established by Reconciliation Australia has been an invaluable resource assisting us to create stronger relationships with First Nations communities, which ultimately leads to better representation of Aboriginal culture in our projects. While the level of consultation and input is always at our client’s discretion, for each project we strive for early and ongoing engagement with the local Aboriginal community and Registered Aboriginal Party. Our engagement process follows the principles of the Australian Indigenous Design Charter (2018) to ensure it is focussed on deep listening, is Indigenous led, and community specific.
Indigenous knowledge is imbued with sustainable practices and provides a point of difference to contemporary sophisticated sustainable technologies. Wherever possible and appropriate, we seek to amplify Indigenous voices and enhance projects with Indigenous knowledge.
Community Engagement
We are also engaged with the broader architectural community through our ongoing involvement and sponsorship of the bi-annual Kirrill Kosloff Award for Design Excellence in the Bachelor of Architectural Design program at RMIT University, the Australian Institute of Architects’ EMAGN forum, Constructive Mentorship Program, SONA SuperStudio and Open House Melbourne.