People

Directors

Where are you based?

Sydney

Qualifications (formal)

Paul Pholeros AM
Bachelor of Science Architecture (1974) University of Sydney, Australia
Bachelor of Architecture (1997 Hons Class 1) University of Sydney, Australia
Registered Architect, NSW Australia 4878
Director of Healthabitat Pty Ltd
Principle of Paul Pholeros Architects since 1984
Adjunct Professor of Architecture, University of Sydney, Australia
Vice President Emergency Architects Australia

What do you bring to the HH work?

Architectural practice skills and 25 years experience in environmental health work with the other two founding directors of Healthabitat

Years involved with Housing for Health work (including R&D work)?

25 years starting as a member of the Uwankara Palyanku Kanyintjaku (UPK) environmental health review in central Australia to the current times of a large national Housing for Health program and the spread of the work internationally.

What have you learned from being involved in the work?

Change comes slowly.

The work must be built around people. Those doing the work and those who we are working with.
Technical skill and raising the technical standards of all aspects of the work is important.
Assume nothing

Good housing/ health policy ultimately comes from good work proven in the field not from government. Government may occasionally adopt the policy direction after it has been proven.

Local indigenous people have the greatest interest in the principles and detail of the work as they have the greatest to gain by the work being successful. 

Complex problems linking health and the living environment require multi disciplinary teams of people to provide the best solutions ….HH has assembled such a team of people 

Myths are hard to dispel …despite hard data eg of over 150,000 items of work fixed, less than 10% of all work fixed by HH is due to damage, overuse or misuse but still the myth of indigenous people damaging houses remains

In an ideal world what directions, ideas, results would you like to see HH and the Housing for Health work become or achieve?

Ideally, within 5 years, the day to day work of HH fixing houses would not be needed. This is both financially and technically possible given the resources of Australia and the proven methodology of Housing for Health.
HH could then devote effort to improving the living environment not just making it safe and adequate.