Alex Ward and Dr Kavita Gonsalves | Game-changing design

In this engaging Q&A, we delve into the professional journeys of Dr Kavita Gonsalves and Alex Ward, both esteemed QUT alumni who have made significant strides in the field of architecture and design. This talented duo are both Design Leads for global architecture company, Populous, whose awe-inspiring work shines on the world stage as their stadiums and venues play host to thousands of internationally acclaimed sporting events. Their stories reflect a blend of passion, innovation, and a commitment to sustainability. Read our Q&A with Kavita and Alex as we discover what sparked their interest in this specialised field, how they integrate sustainable design principles into their work, and what’s next for the future of sports venue design.

What initially inspired you to pursue careers in architecture and design with a focus on sports venues?

Kavita: As a teenage athlete I loved the Olympics as a celebration of human excellence, and I like to think that my career in sustainable precinct design and sports architecture happened by pure magic. It could be attributed to my work with sustainable architecture, design research, and placemaking (my PhD at QUT), but there is an element of timing, luck, chance, and dance. It is reflective of my career, which is a series of high-risk moves and happy accidents, including the decision to pursue architecture.

Alex: Growing up in the tropics, playing professional sport was what we dreamed about. Fortunately (or unfortunately), that dream didn’t work out for me but I found a passion in architecture and was able to channel my passion into my profession. My Master’s final design at QUT allowed me to focus on an indoor arena (very similar to the proposed Brisbane Live) which opened up my perspective of how a simple building can accommodate a variety of diverse people, for many different sports and performances.

Sustainability is a crucial aspect of modern architecture. Can you share how you integrate sustainable design principles into your work?

Kavita: One could argue that modernity is the cause of the climate crisis thanks to a full cycle of voracious extraction and consumption. I posit that Sustainable Architecture is thus radical architecture - an architecture that is in service to place and community…how it used to be. With the architecture and construction industry responsible for nearly 40% of global carbon emissions and the resultant climate crisis being socially inequitable, the potential of architecture lies in its ability to demonstrate decarbonisation, community resiliency, enhancing biodiversity and improved social equity. The design principles that reflect these aspirations are always a conversation at the start of our design process with the ability to flow on through all design stages.

Alex: Sustainability is a term that is thrown around loosely to cover a wider range of topics. Personally, I believe that efficient, performance-based design will reduce our embodied energy consumption during construction and limit the operational energy needs. Architecture needs a rigor of performance-based thinking and analysis to provide the most efficient and optimal built form outcome our clients and planet deserve.

Can you share some innovative design elements you've implemented in sports venues and how they improve the overall experience?

Kavita: Populous project CommBank Stadium, built in 2019, was designed and built for quick build and eventual deconstruction. We are beginning to utilise these principles across our other projects where we consider reuse of existing materials and venues, use of low carbon materials and designing it for disassembly. When I think of experience, I am interested in the collective experience of the human and the more-than-human. When circularity is practiced in its truest essence, it brings out this balance and harmony within and between ecosystems because it eliminated virgin material extraction, and there is opportunity to expend human creativity towards meaningful connections with nature.

Alex: Sports and entertainment venues are essentially places that people love to be together. Amplifying that sense of excitement and thrill with the built form around us is crucial. To achieve this at the scale of these mega-structures, material innovation needs careful consideration. We are currently exploring Mass Timber for this typology, as the technology is in its infancy but it’s an innovative structural material capable of reducing that initial embodied carbon footprint.

Both of you have returned to university to pursue post-graduate studies. What motivated this decision, and how has it impacted your careers?

Kavita: After being in industry practicing sustainable design, design research, transdisciplinary design and more, the pursuit of a PhD was motivated by many things: the opportunity to test big and wild ideas, my hunger for knowledge, a desire to exercise creativity and reflectivity, and to hone my skills.

Alex: To be a registered architect in Queensland, a Master degree is required, hence my return to QUT to continue my studies. Becoming a registered architect at an early age (for this profession) propelled my career as I explored the Northern Hemisphere from London to New York. There, I was given the opportunity to lead large project teams across multiple continents where we focussed on some incredibly diverse, large-scale projects. I’ve been fortunate enough to bring this experience and knowledge back to Brisbane.

How important is feedback from athletes and fans in your design process?

Kavita: So important!! It’s not just feedback from athletes and fans that I am interested in, but also local groups and First Nations communities. In my opinion, if our work is about bringing people together, then it starts with bringing them into the design process.

Alex: Stakeholder engagement for all building typologies is fundamental. As architects, we are limited by our own experience. Unless we have played professional sport, or run the 100m sprint like Usain Bolt, we need this critical insight/feedback to curate the experience for all involved.

How do you envision the future of sports venue design?

Kavita: There are so many visions of the future of sports venue design but I’ll present just one for our context... After you have grabbed a meal with your friends, you walk under the solar-powered shade canopies to the stadium for the game. This is no ordinary stadium: it has been built out of materials found in demolition sites and facilities that have reached the end of life. You can see the blots and the connections and know that the simplicity of construction allows for anyone to dismantle it. What you do not know is that the stadium has digital twin supported with blockchain technology which is in keeping with the government’s circularity and provenance policy. The stadium’s PV roof powers the stadium as well as the precinct. As you move closer to the stadium, you grab bush tucker for a quick feed from the trees and shrubs that are the external façade and assist in maintaining indoor thermal comfort. The concourse is a vibrant market where local farmers come and bring their produce along with food and beverage. During rain events, the stadium becomes a reservoir which is a transformed place: you can hang out on the steps with your buddies for just a conversation. You see families with buggies and strollers sitting where they please because of the flexible seat design… let your imagination complete this vision.

Alex: A combination of Mass Timber + Flexibility - opening the sports venues to be more active outside of game days. Typically, sports venues (mainly stadiums) are only operational close to 5% of the year. Like a mixed-use development, alternative uses should be explored, creating activation around the clock, promoting an 18/7 vibrant community.

What advice would you give to aspiring architects and designers who are interested in specialising in sports venues and sustainability?

Alex: Get in touch or become part of the design / sporting community. There are many facets to design that can influence the design of sports venues. Many of us at Populous began our love for sport from grassroots club sport and found an interest in design later in life.

Kavita: I concur with Alex and would add that it’s important to get comfortable with complexity and ask questions as the climate crisis is complex. Exercise interest and grit in developing yourself into a Climate-Future Architect and Designer.

Lastly, do you have a favourite project you’ve worked on, and if so, what made it stand out to you?

Kavita: The Living Bridges in Meghalaya, India, are a manifestation of what it means to negotiate with and revere the more-than-human Ficus Elastica. The day I can emulate that kind of ingenuity and creativity, would be the day I find my favourite project.

Alex: Each of my projects pushes the boundaries more than the previous project, which is always challenging and exciting. So, I’d say the project I’m working on at that point in time is my favourite. I’m currently working on a confidential project allowing the design team to push the boundaries on mass timber structural systems, significantly reducing the project embodied carbon footprint to almost neutral.

Alex Ward
QUT degrees - Master of Architecture (2012) and Bachelor of Design (Architectural Studies) (2011) - now the Bachelor of Architectural Design
Have a question for Alex? Connect with him on LinkedIn.

Dr Kavita Gonsalves
QUT degree - PhD, Urban Informatics (2023)
Have a question for Kavita? Connect with her on LinkedIn.