Tone Wheeler is an architect, author, educator and consultant with an abiding interest in environmentally sustainable design (esd). in the mid seventies at the university of sydney he assisted in the construction of the "autonomous house", a working example of a low energy house constructed entirely from recycled materials. upon graduation tone worked for the australian government in canberra where he designed a range of low cost social housing that won the r.a.i.a residential design award (c s daley medal) in 1980.  for the past thirty years he has worked in his own practice.
tone is a past chair of the aia national environment committee & a past member of the sustainabilty committee. after a ten year association, he retired from the board of ABSA (association of building sustainability assessors) and he was also a member of the building professionals board.
tone has taught extensively over the past 30 years, he has been on the faculty of 3 universities, is a sustainability advocate and frequent speaker at architectural conferences and seminars. he has been a judge on ABC tv  ‘the new inventors’,  a member of the ‘woodies’ and a ‘homie’ on ABC radio.

Articles


Tone on Tuesday 224: The housing minister who didn’t build a single house
In the two weeks since Prime Minister Albanese shuffled his cabinet, the new Minister for Housing and Homelessness, Claire O'Neil has had more cut through, at least in media coverage (SMH, Australian, Guardian), than two years of the previous minister, Julie Collins. Talking the talk that is, not walking the walk, of which there is none yet. Here’s a way to fix that.
Tone on Tuesday 223: The Athlete's Village in Three Australian Olympics
Last week we looked at the Athlete’s Village at the Paris Olympics, 100 years apart. Two key issues in the 2024 edition are the drive for innovation and the post-Olympic use.
Tone on Tuesday 222: The Athletes Village in Two Paris Olympics
Paris has held two Olympic Games, exactly 100 years apart. The 1924 games were the first ever to introduce an Olympic Athletes Village. The 2024 Village is more like a mini city, intended to be the most socially and environmentally yet.
Tone on Tuesday 221: The Art of Sustainability - Sustainable Art
Despite Kermit’s maxim that “it’s not easy being green” it seems design wants to go that way these days.
Tone on Tuesday 220: Does the public hate architects?
I've been jolted out of my cocoon of pleasant discourse here on A&D, to become all too aware of just what the general public thinks of architects.
Tone on Tuesday 219: Learning from three-storey walk-up flats
Last week’s Tone on Tuesday sketched out a prototype three-storey walk-up block of flats, based on the common building type in use from the 20s to the 70s.