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The Black Summer Bushfires of 2019–2020 devastated Australia’s wildlife, displacing or killing an estimated three billion animals, including 64,000 koalas. In response to this ecological catastrophe, Guulabaa – Place of Koala was conceived as Australia’s first purpose-built wild koala breeding and rehabilitation centre. Located on a 25-hectare site within Cowarra State Forest on Biripi Country, the project has been recognised as this year’s Architecture & Design Sustainability Awards Editor’s Choice winner.
The sanctuary represents an unprecedented partnership between Forestry Corporation of NSW, Gensler, Koala Conservation Australia, and the Bunyah Local Aboriginal Land Council. Together, they created a conservation model that integrates wildlife breeding programs, cultural heritage, public education, and regenerative environmental practices.
At the heart of Guulabaa is a wild koala breeding initiative designed around naturalistic habitats with minimal human interference, ensuring animals can be successfully returned to their forest home.
Building within an active state forest presented significant challenges. The team needed to satisfy the Building Code of Australia’s stringent bushfire safety requirements while maintaining the low-impact, ecologically sensitive approach essential for a wildlife sanctuary.
How do you build for wildlife without compromising the landscape they depend on? Weathertex Fusion Smooth, a renewable BAL 19 timber product with low embodied energy, offered exactly what the sanctuary needed: a cladding solution that honoured the forest rather than fought against it. The three-colour stripe sequence added visual interest while keeping the material story grounded in the project’s environmental values.
Beyond breeding and rehabilitation, Guulabaa functions as an eco-tourism and educational hub. Visitors engage with the landscape through carefully designed experiences that teach biodiversity conservation and forest management while connecting them to Country through Indigenous storytelling.
The project meaningfully reflects the values and traditional ecological knowledge of the First Nations custodians of Biripi Country. Cultural burning practices, land management techniques, and storytelling aren’t add-ons but fundamental to how Guulabaa operates and how its buildings sit within the landscape.
Guulabaa demonstrates that conservation infrastructure can achieve multiple objectives simultaneously, protecting endangered species, educating communities, respecting cultural heritage, and proving that thoughtful material choices and design strategies can meet safety standards without compromising environmental principles
Architect: AJC – Simon JR Rainsford and John Wittingham
Builder: Brenton Builds- Lachlan Brenton
Photographer : Mikula Photography
Specifications
Weathertex Profile : Weathergroove Fusion Smooth
Paint Colours:
Base colour: Dulux Midhurst Half
Secondary colour : Dulux Kahlua Milk
Secondary Colour: N45 Koala Grey
The Black Summer Bushfires of 2019–2020 devastated Australia’s wildlife, displacing or killing an estimated three billion animals, including 64,000 koalas. In response to this ecological catastrophe, Guulabaa – Place of Koala was conceived as Australia’s first purpose-built wild koala breeding and rehabilitation centre.
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