An independent magazine for sustainable design
There is a new kind of home being built. One that starts with the earth itself – the natural materials drawn from it, the systems designed to work with it, the architects and makers asking harder questions about what it means to build well in the midst of a climate crisis.
About Futures is an independent magazine documenting this shift. Through the homes, conversations, materials and ideas at the forefront of sustainable design, we make the case – positively and persistently – that building responsibly and beautifully are not competing ambitions.
The magazine
About Futures covers sustainable residential design with the rigour and care it deserves. Each home featured here is selected for what it demonstrates – a material used with experimentation or care, a process that honours the land, a design that gives as much (or more) than what it takes. The curation is deliberate and tight. Not every “sustainable” home makes it in – and even the notion of sustainability is interrogated and questioned.
About Futures looks globally for its stories. The most considered sustainable homes draw on the full spectrum of human ingenuity – from ancient earthen construction techniques to the latest developments in bio-composite materials, from passive design principles refined over centuries to technology that is still finding its form. We follow that work across climates and cultures, interested always in what each place and tradition has to teach about building with care.
Sustainable innovation is everywhere
About Futures is founded and edited by Aleesha Callahan.
The editor
Aleesha spent more than a decade as a design journalist and editor, leading some of Australia’s most respected architecture and design publications, including Habitus, Australian Design Review, Mezzanine and IndesignLive, as well as Architectuul in Berlin.
She set out to build a magazine that could be genuinely independent. That could cover sustainable design not as a trend or a category but as the most consequential and, she would argue, the most exciting work happening in architecture today. Aleesha has a forthcoming book on sustainable materials with Hardie Grant, to be released in 2027.
Alongside About Futures, Aleesha takes on a limited number of strategic communications and advisory engagements, working with aligned design practices, brands and organisations. Current clients include the Australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, an interior surfaces company and a B Corp architecture studio. Enquire about availability.
She’s a regular speaker and moderator at design talks across Australia.
SELECTED CREDENTIALS AND EXPERIENCE
- Bachelor of Design – Interior (Honours), Queensland University of Technology
- Currently writing on Substack – A Design Perspective
- Former editor, Habitus magazine (Issues #50 to #59)
- Interview with William McDonough, founder, Cradle to Cradle (via Australian Design Review)
- Open Letter to Architects: Declare (via Habitus)
Submit a project
About Futures accepts project submissions from architects, designers and studios working in sustainable residential design. Submissions are reviewed on an ongoing basis and assessed against the magazine’s editorial criteria – material integrity, design quality and the genuine contribution the project makes to sustainable building practice.
To submit a project, email hello@aboutfutures.co with images, project details and a brief description of the materials and methods used.
Work with us
About Futures works with a small number of brands, practices and organisations whose values align with the magazine’s editorial mission. Commercial partnerships are approached with the same integrity as the editorial – transparent, considered and never at the expense of the reader’s trust.
If you are interested in advertising, sponsoring editorial content or exploring a partnership with About Futures, we would love to hear from you.
For advertising and partnership enquiries, email hello@aboutfutures.co
A media kit is available on request.
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“Form follows evolution.”
