Product Aware National Symposium Reaches Its Final Stop in Perth

As the national event series officially concludes, the Product Aware National Symposium leaves behind a renewed sense of momentum — demonstrating the industry’s growing commitment to transparency, collaboration, and accountability across the built environment.

After travelling across Australia throughout 2025, the CPD-accredited symposium has now reached its final destination in Perth, marking the completion of a landmark event series that united architects, designers, manufacturers and advocates around a shared mission: improving access to clear, comparable sustainability information.

The built environment contributes nearly 40 per cent of global carbon emissions, and as expectations for disclosure continue to rise, so does the need for tools that help architects specify products with confidence. Developed by a consortium of architectural practices and industry professionals, Product Aware responds directly to this need, translating complex sustainability data into actionable insights.

At its core, the platform distils supplier information into five key pillars: human health, climate and ecosystem, circular economy, waste minimisation, and social responsibility. By providing a consistent, comparable framework, Product Aware enables better decision-making, encourages transparency among suppliers and helps specifiers more easily evaluate product impacts.

According to Adrian Taylor, Regenerative Practice Coordinator at BVN and member of the Materials Working Group of Australian Architects Declare, the initiative is already reshaping how sustainability conversations are taking place across the industry.

“Product Aware starts conversations across the industry,” says Taylor. “One of our most powerful tools is the question — especially those we are all asking. Sometimes ‘I don’t know’ is a valid, if not preferred, answer. That’s where we know where to start.”

For Safetyline Jalousie, supporting the symposium reflects a long-standing belief that progress comes from openness and cross-industry collaboration.

“At Safetyline Jalousie, we’ve always been open about our testing data, certifications, and where we are on our sustainability journey,” says Leigh Rust, Director of Safetyline Jalousie and founder of Suppliers Declare. “It’s about honesty and progress — acknowledging what we’ve achieved and where there’s still more to do. Product Aware encourages that same transparency right across the industry.”

In 2025, Safetyline Jalousie reached a major milestone with the achievement of its Declare Label certification, joining a growing cohort of manufacturers publicly disclosing material health and environmental information. This builds on the company’s continued use of Hydro REDUXA low-carbon aluminium and Hydro CIRCAL recycled aluminium — some of the lowest CO₂ footprint materials available in the Australian market.

“Our commitment to performance and transparency go hand in hand,” Rust adds. “We’ve built our reputation on delivering systems that meet the highest standards for strength, acoustics, and durability, while being transparent about how we achieve that. Sustainability isn’t a box to tick — it’s a journey of learning, improvement and accountability.”

Throughout the symposium series, Safetyline Jalousie also connected with fellow suppliers, manufacturers and designers, helping to foster dialogue and strengthen industry collaboration.

“What’s been inspiring is seeing how many different voices are now part of this conversation,” says Rust. “It’s not just architects — it’s suppliers, builders and designers sharing insights and challenges. When that happens, everyone benefits.”

With the final Perth event now complete, one thing is clear: the appetite for transparency is accelerating. More than 1,200 architectural practices have signed the Architects Declare charter, and an increasing number of suppliers are making public commitments through Suppliers Declare and Product Aware.

“Every product choice has an impact,” Rust says. “The more openly we share data and collaborate across the supply chain, the better positioned we are to build a genuinely sustainable future.”

Through initiatives like Product Aware and Suppliers Declare, Safetyline Jalousie continues to demonstrate that transparency, performance and sustainability are not competing priorities — but shared values shaping the next chapter of Australia’s built environment.