Biography

Dr Phillip B. Roös is a prominent professional and academic renowned for his extensive expertise in writing, art, architecture, design, and philosophy. His work emphasises ecological awareness and explores humanity's intrinsic bond with nature through biophilia research. As the founder of Roös Atelier Fiji & Australia, he has created a collaborative studio space for professionals and students to delve into biophilic art, architecture, and wellbeing. Currently, he is the Lead Advisor and Principal Director at Dr Phillip Barend Roös Pte Limited (Fiji), as well as holding academic positions as an Adjunct Professor in Architecture and Construction at Fiji National University, and an Honorary Professor (Associate) in Architecture at Deakin University, Australia.
 
Dr Roös is internationally acclaimed as a public intellectual in his field, particularly in environmental design, regenerative architecture, biophilic design, and sustainable development practices that address climate change's impacts. His contributions include high-impact advisory roles, academic publication reviews, PhD supervision panels, monograph publications, and invitations to deliver lectures both locally and internationally.
 
As a professional practitioner and advisor, Dr Roös collaborates closely with stakeholders, engineers, architects, environmentalists, scientists, and sustainability teams. He consistently promotes innovative thinking through applied research to enhance design outcomes in sustainability, cultural considerations, and climate resilience. He has established new international benchmarks for biophilic design in various projects, particularly through his development of Biophilic Design Guidelines for significant projects, such as the underground railway stations of the Melbourne Metro Tunnel project, and the integration of biophilia principles into the design and construction of new mental health facilities, including the Barwon Health McKellar Mental Health and Wellbeing Centre and the Geelong Mental Health Central Hub.
 
Dr Roös possesses a unique ability to inspire and integrate innovative thinking within small and large design teams, particularly on complex projects. He is recognised globally as a leader in environmental design and planning, regenerative design and pattern languages, and more recently, biophilic design. His career, spanning over three decades, encompasses a wide array of projects ranging from small to large scale across Europe, Africa, Australasia, and now the South Pacific.
 
As an author, he integrates knowledge from art, architecture, well-being, and scientific inquiry, challenging prevailing worldviews and grounding his writings in a deep philosophy of universal consciousness. He has published extensively and is currently working on a groundbreaking five-volume book series titled ‘Palgrave Studies in A Biophilic Pattern Language,’ which is set to be published between 2026 and 2030. 
 
Dr Roös, as an artist, integrates art, architecture, and well-being, emphasizing the importance of placemaking and living as duties to our planet, community, and self. His approach involves an art practice grounded in a holistic awareness, where humans and nature are interconnected. Spirituality, tradition, and ancestral cultural connections serve as the foundation for cosmic understandings through biophilic language. Dr Roös's artwork aims to encapsulate this perspective and communicate with its audience across various realms of reality. 

Current Projects 

Architecture & Design
Living Structures: The Architecture for Life
Biophilic Pattern Language for Architects
Sensory Architecture: The Architecture of Delight
​
​Biophilic and Ecological Art
Ancient Rainforests - From Gondwana to the Vanua
The Invisible Line
The Unspoken Language
Living Structures - The Architecture for Life
Research
Palgrave Studies in A Biophilic Pattern Language
A Biophilic Pattern Language for Art, Architecture and Wellbeing
A Biophilic Pattern Language for Wholeness, Spirituality and Planetary Health

Exhibitions

Current & Forthcoming Exhibitions:
Ancient Rainforests - From Gondwana to the Vanua
An exhibition that delves into the artist's journey through Australia's Otways rainforests and Fiji's Vanua Levu island’s vast tropical rainforests. It documents remnants of ancient Gondwanaland and the Vanua, showcasing a 'Nature Language'. The paintings and scrolls map ecological memory and energy, revealing hidden patterns and ancestral wisdom in forest landscapes. This collection is an ecological storytelling effort to reconnect people with the land, body with biosphere, spirit with place, and being with belonging.
Exhibition Venue: The Hoop Gallery, Torquay, VIC, Australia.
Date:  8th January 2026 - 1st February 2026

Past Exhibitions:
The Unfolding – Living Structures, an exhibition and book launch at the Papermill Gallery, Geelong Design Week 2022, 17 – 27 March 2022. 
Living Structures – The Architecture for Life, documentary film.
Premiered at the Geelong Design Week 2022, 19 March 2022.
​Selected for the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival (MDFF), CinemaNova, Melbourne, 24 July 2022. 
Aquaphilia –Love of Water, an exhibition at the Vidler Art Parlour Gallery, Geelong Design Week 2021, 18 March - 28 March 2021.
HumaNature, an exhibition at 101 Ryrie Arts Gallery, Geelong, 2018. 
​Expressions, an exhibition at 'The Studio', Barwon Heads, November 2017. 
Dr Phillip B. Roös
(Photo Credit: Donna Squire, 2021)

Abbreviated CV

Professional Qualifications & Affiliations

 International:
RIBA – Royal Institute of British Architects, Member, Chartered Architect: 20007245
SAIA – South African Institute of Architects, Member, Architect: 7696 (Retired)
KZNIA – Kwazulu-Natal Institute of Architects, Member, Professional Architect: 517 (Retired)
SACAP – South African Council for Architectural Profession, Registered Architect: 20582 (2012)          
​
Australia: 
AILA – Australian Institute of Landscape Architects, Affiliate Member: 3243
PIA – Planning Institute Australia, Full Member (Academic): 56268
AIA – Australian Institute of Architects, Member Level 1, Architect (RAIA): 46321 (2008-2019)
​Environmental Certifications and Memberships:
EDRA – Environmental Design Research Association (USA), Full Member. (2019)
GBCA – Green Building Council Australia, Member, Green Star Accredited Professional (GSAP). (2011-2019)
GBCA – Green Building Council Australia, Sustainable Communities Green Star Accredited Professional, and Certified Assessor. (2011-2019) 
​ISCA – Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia, Member, Infrastructure Sustainability Accredited Professional (ISAP). (2011-2019)
IBPSA – International Building Performance Simulation Association (Australian Charter), Full Member. (2011-2019)

Academic Qualifications

PhD Architecture, Deakin University, Victoria, Australia (2017)
MSc (EDB) Environmental Design, Cardiff University, Wales (2010)
BSc Hons, University of Hertfordshire, UK (2001) ​

Career

Academic, Architect, Designer, Ecological Artist, Writer and Philosopher (Ongoing)
Founder - Roös Atelier (Australia and Fiji) (2023 - Current)
Principal Director & Advisor - Dr Phillip Barend Roös Pte Limited (Fiji) (2023 - Current)
Adjunct Professor in Architecture and Construction, Fiji National University (2024 - Current)
Honorary Professor (Associate) in Architecture, Deakin University (2023 - Current) 
Associate Professor in Architecture - Ecological Design, ABE, Deakin University (2021 - 2023) 
​Director, Deakin Biophilia Lab (previously Live+Smart Research Lab), ABE, Deakin University (2018 - 2023)
Associate Head of School - Industry Engagement, ABE, Deakin University (2018 - 2022) 
Senior Lecturer in Architecture - Environmental Design, Deakin University (2016 - 2020)
Independent Advisor, PR+A Advisory (2016 - 2019)
Co-Founding Partner, Roös & Smith Architects, Chair Design (2016 - 2020)
​Technical Director - Sustainable Urbanisation, Aurecon (2015 - 2016)
Principal - Sustainable Design & Urbanisation, Jacobs (2014 -2015)
Sessional Lecturer & Researcher, Deakin University (2012 - 2016)
Sustainable Design Practice Leader (Global), Sinclair Knight Merz (2008 - 2014)
Director, Roös Klawansky Associates Architects (2001 - 2008)
Principal and Director, Architect Phillip Roös & Associates (1994 - 2008)
Architectural Technologist, Fick Spruyt & Uitenbooghaardt Architects (1989 - 1994)
Apprentice & Draftsman, under guidance of Architect Victor Spruyt (1981 - 1986)
Lifelong student of the arts, design, architecture, and the natural world - always drawing, scribbling, painting on everything he can get his hands on, especially out there in the wilderness  (1965 - Current)

" The life preserving structures that we find in the wilderness... create wholeness"

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​ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:
I would like to acknowledge and pay my respects to the Traditional Owners of the lands and waterways across world, and the rich cultural and intrinsic connection they have to their traditional lands. I also recognise and acknowledge that First Nation Peoples have made and continue to make extraordinary contributions to all aspects of life including culture, economy, arts and sciences. I also acknowledge Mother Earth for providing us life. Wild Nature touches and invites my soul.
DISCLAIMER: 
The multimedia, graphic and visual content, views, and opinions expressed on this website are those of Dr Phillip B. Roös and do not represent the opinions of the organisations to which he is affiliated. The content has been made available for the purpose of information only, and he does not make representation or warranty, with respect to the accuracy, applicability, fitness, or completeness of the content. He has taken reasonable measures to ensure this information is correct at time of release, but offers no guarantee or warranty that the content is up to date, complete, or accurate and accepts no responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the material.