What if architecture wasn’t just about buildings—but about rebuilding lives?

In this episode of the Power of Women Podcast, Di Gillett speaks with Professor Esther Charlesworth AM, a humanitarian architect, academic, and changemaker whose work sits at the powerful intersection of design, ethics, and social justice. From war-torn cities like Mostar and Beirut to domestic violence shelters in Melbourne, Esther’s global career challenges everything we think we know about architecture. She shares the founding story of Architects Without Frontiers, a not-for-profit delivering civil infrastructure projects for the world’s most vulnerable communities, and opens up about what it means to design for fragility in an era of climate change, conflict, and chronic displacement.

KEY TOPICS:

How architecture can be a tool for peace, equity, and resilience

What it takes to lead in a system that still undervalues social impact design

Why the future of rebuilding—post-disaster and post-conflict—must include the people who live there

Why temporary housing often fails—and how we can do better

WHO IS PROF. ESTHER CHARLESWORTH

Professor Esther Charlesworth is a leading humanitarian architect and academic at RMIT University, where she founded the Master of Disaster, Design and Development (MoDDD) program and directs the Humanitarian Architecture Research Bureau (HARB). She is the founding director of Architects Without Frontiers (AWF), which has delivered over 60 projects across 12 countries for vulnerable communities, and was also a co-founder of Architectes Sans Frontieres International. With a Master’s in Architecture and Urban Design from Harvard and a PhD from the University of York, Esther has worked across Melbourne, Sydney, New York, Boston, and Beirut, and authored eight books exploring the intersection of architecture, ethics and social justice.

FIND PROF. CHARLESWORTH AT:

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/esther-charlesworth/

Architects Without Frontiers https://www.architectswithoutfrontiers.com.au/

CONNECT WITH DI & POWER OF WOMEN:

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/di-gillett-power-of-women/

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/power_of_women_podcast/

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CREDITS:

Sound Design: Daryl Missen - www.vinilo.com.au

Filming: Chocolate Studios - www.chocolatestudios.com.au

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