More often than not, we walk in and out of our community buildings with little thought as to why it was built, or even how it was built.

Sometimes it’s a cement box simply designed for function and practicality, but then there are designs that started with a seed of greater intention, collaborating creativity with community and creating something that stands for so much more than the materials that it was made with.

Kaunitz Yeung Architecture Firm is internationally renowned for nurturing positive social change in multicultural communities with their designs and builds. And when talking to the co-founder, Australian-Chinese Architect Ka Wai Yeung, it’s quite remarkable to come to the realisation that when someone who values heritage and history, ties their expertise with purpose and intention what is actually possible.

The buildings become not just structures, but connectors of history, culture, respect and functionality. In Ka Wai’s career she has experienced building for wealth and financial gain, but it was the values instilled by her grandmother and a life changing trip to India where she decided to redirect her career and build so much more than just buildings but considered designs in areas and communities that need it the most.