Wouldn’t it be nice to live in a home that looks after our health and wellbeing simply though its design? As Jesse and Sally Plumridge of ARDOR Design Build know, this isn’t a pipe dream. With over twenty years’ experience in the building industry, this small Ballarat based design and construction company have got their priorities sorted when it comes to designing spaces for life.

Sustainable building design has always been a passion for Jess and Sally, and is entrenched in their business practices:

Wherever possible we aim to continually improve and reduce our carbon footprint by using ethical practices, recycling & supporting businesses like Fifteen Trees. Our ethos being we are all on this planet to give back and what we leave behind matters for future generations.

Jessie & Sally Plumridge | Owners | Ardor Design Build

Future generations are forefront in ARDOR Design Build’s designs. Jesse and Sally regularly work with building biologists to ensure the buildings they create are healthy for the humans who’ll inhabit them. Building biology is a growing field of knowledge, one that takes a holistic approach to spaces and assesses the health impacts of everything from building materials and allergen risks to electromagnetic fields.

Site A | Campaspe Valley, VIC | 50 trees | 2023

The trees were planted at Edgecombe in the Campaspe Shire, Taungurung Country (Northern VIC). The Shire of Campaspe is the traditional lands of the Dja Dja Wurrung, Taungurung and Yorta Yorta peoples. The planting group comprises of members who have rural properties in a part of the state that’s been extensively and intensively cleared since the 1840s. Members are aiming to re-establish some tree cover using locally indigenous species. They are also work on revegetating public lands, such as roadsides that are currently devoid of, or have very few, trees.

Some of the species planted included; Silver Wattles, Lightwoods, Black Wattles, Blackwoods, Bulokes, Dropping Sheoakes, River Bottlebrushes, River Red Gums, Yellow Gums, Grey Boxes, Messmates, Snow Gums, Red Boxes and Manna Gums.

Many thanks to the sponsors. It would be a far more difficult job without your kind help, in fact very restrictive to proceed at all without your help.

Graham Connell | Member | Campaspe Valley Landcare Group

Site B | Upper Goulburn Valley, VIC | 100 trees | 2021

John and Elizabeth Runciman in Yea were also very grateful for the help provided by supporters of Fifteen Trees. They have been fencing off and revegetating large areas of their farm over the last few years to help provide habitat for wildlife. John is a keen bird watcher and is especially interested in increasing the diversity of woodland birds on his property.

Chris Cobern | Project Officer | Upper Goulburn Landcare Network

It’s all about acknowledging that everything is connected, and that our health is inextricably linked to the health of our environment. Jesse and Sally’s decision to partner with Fifteen Trees is an extension of that philosophy. It’s simple really – if we don’t look after the earth we live on, there will be nowhere to live.

We are very glad to have ARDOR Design Build on board. If you would like to know more about sponsoring community tree planting projects and how we can assist you in becoming a more sustainable business, please contact Colleen at <[email protected]> or on 0400 040 659.

Writer – Sarah Hart.

Sarah is an artist whose passions include the stories and experiences of women and narrative driven work. Her aim is to delight, to reveal glimpses of everyday beauty and to celebrate flights of the ordinary. Sarah works across a range of media, with an abiding interest in pen and ink, mixed media and the human form. You can find Sarah here.