About Orterra Archives • Orterra

2023 in a Nutshell

November 28, 2023 administratorAbout Orterra

Where to start! We have had an amazing year at Orterra, we have moved office and have gone from a one-room office to having a much bigger space with meeting rooms and lunch space! We’ve also grown from a team of 2 to a team of 5. We have completed many projects this year. We have travelled all over Queensland for projects from Mackay to the Gold Coast so don’t think we won’t come to you. We have been working hard on our Innovate RAP which are hoping to be able to have endorsed next year and we have been […]

And we are out…..

December 20, 2022March 2, 2023 debbieAbout Orterra

We are now on holidays…. Office Closed Between Friday 23rd of December 2022 and reopen on the Tuesday 10th of January 2023 We have loved working with our clients this year. Developing some great relationships with new clients and strengthening those with our continuing clients. This has allowed us to complete some amazing projects this year. Some of the types of projects we have worked on this year are So if you are ever wondering if your project is something we would work on. Then it probably is. We wish everyone a very merry Christmas and a happy new year […]

The Year That was 2022

November 29, 2022November 25, 2022 debbieAbout Orterra, Education, Environment, Garden Design, Infrastructure, Residential

It’s been a year- this has been a challenging year hear at Orterra. We have had some amazing highs and some lows. We have been a bit quiet on the blog front lately. I know we generally like to give your great content consistently however, we have been very busy creating some amazing designs over the last few months for our clients and as we don’t like to provide you with terrible content hence we have let this slide a bit. But don’t worry we have been planning and there are some great things in the pipeline for next year. […]

To Answer your Question here is our Design Philosophy

July 27, 2022August 1, 2022 debbieAbout Orterra, Education, Infrastructure, Property Development and Commercial, Residential

We often get asked by our clients what is your design philosophy? So, today I wanted to dive a bit deeper into this question of design philosophy and what it means to us here at Orterra. Places People Love That is our philosophy. It is that simple. But what I will do is break it down for you a little more to get to the core of this statement. A philosophy is “a particular system of beliefs, values, and principles.” We here at Orterra have very clear values here that we work from that underpin our design philosophy. Equality Inclusion Empathy Diversity Biodiversity Transparency We use […]

Orterra’s Reconciliation Journey

July 23, 2022November 14, 2022 debbieAbout Orterra

Earlier this year we had our ‘Reflect’ Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) had been endorsed. For those who do not know what a RAP is, it is a formal statement, committing to contribute to reconciliation with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. As Naidoc week is next week 3-10th July we thought it was a good time to reflect on our journey in the understanding of First Nations and Torres Strait Islander People. Naidoc week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations culture and histories in the celebrations of the oldest continuous living cultures on earth. So […]

Why is Biodiversity so Important to Orterra?

May 18, 2022January 24, 2023 debbieAbout Orterra, Environment, Infrastructure, Property Development and Commercial, Residential

If you have been following us for a while you might have seen us harp on a bit about biodiversity. It is one of our core company values. Our value states that “We promote, campaign and defend our environment and improve, rehabilitate and regenerate the biodiversity and the environment of our projects.” The 22nd of May is Biodiversity Day we love this time of year as it is a great way for us to really celebrate our environment. It is a time for us in the office to really think about what biodiversity means to us and our work. How […]

Why we Love our Office Dogs!

March 23, 2022March 23, 2022 debbieAbout Orterra

Part of Orterra’s philosophy is not only to make our clients happy and produce designs they love. It is also to have a great working environment and have fun while we work. One of the things we do to ensure this happens is to have our dogs come into the office. They have a few advantages which make us much more productive. Reduce Stress They help reduce stress levels and ensure we don’t sit at a desk all day. Sometimes work can be stressful. Things go wrong, deadlines need to be met. Having them around helps us be able to […]

It’s all in the Name

November 16, 2021November 16, 2021 debbieAbout Orterra

We are often asked where the name Orterra came from. It’s definitely not a real word. This blog post delves a little deeper into the story is of where our practice name comes from. Ever since I was young, I have always liked the sciences. Biology was my thing growing up and I loved animals. It was only later in life when I started at university that I fell in love with ecology, earth systems, and plants. When I discovered landscape architecture, I realised I get to immerse myself in ecology, earth systems, plants, and animals every day. So, when […]

How Did I Become a Landscape Architect?

November 2, 2021November 2, 2021 debbieAbout Orterra, Education, Environment

It all started a few years ago now when I was studying science at university with the intention to be a vet. I had desperately wanted to work as a vet since my grade 10 work experience. I was hooked when I saw my first operation on a baby lama the day I arrived. However, years later while working towards this goal at university it changed. I was in the middle of an animal anatomy subject standing there cutting up a calf fetus. I realised this is not what I want to do anymore. So, as you do in life […]