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A number of UWA students studying Architecture and Landscape Architecture have recently had the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills in the ‘real world'. Fourteen Landscape Architecture students returned from India recently after starting work on plans for the gardens around the newly completed Australian High Commission's Chancery building in New Delhi, whilst a number of first year Architecture students have also put their skills into practise in a way that was enjoyed by the wider community for the Kings Park Festival.

At this year's Festival, the Architecture students had the chance to create 1:1 installations amidst the marri, karri and tuart trees in the park. The timber Bush Gazebos they constructed were inspired by the tale of Alice in Wonderland and were up to 3 metres long and 3 metres wide. Many of the Gazebos were later sold at auction, the proceeds of which will go towards a research trip for the students to Indigenous communities on the Dampier Peninsular. "We would also like to keep some of the structures on campus," said a student representative.

A few thousand kilometres away the Landscape Architecture students were involved in their own hands-on work, travelling to India in order to make plans for the gardens surrounding the Australian High Commission's Chancery Building. Adelle Main, one of the students who took part in the trip, had this to say about her experiences:

"When I first enrolled in Landscape Architecture I had no idea of the many amazing experiences that were ahead. We travelled to India as part of our third-year design studio, where the project brief was to create a landscape for the Australian Embassy in Delhi that conveyed our national cultural identity whilst absorbing and taking into consideration the vibrant Indian context.

"Upon return to Perth I asked my fellow students what their thoughts regarding the trip were, and was told unanimously that it was an amazing life experience, totally unique to the course, in fact many are keen to go back."

During their stay, the group visited Delhi, Agra and its famous Taj Mahal, and Lucknow, where they saw buildings designed by American architect Walter Burley Griffin, who designed much of Canberra.