Donald Bates is also Director of LAB Architecture Studio, a firm of architects and urban designers based in Melbourne, Australia with offices in Shanghai and London. Its projects include Federation Square, a landmark civic center and cultural precinct in Melbourne. The firm has also produced numerous high-rise office and residential towers and retail developments, along with a number of large-scale master plans, including work in China on the new town of Xitaihu, and on Nanjing’s Xiaguan.

LAB Architecture Studio is a founding member of Australian Urban Systems (AUS) an industry cluster group, support by the Department of State Development, Business and Innovation, providing expertise and consultancy services for sustainable and livable urbanism.

Donald Bates studied architecture at the University of Houston, Texas and the Cranbrook Academy of Art, Michigan, USA.

He was Head of Media Studies at the Architectural Association (AA), London (1994-96) and Studio Master at the AA (1983-89). He was Director and Founder at LoPSiA (Laboratory of Primary Studies in Architecture), France (1990-94), and was also head of the 3rd year design studio at The Cooper Union, New York (2004-05).

Donald Bates was made a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) in 2016, recognizing his achievements that have made a significant contribution to architecture, the profession and the community. He has been appointed to numerous international design juries in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia, and has lectured at over 100 schools of architecture around the world.

He was a member of the expert panel and open discussion on drivers, barriers and better policy frameworks for sustainable construction at the 1st Holcim Forum on Basic Needs in Zurich in September 2004, and has contributed to Holcim Forums in Shanghai (2007), Mumbai (2013) and Detroit (2016).