Even after seven years, IslandWood stands out as one of our
best examples of green design, a place I was privileged to visit for nearly a
full day while writing Integrated Design: Mithun. As described in
"IslandWood, A Light in the Forest", the center’s very concept was
experimental, with Mithun’s design process a mix equally of exploration and
collaboration. Overarching goals for the project included:
- Protection
of the entire property through environmentally-intelligent design
- Best
practices in environmental education for a state-of-the-art facility
- Buildings
that function as interactive learning tools
- Connections
to nature
Located only a few miles from downtown Seattle on Bainbridge
Island, IslandWood is both a return to another time and a glimpse of a possible
future. In addition to the six-acre campus of buildings (3 of them LEED Gold),
the site features a solar meadow, living machine, tree house, PV arrays, and
healthy use of sustainable design strategies for daylighting, rainwater
collection, natural ventilation, recycled materials, and more.
For more on IslandWood, see Mithun’s IslandWood and “A Light
in the Forest”.
