Green ArchiTEXT

Process Urbanism - The City as Artificial Ecosystem

[Stick with this video - begins a little oddly, and audio is in Danish but with English subtitles in lower right]

Process Urbanism - The City as Artificial Ecosystem from SLA Architects on Vimeo.

SLA Architects has developed a landscape inspired planning method called processs urbanism. SLA does not regard nature and the city as opposites. The city is part of nature’s ecosystem and vice versa. There has to be a balance and a direct synergy effect between the many dynamic elements. Knowledge about wind, water, light, energy, circulation, politics, health, urban life, density, sustainability etc. is collected to create one urban ecosystem, filled with poetry and surprises.

DOE, NREL Release Reports on Cutting Energy Use in Half in Commercial Buildings

The U.S. Department of Energy and its National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have released two technical reports that provide recommendations on how to achieve 50% energy savings in large office buildings and large hospitals. Conducted by NREL's Commercial Buildings Group, under the direction of DOE's Building Technologies Program, the studies support DOE's goal of significantly improving the energy efficiency of new and existing commercial buildings across the United States.

Technical Support Document: Strategies for 50% Energy Savings in Large Office Buildings evaluates the potential for new large office buildings to achieve a 50% net onsite energy savings compared to a baseline standard (as defined by ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-2004). The report found 50% energy savings can be achieved in both low-rise and high-rise office buildings in a broad range of U.S. climates. The analysis was conducted in 16 cities that represented different climate zones, such as hot and humid, hot and dry, marine, cold and humid, and cold and dry. The following energy-efficiency measures helped researchers reach the 50% energy-savings target:

• Lighting power density was reduced in office spaces and occupancy sensors were used in infrequently occupied spaces.
• High-efficiency boilers, chillers, air distribution units, and service water heating equipment were installed.
• Plug loads were reduced by purchasing high-efficiency electronic equipment and using special controls that shut off equipment when not in use.

Large Hospital 50% Energy Savings: Technical Support Document details the technical analysis performed and the resulting design guidance that will enable large hospitals to achieve whole-building energy savings of at least 50% over the above standard. The large hospitals report also documents the modeling methods used to demonstrate how the design recommendations will help institutions meet or exceed the 50% energy-savings goal. This report found 50% energy savings can be achieved in large hospitals across all eight U.S. climate zones. Energy savings range from 50.6% to 61.3%, with the smallest savings in humid climates and extremely cold climates. The highest energy savings were achieved in marine climates, with relatively high energy savings achieved in dry climates. In general, for each climate type (humid, marine, and arid), savings were seen to decrease as the climate became progressively colder. READ MORE >>

via apps1.eere.energy.gov

Docklands Sustainability Centre Ready for 2012

Wilkinson Eyre design will house exhibitions of new technology.

Siemens has won planning consent to develop a £30 million sustainability centre in London Docklands. The centre has been designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects with Pringle Brandon as lead consultant and interior architect. Event is designing the exhibition space, and engineering consultant is Arup.

The centre is set to open in early 2012 in time for the London Olympics and is intended to be a flagship for East London's Green Enterprise District. It will showcase new technology from around the world and new ways of living and working in a more sustainable city. The interactive exhibitions and events will be open to the public.

Wilkinson Eyre's design is based on two interlocking triangular forms with multiple triangular facets. The building will feature:

• natural daylighting and high performance glazing
• photovoltaic panels
• energy efficient lighting and metering
• rainwater harvesting and water efficient appliances
• ground source heat pumps
• solar water heating
• recycled building materials
• sustainable drainage and water efficient landscaping.

via www.building4change.com

TreeLife: An Exhibition of Modern Eco Tree Houses

IMAGE: The Cool Hunter

The Cool Hunter presents "TreeLife", a new interactive exhibition of modern eco tree houses designed by the world's top artists, designers and architects – coming to London's Green Park in 2011.

The world's first major public exhibition of 'green design' treehouses, TreeLife will bring the biggest names in international architecture, design and art into the one public place for the first time, showcasing cutting edge green and sustainable design.

via www.access-agency.net

Mithun's Sustainability Master Plan Aims for Net Zero Carbon Footprint at Ohio State

PHOTO: The Ohio State University Photo Services / University Communications

Mithun, in partnership with Heapy Engineering and green building consultants Yudelson Associates, is nearing completion of a comprehensive sustainability master plan for The Ohio State University, one of the largest universities in the nation with an enrollment of more than 66,000 students.

“This project presented a great opportunity to create a national model for other major universities,” said Brodie Bain, Mithun Partner and Lead Campus Planner. “We anticipate that lessons learned here and practices adopted in the pursuit of climate neutrality to provide valuable information for colleges and universities across the nation seeking to address issues of climate change within the context of a core mission, mulitple activities and complex organizational systems.”
 
The Sustainability Plan is being developed along with the University’s Climate Action Plan to position The Ohio State University as a sustainability leader among its peers as well as to set an ambitious course toward climate neutrality.
 
Master planning for campuses traditionally has been spatially and program based; today, master plans must be supportive of our natural systems by minimizing water and energy use and reducing the institution's carbon footprint.  Building on its success with Seattle University and Pacific Lutheran University, Mithun’s unique integrated approach to campus master planning includes special emphasis on ecological functionality – taking a deep look at the surrounding natural environment and incorporating strategies that mitigate impact and restore the important functions of a healthy ecosystem.   The work for OSU builds upon sustainable concepts of the university’s physical Framework Plan (by Sasaki Associates) and Energy & Infrastructure Plan (by AEI), including recommendations to support a more functional campus ecosystem.
 
Among the key challenges to sustainability planning for a university is understanding the myriad activities that are already happening at the grassroots level and determining the best strategies for coordinating efforts campus-wide. Opportunities included tying operations with curriculum, coordinating multiple research activities, applying new knowledge obtained through research to campus practices, and sharing lessons learned across divisions.
 
The Sustainability Plan was initiated as a result of the University signing “The American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC),”a climate challenge that provides a framework and support for America’s colleges and universities to implement comprehensive plans in pursuit of climate neutrality. Participating institutions have agreed to the following:

• Complete an emissions inventory.
• Within two years, set a target date and interim milestones for becoming climate neutral.
• Take immediate steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by choosing from a list of short-term actions.
• Integrate sustainability into the curriculum and make it part of the educational experience.
• Make the action plan, inventory and progress reports publicly available.

Project Partners
Mithun (Seattle, WA and San Francisco, CA): Lead Campus Sustainability Planning
Heapy Engineering (Dayton, OH): Project Management / Sustainable Building Systems
Yudelson Associates (Tucson, AZ): Green Strategy Consultants

The Future Of Building Is Net-Zero

By Alex McQuilkin

In the midst of a struggling economy, the green building industry is booming, with homeowners and companies alike discovering the many great benefits of building sustainably. And with technology and sustainable materials improving all the time, the pioneers of the green building movement are now setting their sights higher than ever.

Where the aim was once to cut down on a building’s energy use, a movement has now sprung up with the goal to make buildings generate at least as much energy as they consume – what’s known as “net-zero” building.

For years just a green pipedream, net-zero buildings, both residential and commercial, are now becoming a reality.

via greenrealestateinvestingnews.com

Beyond City Limits

By Parag Khanna

The 21st century will not be dominated by America or China, Brazil or India, but by the city. In an age that appears increasingly unmanageable, cities rather than states are becoming the islands of governance on which the future world order will be built. This new world is not -- and will not be -- one global village, so much as a network of different ones.

Time, technology, and population growth have massively accelerated the advent of this new urbanized era. Already, more than half the world lives in cities, and the percentage is growing rapidly. But just 100 cities account for 30 percent of the world's economy, and almost all its innovation. Many are world capitals that have evolved and adapted through centuries of dominance: London, New York, Paris. New York City's economy alone is larger than 46 of sub-Saharan Africa's economies combined. Hong Kong receives more tourists annually than all of India. These cities are the engines of globalization, and their enduring vibrancy lies in money, knowledge, and stability. They are today's true Global Cities.

At the same time, a new category of megacities is emerging around the world, dwarfing anything that has come before. A massive influx of people has not only spurred the growth of existing cities, but created new ones virtually from scratch on a scale not previously imagined, from the factory towns in China's Guangdong province to the artificial "knowledge cities" rising in the Arabian desert. The defining feature of this new urban age will be megalopolises whose populations are measured in the tens of millions, with jagged skylines that stretch as far as the eye can see.

via www.foreignpolicy.com

Happy World Green Building Week

In 2009, the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) dedicated September 23 to green building awareness by proclaiming it World Green Building Day. This year the WorldGBC is expanding its celebration and today marks the start of the first ever World Green Building Week.

via www.mnn.com

'Climatopolis': An optimistic look at how cities will handle a hotter future

Global warming is a given, writes UCLA economist Matthew Kahn in his new book, “Climatopolis: How Our Cities Will Thrive in the Hotter Future.” But Kahn’s perspective on this isn’t gloomy: He says we could flourish in warmer climes.

With pop culture-friendly references sprinkled throughout, the book examines what weather patterns will look like across the nation in the next 50 to 60 years. Kahn creates optimistic blueprints for how life might unfold in 2070.

He imagines New York City-style highrises by the beach, ponders if koi ponds are the best use of our water supply, and considers whether moats should be built around the mansions of Malibu. He writes of making the most of it and of happy endings — not what we’re used to reading in works on global warming. READ MORE >>

via latimesblogs.latimes.com

In Eco-Structure: Where Biology Meets Building

By David R. Macaulay

Deep in the Missouri woods outside of metropolitan St. Louis resides a special place for learning—fed by rainwater, powered by sunlight, rich in native materials, and carefully integrated into the surrounding habitat. When Washington University’s Tyson Research Center first considered adding a new building to its environmental research station, the administrators became intrigued with the idea of living buildings: architecture adapted to place and inspired by nature, with a building’s production and consumption of energy-and-water in perfect balance.

The Tyson Research Center property offered an ideal, diverse setting in which to merge biology and the built environment within 2,000 acres of hilly mixed-hardwood forest, with prairies and ponds In 2009, university administrators, Tyson leadership, and the design team from Hellmuth+Bicknese Architects struck out to create a new facility providing much-needed space for faculty and graduate research in environmental biology and sustainability. READ MORE >>

via www.eco-structure.com