Cities Go Climate Positive

I recently had a friend from Australia stay with me for a few days. We spent some time in Niagara Falls and saw the sites in Toronto. It was a pretty fun filled couple of days. After seeing the falls, we checked out Ben Harper, watched the Jays and the Yankees, went to the Hockey Hall of Fame and climbed the CN tower.

As we took pictures of the city from the CN Tower, I couldn’t help but to notice the number of energy guzzling sky scrappers that I stood face to face with. I thought to myself – imagine if all of these massive buildings supported a natural green environment on their rooftops. I’m sure I am not the first person to think of this and I’m sure it wouldn’t take much. Lay a tarp down, drop some top soil, and wait for the seeds to grow! Think of the difference this would make if half of Toronto’s buildings were able to take part in this green initiative. Carbon emissions would decrease, the environment would be much cleaner, and there may be a few more homes for wildlife. Whenever I have some sort of idea like this, naturally I turn to youtube. Check it out:

Technology at its finest

Dooms Day Seed Vault

Here’s a prime time example of mass collaboration. A friend of mine told me about a vault that was built in Norway. It took scientists 7 years to collect 1.5 billion different species of seeds. The idea behind the vault was to preserve the world’s food source in case of an emergency. I watched an interesting video from 60 minutes at this site http://www.croptrust.org/main/#videos

First off, I think it’s quite scary to say the least. It seems like we have totally destroyed the planet and are preparing for absolute chaos. However, the other side of the coin presents this idea as a great one. In case of any natural disasters, or human mismanagement, we have a resource that can save our crop diversity.

Cradle To Cradle

A friend of mine picked up a pair of cradle to cradle nike shoes and they are pretty sweet. Check out www.thekevblog.wordpress.com for that story.

Anyways we got talking about a very well known architect, designer and author William McDonough. The idea of Cradle To Cradle is to remake the way we make things. In his Ted talk in 2005 he discusses how the world is kind of like a toilet that doesn’t flush. In a sense, fixing this toilet is the premise behind Cradle To Cradle. So, for example a child’s blanket is made with warning labels about how the materials may cause the child harm if ingested. Why not manufacture a blanket that when a child chews on it, it gives them nutrients. Then once the child is done with the blanket, the materials are 100% recyclable or biodegradable. It’s such a simple but great concept. Take a look at William McDonough’s Ted talk…

Make the switch!

 

Beijing Olympic Venues

 

Olympic greenness might begin with wet scrubbers and traffic schemes, but such measures lack the glamour of rainwater-capture systems and solar-heated swimming pools. Beijing has pulled out all of the stops for its new Olympic buildings — choosing cutting-edge architects, striking designs and new-fangled technology to increase energy efficiency. Beijing will launch its green games from a new city center: the aptly named Olympic Green. Its three central parts — the Forest Park, the Cultural Axis and the Olympic Axis — connect different venues, public areas and subway stops.

The Beijing National Stadium, the city’s newest jewel and the future site of the opening ceremonies, anchors the Olympic Green. China imported the famous Swiss design firm Herzog & de Meuron Architekten AG to design the 91,000 capacity stadium, popularly known as “the bird’s nest.”

Until recently, most Chinese designs came from local institutes once owned by the state. The institutes put out a huge number of buildings, but they lacked creativity and flair. Since then, Beijing’s growth has stirred up an interest in design. Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron are known for their imaginations and use of material skins as sheathing. For the tangled National Stadium, they made the skin double as the building’s structure. The bird’s nest description originated as a way to describe the stadium’s use of structural steel in its exterior. Bird’s nests are also Chinese delicacies.

China also brought in the Australian PTW Architects to design the Olympic Green’s National Aquatics Center, or “water cube.” The walls of the low building imitate the structure of soap bubbles. Gas pumped between two layers of plastic film is cordoned off into smaller chambers to create bubbles. The center will host swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and water polo competitions.

But there’s more to Beijing than the Olympic Games. In the next section, we’ll learn about some of the city’s other attractions.

All At Once

 Check out Jack Johnson making a difference.

Al Gore Challenges You

Yesterday, Al Gore spoke in Washington, DC. He proposed a challenge to all Americans to commit to producing 100% of electricity from renewable energy and truly clean carbon free sources within the next 10 years. Check out some highlights.

76 Square Feet… How’s this for Residence Life?

 

 

 

A village of seven micro-compact homes, sponsored by international telecoms company O2 Germany, has been built at the Technical University Munich.

 

The village, which was launched in November 2005, accommodates six students. The intention was that the selected six would live there, alongside their British Professor Richard Horden, for a single term only, but the village has proved so popular that the students have asked to extend their stay to the full academic year.

 

The m-ch measures 266cm x 266cm x 266cm. The ceiling height is 198cm and the door width is 60cm. I did some measuring and these would be smaller then your cubical. Get out the tape measure and see for yourself.

  

Inside the m-ch features:

 

·     two compact double beds, each measuring 198cm x 107cm, with covered cushions

·     storage space for bedding and cleaning equipment

·     a sliding table measuring 105cm x 65cm, for dining for up to five people

·     flat screen television in the living/dining space

·     a shower and toilet cubicle

·     a kitchen area, which is fitted with electrical points and features a double hob, sink and extending tap, microwave, fridge and freezer units, three compartment waste unit, storage shelves, cutlery drawers with gentle return sprung slides and double level work surfaces

·     thermostat controlled ducted warm air heating, air conditioning, water heating

·     fire alarm and smoke detectors  

 

I love how there’s a fire alarm. I guess if you have a party and someone blows something up or you burn something in our microwave you would need as much warning as possible to evacuate the building!

 

 

 

 

 

Dynamic Architecture

Here is some information about the hottest architect in the news today, David Fisher.

Dr. David Fisher the visionary architect and creator of the Dynamic Tower, the world’s first building in motion, began his career in Florence Italy, after graduating with honour in architecture from the University of Florence, he became later a lecturer of Architecture and Structural Engineering at the same university.

Over the last three decades, he have been passionately designing buildings in harmony with nature, as well as redefining the technical and technological extremes of buildings, particularly in major cities like London, Moscow, Hong Kong, Paris and Dubai.

At the same time, Dr. Fisher have been involved in restoring ancient monuments and in designing public buildings through the New York office of Fiteco Ltd, which he launched in the 1980s.

For more info check out http://www.dynamicarchitecture.net