1) What is the relationship between architecture and the climate crisis we face today?

The relationship is immediate and critical. It is now widely understood that our buildings are responsible for about half our greenhouse emissions and energy use. What is too often forgotten is that the spread of our built environment has destroyed biomass and annihilated massive areas of functioning ecosystems. It must be remembered that agriculture goes hand-in-hand with city making – you can’t have one without the other and, historically, both activities have transformed the living landscape. The reach of the environment as we have constructed it through urbanisation and agriculture is such that the entire planet is affected – the planet is so different from what it was before we built all over it that it now has what is effectively an artificial ecosystem.

2) How can sustainable or eco-architecture help solve this crisis?

Properly understood, ecological architecture is all about making buildings – with all their associated infrastructure and support systems – in such a way that they do not damage the essential living processes on which we depend for our own lives. The holy grail of eco-architecture is restorative, replacing and ultimately even improving on the conditions that enable the biosphere to sustain itself. The way we build is who we are – we have to become a global ecological civilisation and it’s through our buildings we will express that civilisation.

3) What is the greatest obstacle for a greener architecture to be deployed?

The greatest obstacle is a combination of widespread ignorance about the damage done by conventional architecture, and gross underestimation of the scale of the problem. There is a lot of prejudice about how buildings ‘should’ look, and far too much concern about aesthetics at the expense of performance. There is no ‘eco-architecture style’, but at the same time, if you try and make buildings that really address ecological and climate concerns in a meaningful, effective way they are likely to look different from mainstream ‘trendy’ buildings. Architects are full of prejudices about what buildings ‘should’ look like and are often fearful that being ‘ecological’ means having their design freedom constrained. Nothing could be further from the truth – if an architect or designer really understands their job they’ll find the discipline of designing with nature to be liberating and creative.

4) What has been /is your biggest challenge as an “eco architect?

It used to be getting across the idea that the environment had to have priority. Now the biggest problem I have as a practicing eco architect is that ‘sustainability’ has become a trendy buzzword and everybody is claiming that they do it! In reality, there are still very few architects that are seriously dealing with ‘the environment’ and in the marketplace my voice is drowned by conventional and corporate practices that now say ‘we are green’. How is a prospective client able to make a choice when there are no real standards or measures or accreditation processes for distinguishing ‘real’ eco designers and architects from smooth talking imposters!

5) What projects are you currently developing?

A number of ‘environmentally-friendly’ houses, an eco-village in Victoria, a small ‘ultra-green’ office and community building in Canberra, and a very green $2million meeting facility for the Australian National University’s coastal campus in New South Wales. In my mind, I’m continuously developing designs for an ‘extreme green’ house that would get close to the ‘holy grail’ concept – I’d love to find a client for something like that!

6) How did you become interested in this type of architecture?

I don’t know anymore. It started very early though, in my mid-teens I was already drawing ‘organic’ architecture and houses that followed the sun. I joined my first environment group back in the early 1970s, and I’ve never separated my concern with ecological issues from my idea of what architecture should be. I started studying climate science, informally, back in the early 1970s too, and it was clear then that the planet was going to end up on a rapid warming trajectory if we carried on putting CO2 in the air. That’s well over three decades ago. We’ve wasted a hell of lot of time.

7) How advanced is Australia in green construction? Are there wide-scale projects aimed at fostering green building?

Australia is further advanced now than it was just 5 years ago, and there are a number of large projects that at least claim green credentials, but I have to admit to being a little suspicious of some of the claims. The biggest problem Australia has is that the building code is woefully inadequate and goes nowhere near far enough in terms of mandating a high level of environmental performance – it compares very poorly with the UK, many European countries, and places like California. Without a strong basic building code most buildings are a long way from achieving a decent level of environmental performance and that’s what really matters. It’s just not enough to have a few high profile buildings and architects claiming to be green when the huge bulk of the building stock is made up of ‘gas guzzlers’ and our cities are consuming the landscape.

What is Ecopolis? How did you come up with the idea?

In various incarnations, the idea of something called ‘ecopolis’ has come up all over the world in the last 20 years. China and Russia had strong ‘ecopolis’ concepts over 20 years ago. My version dates from 1988 and was an attempt to define the kind of city, or urban system (which, you must remember, includes hinterland and agriculture), that would really deal with the need to fit human civilisation into the patterns of the biosphere. No less!

How did I come up with the idea? I did what everybody does if they are serious about developing worthwhile ideas, I studied what was happening in the real world, and I learned from people who had worked on similar and related ideas in the past. I tried to understand enough about living systems and ecology that I could properly marry the needs of built environments and the natural world and I kept my mind open. That’s all we can ever hope to do, I think.

I’m now part of an international network of people and institutions that are determined to advance the ideas of ecological cities and the development of urbanism that fits nature’s demands. It’s our best, and I think only hope for finding a way to enable civilisation to survive as we tackle a climate that is changing with incredible rapidity. The world’s best climate scientists are now saying that we need to keep the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to no more than 350ppm if we are to have any chance of keeping the planet in a fit state for our survival. Do you know, when I was born the level was only 311ppm? It’s now just about to top 390ppm. Times are desperate and we’re running out of options for maintaining planetary conditions that will enable my 7 grandchildren to live at all, never mind ‘comfortably’.

Construction began in 2006, and it will be finished later this year. The architecture firm behind this 71-story high building is Chicago-based Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. The skyscraper will be home to the China National Tobacco Corporation.

Let’s see, this building will include solar panels, wind turbines, greywater recycling, efficient heating, ventilation and air conditioning, among other features.

The Pearl River Tower will have motorized louvers that open or close according to the position of the sun, and the interior and exterior temperatures. These help keep the building cool, and provide ventilation.

As for the wind turbines, they will generate 4% of the tower’s power. Together with the solar panels, the turbines will power the HVAC (heating, ventilating, and air conditioning).

On the whole, the building will be 58% more energy efficient than conventional skyscrapers.

VIA: Inhabitat / Fortune

The CIRS building will generate all the electricity it needs; and all the water it needs will be collected on-site, from rainwater. Stormwater and grey waters will also be treated. As a result, there will be no waste water. Among the many energy sources considered are fuel cells, solar photovoltaic, solar hot water heaters, and biomass (all of them renewable). The building will be completed in spring/summer 2011.

The UBC has already developed an interesting and successful project called ecotrek, which allowed the campus to reduce its energy use over 20%, and water use by 30%. Yearly electricity and water savings are around $2.6 million. Further, greenhouse gas emissions were reduced 15%. Through the ecotrek project, 300 of UBC’s buildings were upgraded and retrofitted.

Going back to the CIRS, the goal is that the building will be a center of research, and also an object of investigation in itself. It is being constructed in ways that will eventually be relatively easy to replicate in other places. This is another reason to make the building as smart as possible, and to look for cost-effective solutions.

In charge of the design is Busby Perkins + Will.

The CIRS is expected to not emit greenhouse gases, and it will produce more energy than it needs. This extra power will eventually be sold.

Great importance is being paid to the health of the people that will use the building. Daylight will be used as the main lighting source. Materials used will be non-toxic. Besides, there will be regular evaluations of the correct functioning of the building, and of people’s comfort and opinions.

VIA: Ecogeek

More: CIRS

Energy efficiency is the relationship between the amount of energy consumed and the products and services obtained. It can be improved by the use of technology, legislation and education.

A program of energy efficiency should include the following issues: power consumption for residential, commercial and industrial sectors, efficient machines, cogeneration, sustainable architecture, and transportation. It should also include  appropriate legislation; because for example, low energy prices cause an artificial increase in demand. Finally, education at schools, universities and companies is crucial; we must all be involved in this subject. Energy efficiency should be part of the long term energy planning.

Countries with low energy resources have the highest levels of energy efficiency in order to reduce imports, examples are Japan, Denmark and Chile.

Chile installed the Energy Efficiency Program (PPEE) in 2005.  PPEE includes an educational program for primary schools, replacement of electric engines in the industrial sector, efficient lighting in the residential, commercial and public buildings; and studies of cogeneration for the power system.

Japan has an Energy Saving Program which “contributes to promoting the efficient use of energy, protection of the global warming and sustainable development”.  This Program was launched in 2000.

In the United States, the Department of Energy (USDE) “is committed to reducing America’s dependence on foreign oil and developing energy efficient technologies for buildings, homes, transportation, power systems and industry”. Some Energy Tips can be found at the USDE website.

The Ministry of Power of India is promoting energy conservation through the National Awareness Campaign.  The program focuses on the need of conserving energy by educating children and getting their parents involved in the cause.

In Finland, the Government is encouraging people to use energy efficient ways of transport like walking, cycling and using public transport.  Besides, people using private cars are informed about energy efficient vehicles.

As we can see, countries are creating innovative ideas in order to reduce consumption of energy. We will shortly describe one that is growing steadily.

Sustainable Architecture improves energy efficiency.  It uses different techniques to reduce the energy requirements of buildings. It considers weather conditions and surrounding ecosystems of the buildings in order to obtain the maximum performance with less impact. It also considers building materials, reducing energy consumption for heating and cooling (insulating materials), lighting, using renewable energy sources.

The following video describes the construction of a building using sustainable architecture techniques.

VIA: U.S. Department of Energy

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the US government, the national unemployment rate, last October, rose to 10.2%, the highest one since April 1983.

Unemployment means wanting to work and not finding a job. It may mean hunger, despair, lack of opportunities.

On the other hand, we have the highest levels of CO2 in the atmosphere recorded in thousands of years. More CO2 means more greenhouse effect. More greenhouse effect means a warmer planet, with sometimes unpredictable consequences, and other already perceivable effects such as droughts, floods, rising sea levels, and other such natural disasters.

What if we could link these two problems and solve them simultaneously?

Apparently, and fortunately we can.

A report by the Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) says that if the American Clean Energy and Security Act and the Waxman Markey Act were to operate together, they could generate $150 billion per year in new clean-energy investments in the US. Besides, 1.7 million jobs could be created. And if investments were larger, even more jobs could be generated.

Thus, unemployment would be reduced 1%, in just one year. This is taking into account the job losses that would be caused by  a contraction of the conventional fuel sectors.

In a study entitled “Green Jobs Study” by the US Green Building Council, the economic impact of green building construction is described as significant. Currently, the green building construction sector generates 2.4 million jobs, $173 billion in gross domestic product, and $124 million in wages. In the next four years the amount of jobs created will be nearly 8 million and the green building construction sector will add $554 million to the gross domestic product.

Until now, 15 billion kWh were saved thanks to green buildings and 10 million metric tons of CO2 were avoided. In the next four years, the emission of 45 million metric tons of CO2 will be avoided.

I think economic growth and sustainability make a rather cute couple.

VIA: Wonkroom

It’s been a few years since they’ve been working on their environmental impact. Lately, they’ve been developing quite interesting initiatives, and have many plans.

Their work is organized in a number of areas.

Energy consumption

Their latest decision has been to replace conventional light bulbs for LEDs in 8,000 stores. Thanks to this, each store will be saving about 10% in electricity consumption. These LEDs are a special design made for Starbucks by General Electric.

Starbucks has undertaken an energy audit, through which it learned that 80% of its carbon footprint comes from energy use. That’s why this particular area represents the biggest opportunity and challenge to improve. The company has set the goal of consuming 50% renewable energy by 2010, of the total used energy.

Also, many stores are being upgraded and new stores are being built to use 25% less energy. Starbucks has decided that all new stores will be certified green by the end of 2010.

Among other current efforts, stores conserve energy by allowing temperatures to reach 75 degrees instead of 72 on warm days, and so reduce air-conditioning use. Further, in 2008, it bought renewable energy credits that represent 20% of all electricity consumed in US and Canada stores.

Green construction

Starbucks is trying to make its stores greener by improving design, building and operation of the stores. Some actions include the incorporation of sustainable building materials and furnishings, also measures of efficient energy and water usage into store designs.

An important goal that has been established is to make all new stores certified green. Starting in late 2010, all new company-owned stores will be created to function in a green manner, and will follow LEED criteria. Besides, in spring 2010, Starbucks plans to open 10 pilot stores that will test different strategies to reduce energy and water use, and will be LEED certified.

Recycling

Starbucks wants to make 100% of cups reusable or recyclable by 2015.

For the time being, it is promoting customers to bring their own reusable mugs. Customers that bring their own mugs get 10 cents off their price. The company is trying to participate in commercial recycling, avoiding its waste to end up in landfills.

These are the main courses of action developed by Starbucks. I think its initiatives are numerous and interesting. It is encouraging to see how large and successful companies are able to gradually integrate capitalism with a more responsible impact on our environment.

More: Starbucks

For a while now it has been carrying out a strong green initiative. Their latest announcement has been that the number of green hotels they build will be risen 1000%.

Marriott together with Conservation International has developed an environmental strategy which is made up of five main points.

1) Protecting the rainforest

This is described as being a key action in Marriott’s green strategy. The basic idea is to help protect 1.4 million acres (589,000 hectares) of the Juma Sustainable Development Reserve, which includes endangered rainforest. This is done together with the state of Amazonas in Brazil, which manages a plan to control and strengthen protection of the Juma reserve.

Marriott has donated $2 million, and also suggests hotel guests to get involved and contribute. Some aspects of this project include developing employment, education and healthcare for the inhabitants of Juma, who are around 2,500 people.

2) Reduction of water, waste and energy consumption

Among Marriott’s strategies to reduce water consumption, the company has installed 400,000 low-flow showerheads and toilets. The aim is to reduce water consumption in 25% per room in the next 10 years.

To reduce the amount of waste produced, it will expand the already functioning programs “reduce, reuse, recycle” to guest and meeting rooms.

Concerning the energy aspect, the plan is to install solar power in as close to 40 hotels as possible, by 2017. Fuel consumption is intended to be reduced by 25% in the next 10 years. And also, it’s worth noting that during the last decade, Marriott hotels have replaced 450,000 light bulbs with fluorescent lighting.

3) Greening its supply chain

Marriott has major purchasing power, spending around $10 billion a year worldwide. Demanding certain conditions to its suppliers can potentially generate a positive effect on the environment. I’ll just mention some of the actions under way. The company has bought 24 million key cards made of 50% recycled material, which avoided 66 tons of plastic from becoming more trash in landfills. Besides, pillows are starting to be replaced by “eco-pillows” filled with material made from recycled bottles. Not to mention the coreless toilet paper, the environmentally friendly towels, the recycled pens, and biodegradable laundry bags.

4) Building greener hotels

More than 250 of Marriott’s hotels have won the Energy Star label from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), more than any other hotel company. Also, around fifty hotels are expected to achieve LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification.

5) Engaging employees and guests to take action

I think it’s great that Marriott realizes that it can positively impact its guests and employees. It has 300,000 employees, and millions of guests. Marriott’s potential for spreading the “green word” is huge. First, guests are offered the possibility of offsetting their carbon footprint by donating to the Juma project. Further, the “eco-events” menu has been launched, that offers a series of environmentally friendly products and services for meetings.

For all of these actions, Marriott has been given awards and has been included in several sustainability lists. Some of them include the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency award to Marriott with its 2009 Sustained Excellence award. Also Marriott has been named an EPA Partner of the Year since 2004.

Evidently, hotels can be both green and successful. Hopefully this kind of initiative will continue to spread and develop.

Via: Treehugger

Marriott