BUILDING GREEN IN NOLA

Global Green USA announced in August 2006 the winner of "GREEN.O.LA," a design competition for sustainable housing in New Orleans, Louisiana. The winning design by Andrew Kotchen and Matthew Berman, of workshop/apd, integrates sustainable technologies with traditional forms. Their work is expected to "help improve the lives of families by lowering energy costs and improving the health of the residents." Next week we'll take a closer look at the project's design and green features.

FOOTBRIDGE ACROSS THE SEINE

Design engineers RFR and Feichtinger Architectes have created Passerelle Simone de Beauvoir, a new pedestrian bridge that crosses the Seine in Paris. Although the overall geometry of the 885-foot- (270-meter-) long structure is reminiscent of existing Parisian bridge forms, the three "ribbons" of the deck follow two opposing curves of an innovative truss form. The central deck rises with one curve while the flanking decks fall. Next week we'll see how this unusual bridge came about, through an equally unusual construction process.