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CRADLE TO CRADLE WINNER
In 2002, architect William McDonough and chemist Michael Braungart published Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things, in which they argued that energy efficiency and waste reduction are not sufficient as sustainability goals. Architects should instead aim for waste avoidance. To explore possibilities for implementation, an international Cradle to Cradle Home Design and Construction Competition called for submissions with innovative approaches to materials and systems for sustainable residential design. The winning team, from Seattle, presents their design that reflects the paradigm and vision laid out in the book. — Editor — Published 2005.0713
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ICELANDIC CLARIFICATIONS
Unlike most of Europe, Iceland has no stained-glass tradition dating back to the Middle Ages. Windows were imported until the 20th century. Against this backdrop, in April 2005, artists, curators, critics, and scholars from 14 countries gathered at Kópavogur for Iceland 2005: Architectural Glass Conference.
Hosted by the Kópavogur Art Museum, participants enjoyed a comprehensive overview of the extraordinary developments in architectural glass art since the 1950s and speculated about the future of the art form. — Published 2005.0622
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COOL COLORS: COOLER ROOFS
Roofs and the rainbow of colors used in roofing materials are getting cooler, thanks to research by scientists in the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Environmental Energy Technologies Division (EETD). "Cooler" roofs reflect more solar radiation, and in warm climates, this means lower interior temperatures and smaller cooling loads, saving energy and money. — Published 2005.0608
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REGARDING WATER
A building can outwardly but subtly express the functions it shelters and express institutional regard towards its surrounding context. An example of this is the new office building for Rijkswaterstaat Zeeland, the Department of Water Management and Transport (RWS), in Middelburg, The Netherlands. Through its many sustainability features, it shows deference to energy and water conservation and to the well being of its occupants. — Published 2005.0413
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COMPUTER-AIDED GREEN DESIGN
Like Renaissance master-builders who analyzed and visualized their designs by working with physical models and full-scale construction, modern architects have opportunities to master a holistic, integrated design process. But today's models are digital, and the "full-scale" construction is virtual, using the newest computer-aided design technologies. — Published 2005.0330
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A BETTER SUBURBIA
Visiting "Village Homes" for the first time, one is struck by how different this 1970s-era community looks from typical California developments. Arriving by car, one notices narrower streets and less visually dominant parking, with access kept to the edges along long, narrow cul-de-sac streets. — Published 2005.0119
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RECOVERING KINGSDALE
The refurbishment of a dilapidated 50-year-old secondary school in a London suburb has set a number of significant benchmarks for school design in the United Kingdom. The project has lifted concepts of roof design to new heights with what may be the first "variable membrane" roof in the world. — Published 2004.1103
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LITERALLY GREEN FACADES
"Facade greening" is essentially the use of a living — and therefore self-regenerating — cladding system for buildings in which climbing plants, or in some cases trained shrubs, cover the surface of a building.
Climbers can dramatically reduce the maximum temperatures of a building by shading walls from the sun. They can reduce the daily temperature fluctuation by as much as 50 percent, a fact of great importance in warm-summer climate zones. — Published 2004.0728
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GREEN SCHOOL GATHERS FOR TAKEOFF
When architects speak of "green" buildings these days, they seldom mean it literally. But for the elementary/ middle school in Lake Zurich, Illinois, Legat Architects, Inc. have justified both environmental and chromatic interpretations of the word. They designed the new school for sustainability and gave it a distinctive copper entrance that the students have dubbed "the green spaceship." Says their principal: "They keep waiting for it to blast off!" — Published 2004.0526
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SPECIFYING WINDOWS AND GLAZING
— Published 2004.0211
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