In the world of green furnishings there are always a few literalists out there looking to push the envelope and create something truly “green”. Growing and thriving with CO2 neutralizing chlorophyll, Inhabitat’s Top 5 Living Furnishings presents a range of items from the practical to the prototypical. Some are bound by man-made restraints while others grow directly from the soil–in any form or fashion, these designs are truly alive!
Shortly after Al Gore debuted An Inconvenient Truth the general public started giving a damn about climate change — at least superficially. And in a massive wave of effort to show off our new enviro-consciousness, every apartment, townhouse and megamansion from Norway to New Zealand swapped their incandescent light bulbs for more energy efficient CFLs, or compact fluorescent lamps. Watt for watt, there’s no question whether or not CFLs save energy as compared to their predecessors. But with the concerns of toxic mercury and the recent developments in LED technology, CFLs may not be the smartest choice for long-term sustainability. Read on for our in-depth report!
Temporary ice hotels materialize each winter in frigid northern towns from Russia to Canada. As temperatures rise in the spring the structures melt back into the earth. Now Dubai is poised to get its first year-round ice lodge, Blue Crystal. And considering the amount of energy needed to keep a man made iceberg under 32 degrees in scorching summers on the Persian Gulf, it’s almost amusing to hear Blue Crystal touted as sustainable.
Architecturally and thematically designed in the shape of a drop of water, the Water Building Resort intends to become the first building ever to convert air into water with the help of solar power. What sounds like magic will be achieved with the following combination of nature and technology: A sunny, southerly facing facade made of photovoltaic glass will harness solar energy, allowing light to pass through. The northern facade features a latticed design for ventilation as well as unprecedented Teex Micron equipment that will convert humid air and condensation into pure drinking water.
Simple yet clever, we’re raising our glasses to the inventive repurposing behind the Re-Juicer. The Re-Juicer turns an orange into OJ with the twist of a wrist and a plastic water bottle. Another cheeky product from New York designer and founder of Amron Experimental, Scott Amron, the Re-Juicer is made from the bottom part of a Poland Springs water bottle. Because of the bottle’s inherent flexibility, it easily bends to pour your fresh squeezed juice into a glass. Cheers to that!
More ironic than practical, Swiss designer Michel Bussien’s Growing Chair evokes pertinent ideas for the 21st century: nature trapped within the confines of man, manicured at his whim, or a specimen preserved behind glass – like fossils in a museum. On the other hand, when I look at the Growing Chair, I see the proliferation of life despite artificial boundaries. But, perhaps it’s something much simpler than that – a lush little greenhouse with a seat to enjoy it?
The Pyramid Farm is an incredible concept for the future of agriculture envisioned by professors Eric Ellingsen and Dickson Despommier. The design is based on the growing belief (is it fact yet?) that vertical farming will soon become a necessary lifeline in cities throughout the world. The human population is growing exponentially and increasingly more urban while the global food supply shortening. Despommier speculates that if nothing is done to advance current farming techniques, 3 billion people could face starvation by 2060. The Pyramid Farm offers a solution in the form of a complete self-sufficient ecosystem that covers everything from food production to waste management.
In the ever-expanding metropolis of Mexico City, green space is hard to come by. An estimated population of 22 million inhabitants bears an impressive weight on the Valley of Mexico and, in recent years, architects and urbanists have been examining solutions to combat the thickening smog. This stunning Vertical Park by Jorge Hernandez de la Garza intends to infuse the city with much-needed green space in the form of a modular skyscraper made up of a series of stacking units. The solar-powered structure contains sky-gardens in addition to spaces for living and working, and recycles all of its own water.
Distrito C is an ambitious project designed to consolidate 40,000 employees in Madrid from Spain’s largest company, Telefonica. The complex includes four phases of three buildings each, for a total of twelve structures. The design and materials for the buildings are identical so as to streamline the construction process and keep time and material waste to a minimum. And by keeping construction and production as simple as possible, Telefonica maintains the clean, unified look the company is after.
Modeled after the wings of a dragonfly, this incredible urban farm concept for New York City’s Roosevelt Island intends to ease the problems of food mileage and shortage, and reconnect consumers with producers. Urban farming is a growing trend amongst savvy city dwellers today, but in a densely packed borough like Manhattan, growth must come vertically. Spanning 132 floors and 600 vertical meters, the Dragonfly can accommodate 28 different agricultural fields for the production of fruit, vegetables, grains, meat and dairy. A combination of solar and wind power make Belgian architect Vincent Callebaut’s Dragonfly concept %100 self sufficient.
Not only did this Tulsa loft give Oklahoma its very first LEED certification — it went platinum. Local architect Shelby Navarro pulled out every green design strategy in the book for this project from geothermal heating to a bison-grass green roof and recycled glass floors. Consisting of two attached lofts, the home is just a short walk from shopping and a block from a bike trail in Tulsa’s up-and-coming Cherry Street District neighborhood.
Too many tomatoes? Too few fava beans? Why not swap them with Veggie Trader, a brand new online community for gardeners and eaters alike. On the site you can list fruits, veggies and herbs and either negotiate a trade or just plain buy and sell them. And beyond supporting at-home gardening and fresh eats, Veggie Trader also hopes to build communities of gardeners by encouraging users to plan their harvest and specialize in certain crops.
Villas des Vignoles or EDEN BIO is an entire block of public housing nestled in urban Paris. The newly unveiled dwellings are enclosed in a small alley with plenty of nooks and crannies for gardening, composting or even small rabbit hutches—as designer Edouard Francios so picturesquely envisioned. Green walls or vegetable facades will hug the exterior of the housing block, and in the coming months trees will begin to shoot off branches. The landscaping will continue to grow into its surroundings aging like a fine French wine.
Slovenian architect studio OFIS was recently granted a 25 year lease by the Maldivian government to develop a set of four islands into tropical eco resorts. Each island’s plan demonstrates concern for the local environment, the ability to self-sustain, and the developers’ genuine intent to maintain the cultural and ecological authenticity of the local area. Their proposal, which includes a 100-bed 5-star resort, will be spread throughout the islands with a variety of different accommodation styles, from bungalow to villa. This will all be done according to local law, of course, which, among other stipulations, requires that no building can be higher than the tallest tree on the island.
One of fifteen finalists in our Spring Greening DIY Design Contest, Nibha Jain and Srikanth Jalasutram’s “Orange” dish drying rack puts wet dishes to work by using their droplets to water a mini herb garden. Clothes pins attached to one side hold flatware and smaller items while the built in rack is suitable for anything you can throw at it (but the kitchen sink!). The tray has an inclined base which funnels water drips towards a small plant of your choosing, making this an ingenious invention for keeping cooking herbs close at hand. If you agree, be sure to vote for it in our Spring Greening Contest!
With Easter on its way, those of us who engaged in egg-dying festivities are likely to have lots of empty egg crates lying around. Rather than tossing them in the trash (or compost bin!), why not follow Federico Otero’s example and transform them into elegant examples of DIY design. One of fifteen finalists in our Spring Greening Contest, the Origen lamp is formed from several 30-pack egg crates interlocked around a light bulb that gives off a soft, warm glow. If you’re a fan of this design, be sure to vote for it in our contest post!
The Helix Hotel in Abu Dhabi’s Zayed Bay doesn’t have floors like we’re used to – instead it spirals in sections of a corkscrew from top to bottom with no clear breaks, flowing from retail to residential, and hotel suites to saunas. The hollow center keeps foot traffic flowing while infusing interior spaces with coastal air and natural light, while on the outside GROW panels are fast at work harnessing solar and wind energy. Because of its unique design, every room has a slighly different view — perfect for watching over the contruction of Zaha Hadid’s Sheikh Zayed Bridge just next door.
Fast food packaging takes up a hefty chunk of our landfill space while effectively clear-cutting our forests. The golden arch proprietors dole out over 2 billion burgers a year, each individually wrapped in plastic coated paper and thrown into a paper bag with a few paper napkins–that’s about 75 per second, worldwide. Toss in a dozen other fast food conglomerates and we’re up to our ears in greasy garbage. What’s worse is that most of this paper makes its way into a trashcan after only about 5 minutes of use. Seeking to counter this consumptive cycle, University of the Arts grad student, Andrew Millar, designed biodegradable packaging for McDonald’s from grass paper, which has naturally grease-resistant properties.
While there’s still some guilt to be had when indulging in a deep-fried take-out, if the restaurant is equipped with a VegaWatt oil converter you can claim you’re only doing it to help the environment. A VegaWatt machine turns used vegetable oil into clean heat and energy for restaurants, eliminating the dirty and costly mess of oil disposal while producing 10-25% of the electricity needed to run a small restaurant.
Soil naturally contains energy conducive metals like zinc, copper and iron, and microbial fuel cells (sometimes referred to as an earth batteries) are capable of converting electrolytes in soil into usable energy. Dutch designer Marieke Strap’s Soil Lamp uses conductive plates made from copper and zinc buried within the soil to provide constant and (nearly) eternal light for an LED bulb. Maintaining a Soil Lamp is as simple as watering a plant – just feed it a splash of water every now and then to keep the energy flowing.
