Evelyn is the program manager for Public Architecture in San Francisco, CA, where she oversees all aspects of their 1% Program. She donates a lot of her free time to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) where she currently serves as the Associate Representative on the executive committee of the AIA National Board. She is a frequent contributor to a number of architecture publications and also serves as a contributing editor to Design Intelligence. A graduate of the Southern California Institute of Architect's (SCIArc) Metropolitan Research and Design program, she is constantly searching for new avenues to expand her architectural knowledge. When she's away from the computer, Evelyn enjoys running, playing the piano, driving her Prius, and coaching/playing soccer.
Just north of I-80, between Toledo and Cleveland, is an unexpected educational facility that is setting a shining example of sustainable building for ecological and human health. Completed in 2000, the Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies is an ongoing green build experiment, as its energy performance is studied and adjusted as green technologies continue to evolve. We wouldn’t expect less from Inhabitat favorite William McDonough + Partners, but were surprised to find that this particular PV-powered experiment was taking place in Ohio. It just goes to show that you don’t have to live in sunny California in order to efficiently harvest solar power.
Foster+Partners is making their mark in Amsterdam with their newly completed towers housing the headquarters for Ernst & Young. Standing 24 stories tall, the new tower has been dubbed the “gateway” to the Vivaldi Park area of a new Zuidas district development south of Amsterdam. While it is arguable that the new Ernst & Young headquarters is not nearly as highly designed of as some of our past Foster + Partners postings, there are at least two things that we can guarantee about this new design: the building is completed and it is exceeding targeted Dutch environmental standards.
CherryPal is taking cloud computing mainstream in a big way with a soon to be released green personal computer. This green PC comes in a small, affordable package weighing just 10.5 ounces and consuming no more than two watts of power. The triple-core processor only has one fifth of the components of traditional computers, boots-up in 20 seconds, and promises to be faster than Vista and mac’s OS-X.
Las Vegas is taking the lead in green development by planning the largest privately financed development in the history of North America vying for the USGBC’s LEED certification. At 18 million square feet, the new sustainable spot on the strip called CityCenter boasts a square footage that is bigger than all current LEED certified buildings combined. Currently under construction between the Bellagio and Monte Carlo resorts, the center’s first building, Aria, is scheduled to open at the end of 2009. An $8 billion venture between MGM MIRAGE and Dubai World, CityCenter is bringing sustainability to the forefront, rightfully earning the tag of one of the world’s largest environmentally sustainable urban communities.
Aptly nicknamed the “green blade,” Jean Nouvel’s newest addition to the asphalt laden City of Angels slices through the concrete jungle at 10,000 Santa Monica, adding much needed greenery to the surrounding office towers. Standing 45 stories tall and little more than 50 feet deep, this statuesque green structure is bound to make an sustainable impact that we hope others will follow.
What does one of the largest independently owned oil and gas companies do to turn over a more sustainable leaf? Well, in this case, EnCana hired green-tech architecture firm du jour Foster + Partners to design their new, environmentally sustainable headquarters in Calgary, Canada. Dubbed The Bow, the new tower’s namesake comes from its overall shape, as well as the breathtaking views it offers inhabitants of the Bow River. As expected from a Foster + Partners design, the form of this sustainable skyscraper follows some very green function.
It takes more than renewable materials to turn the head of seasoned sustainable design fans. This is why our gaze fell so admirably on the line of housewares from Domestic Aesthetic while making our way through the ICFF this past week. Domestic Aesthetic’s motto “live well, live right” extends beyond their product line into the surrounding community, with social responsibility high on their list of priorities. With a beautiful line of handcrafted pieces, this truly green-minded company is out to make eco-friendly easier for both buyers and manufacturers, and we have to admit that the results are beautiful.
We are nuts about Mark Harrison’s Husque homewares made from recycled macadamia nut shells. The inspired form of these fun pieces reflect the material’s origins, and take advantage of an often discarded resource. Harrison developed a special compound that combines the shells with injection molding to create colorful bowls inspired by nature and place. Using nuts, pods and other organic shapes as inspiration, each piece carries with it a natural history of Australia.
Always quick to act, Architecture For Humanity is quickly pulling together efforts to offer design services to the survivors left in Cyclone Nargis’ wake this past Saturday. With more than two million people now displaced in Myanmar, even small donations will be a big help in AFH’s effort to rebuild. More than 85% of the donations go directly toward innovative design and construction solutions.
At the time of writing, $13,500 have been raised (and 25% matched) by more than 240 donors who believe in the power of design to rebuild communities. If you would like to contribute to the cause or volunteer follow the link below:
New sustainable furniture company EcoSystems creates cute, family-friendly furniture that is as thoughtful of the environment as it is to the owner. Starting with renewable materials, EcoSystems follows an earth-minded agenda from start to finish, including taking responsibility for their designs at end of its (first) lifecycle, by taking back and recycling their furniture when you are done with it. Did we mention this stuff is super cute and durable - coming in a variety of primary colors and innovation seating/table configurations? Ecosystems will be showing at BKLYN Designs this weekend, and you can be sure that Abigail and Jill will be stopping at this booth during Sunday’s Mother’s Day Green Design Walking Tour >
We love the idea of this green lamp that blends natural textures with recycled materials to bring a bit of nature indoors. Conceived by three Venetian architects for a charity competition, the Grass-On Lamp by ITlab is made entirely of recycled materials, including the synthetic grass, and completely recyclable. The cube structure of the lamp gives it added versatility, letting it rest on the floor, on a table, or suspended from the air.
David Trubridge, one of New Zealand’s most celebrated green designers, reincarnates natural forms as light fixtures and seating in his latest work, which he presented at Salone Internazionale del Mobile last week. Tracing the curvilinear forms found in the island’s landscape, his Spiral Island collection evokes a sense of natural wonder in viewers, and garnered a line of eager spectators at the Salone show in Milan. Despite their large volume, the lighting fixtures float delicately overhead, giving new emphasis to the Maori name for New Zealand, Aotearoa, meaning ‘land of the long white cloud.’ Meanwhile, the colorful ‘Island’ seating will have your rear grounded in comfortable spiral bliss, mimicking the organic forms of the island in eco-sensitive style.
IBIS’ (Intelligent building = Integrated + Sustainable) latest live/work town homes in Sonoma County, California lends sustainable style to the county’s largest gray water bio-remediation system while securing LEED Gold. The Florence Lofts Project is a 12 unit development that integrates a myriad of environmentally friendly practices into welcoming, livable spaces furthering the IBIS ideology that sustainability can yield a stylish way of life.
Adding to the growing LEED Platinum collection of homes in southern California including Project7Ten House and the Living Homes design by Ray Kappe, the Pasadena EcoHouse designed by StudioRMA is cited to become the first concrete LEED Platinum home in the USA. Built primarily of a green SCIPs (Structural Concrete Insulated Panels) similar to Green Sandwich Bio Panel used by William McDonough + Partners and made of 60% recycled material, the designers believe this home will be a landmark project and will have a camera crew and production team on hand to document the construction process every step of the way.
With the growing need for more dense sustainable housing, we can only hope that more developers will take a cue from Phoenix-based Modus Development and their latest residences, The Galleries at Turney. Thanks to some thoughtful insight from Modus president, Ed Gorman, what once contained two old homes on overgrown lots now contain eight free-standing residences with enough luxury and privacy to make you feel as though you’re coming home to the spa every evening. The Galleries at Turney prove again that green building is every bit as aesthetically pleasing as other award-winning designs, having captured two AIA Awards for Design and Sustainability while being given the honor of receiving Arizona’s 1st LEED-H certification.
It looks as though LEED, the leading measure of green building standards in the US, is already having problems keeping up with the new building technologies related to sustainable design. Original press releases regarding Thom Mayne’s Federal Building had the building slated at a minimum of LEED Silver, with more than 70 percent of the structure cooled through natural ventilation. Even with consultants on hand from the Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory laying out detailed computer simulations of the interior environment, the Federal Building does not base qualifications for LEED Certification.
As soon as we saw them, we instantly fell in love with Brio54’s new set of prefab residential prototypes. A young, design-driven development firm, Brio54’s mission is to provide sustainable, affordable design while delivering high quality construction. Home buyers of all types will delight in Brio54’s wide variety of offerings - whether you live in a suburban area, are looking to refurbish or rehab, or have an empty urban infill lot. Brio54’s first prefab prototype, the H1, (pictured above) is currently in the final stage of planning, and construction is slated to begin production in the spring of 2008.
We’ve featured a variety of different shipping container homes, from a quick emergency shelter, to LOT-EK’s container home kit, student housing , and even an entire container city in London. One thing’s for sure, there isn’t a shortage of uses for containers as shelter, especially for those who like that super industrial architecture aesthetic. Leger Wanaselja Architecture finished their Container House at the close of last year, bringing a more traditional look to the container composed residence, located on top of a hill in an East Bay suburb overlooking San Francisco, Calif.
If you like the portability of the Phillips LED Candle light, but want something a bit “sweeter,” check out Nick Foley’s Pear Light. Custom made from hand-forged steel, this tree of light comes bearing fruit with rechargeable LEDs that allows you to take the lights with you down dark hallways. Once “picked” from the tree, each pear stays illuminated for about an hour. To bring it back to life, just place it back on the tree, where it will recharge for your night-viewing pleasure.
Style|Shake is making a dress designer out of everyone, giving anybody the opportunity to create something as unique as their individual personality. Step into Style|Shake’s design studio, pick the fabric (their silk is organically sourced), upper bodice, neckline, sleeves, waist panel, lower bodice, and trimmings and you’ve got a unique dress for all your holiday parties. There’s definitely something sustainable about personalization, creating unique one-of-a kind articles that guarantees 100% use and leaves no overruns to waste.
Star Wars inspiration and biomimicry combine for the design of the Facility at Sea, a sustainable marine research platform and feat of offshore building engineering. The concept came together in an architecture studio at the University of Texas, which evaluated potential applications of the soaring structural designs of Star Wars for a marine research facility. Designer Jason Mellard took further inspiration from the engineering acumen of Santiago Calatrava and present-day offshore oil platforms.
Southern California is adding to its growing collection of uber-green LEED Platinum homes with the recent completion of the Project7Ten House. While the original renderings of this design looked promising, nothing inspires us more than seeing green buildings actually get built. The photographs of this recently constructed green house far surpass the original renderings we saw a few months back, and we are thrilled to see such an elegant eco-house for sale in LA.
Here’s a piece of furniture that lets a child spark their imagination without having the parents run for the wood protector, Windex, or an upholstery cleaner. The Fundy Play Table, shown here with the Taj Chair, comes with its very own drawing surface in the form of a chalk board or a dry erase board (whichever you prefer), in a very clean white finish or a more playful orange. Complete with enough storage room for all the necessary tools any child requires when drawing their next master piece, other arts and crafts, or even the toys you want kept out of sight, the Fundy Play Table is also safe for the little ones complete with slow closing hinges and locking casters.
We love Pkolino’s line of children’s furniture for their bright use of color, durability, and creative ingenuity that makes little ones’ furniture appealing to tots and adults alike. The P’kolino Klick is no exception, combining workspace for your toddler with a clever puzzle-like design that provides storage space for all their art supplies.
Introducing a hydrogen car that everyone can afford! … if only we could fit inside. Released earlier this year, the H-Racer is the world’s smallest hydrogen car (at 16cm x 7cm) and comes with a little price tag to match. At only $80, it will be hard for both kids and adults to keep their hands off. The best part? The H-Racer comes with its very own solar-powered hydrogen refueling station. READ MORE >
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