The great American architect Daniel Burnham once said, "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood."  The Venus Project is no little plan — it's a proposal for a total redesign of the world.  From cities on the sea to mass transit, mega sky scrapers, and even colonies in outer space, it covers every angle.  Furthermore, it proposes to achieve all of this by switching to a resource-based economy and adopting radical lifestyle changes.  The plan is large, thoroughly documented, and beautifully rendered.  The architecture even comes with plans to build the machines needed to build these massive structures.  Here's a look at just a couple of the many concepts …

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This classic American home is the end result of smart planning, high performance materials, and passive design techniques.  Designed on a $100,000 dollar budget by the Michigan firm of Dominick Tringali Architects, the project is set to be a prototype for the next generation of Habitat for Humanity homes.  Lets take a closer look…

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A competition for a community plan in China recently declared a winning entry entitled "The Tree of Light." The local government of Miyi County was looking for a way to create a landmark body of architecture to serve as a foundation for further development in the area.  From the banks of the Anning River rises a comprehensive master plan addressing needs for education, environmental restoration, and community identity.

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With all the recent discussion about crumbling infrastructure and stimulus spending, it seems appropriate to talk about a design proposal that is actively addressing many issues that are showing progress across the country.  Project Green, slated for downtown Austin, Texas, represents a comprehensive approach to sustainability in the context of an urban, mixed-use development.  In addition to incorporating the usual features like solar panels and wind turbines, this proposal takes a serious approach to handling the most precious resource on earth.  Water.  

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This exciting new line of prefab houses comes to us from Bensonwood Homes, based out of Walpole, New Hampshire.  Their Unity House, a Unity2 model built for the president of Unity College, has achieved a LEED platinum rating, making it one of a select group of homes around the country to reach such a lofty goal.  And the small design-build company debuts not one, two, or even three, but four stunning models to the sustainable housing market.  Reasonably priced and quickly assembled, all homes in the series are designed to be net-zero energy.  The design aesthetic seems to lean towards the classic single family American home, while the high tech materials and features thrust towards the future of home building.  The list of sustainable features is long to be sure, but here are a few key elements.

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