French architect Stéphane Malka has a very interesting proposal for how to renovate an old apartment building in Paris. Plug-in City 75, as the project is named, calls for attaching a series of wooden boxes to the building’s façade, which will have the dual function of increasing the interior space of the apartments, as well as make the structure more energy efficient.
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When architect Stefano Boeri first came up with the concept of the so-called Bosco Verticale (Vertical Forest), that is two skyscrapers clad in greenery, many people believed it would remain just a concept and never see the light of day. But now, a third Vertical Forest is to be built in Nanjing, China.
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The Vietnamese firm Vo Trong Nghia Architects recently completed the so-called Binh House in Ho Chi Minh City. While it is made of concrete, which is not the most sustainable material, they have found a way to cool it naturally. It also has many plants softening up its façade, which makes it a welcome island of greenery within the city. The firm is planning to build other such houses as part of their House for Trees series.
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Belgian architect Vincent Callebaut has recently come up with an interesting and unique solution to turning an old, 1970’s apartment building into a very sustainable complex. His plans call for the transformation of the existing concrete structure into an energy producing building with a green façade.
Callebaut would leave the building as is, but would add 274 planter beds into its ornamental façade. These would hold about 10,000 plants carefully chosen by botanists, to create a sort of vertical garden or green façade, which would increase the building’s thermal performance and clean the air. According to Callebaut’s calculations the plants would capture 50 tons of C02 per year. The windows of the apartments would also have to be exchanged for energy saving ones to further improve the thermal performance of the building. Keeping the green façade flourishing would not be difficult at all, since there would be a drip-feed system that would require maintenance only twice a year. (more…)
Vertical gardens are great for façades, insulation and to add a bit of greenery to a home or office. But the problem with them is that they require a lot of maintenance and power to flourish. Well, that could be a thing of the past. The firm Treebox, which specializes in urban greening, has created a vertical garden, which is entirely self-sustaining. (more…)
