archdaily: reaching for sustainable world

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  • 7/27/2019 ArchDaily: Reaching for Sustainable World

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    Reaching for a Sustainable World

    Mother Nature is degrading due to the increasing exposure to greenhouse gasses caused by flawed

    human activities. To prevent the Earths demise, society should maintain green and sustainablelifestyles. Sustainability could be achieved if people are able to maintain an ecological balance in

    the Earths environment, thus avoiding an extreme depletion of our natural resources.1 There are

    many aspects of our everyday life that could be made sustainable, including our homes. A green

    building and a city are characterized by their effective and least disruptive use of resources that

    assure the healthiest form of environment.2 They are essentially architecture that aims for

    eternity (Christopher Wren), or otherwise meaning they could sustain itself with green resources

    and encourage sustainability.

    In order to realize our envisioned green and sustainable world, one must first learn the technology

    that a green building, and a green city, should possess. For instance, the sustainable city of Masdarin Abu Dhabi is an example of a green city that built their own research center in order to provide

    their city with the best green technology, even throughout the citys construction. As a result, most

    of its energy is originated from the 10 MW of solar energy that is able to power approximately 22

    hectares of the city. Moreover, Masdar city provides a green public transportation system and paved

    sidewalks for pedestrians, because private vehicles are forbidden on the site. Lastly, this city is

    filled with various kinds of sustainable facilities and living buildings that are made out of recycled

    materials from previous constructions. Additionally, the citys planning is designed in a way that

    would save energy, such as how all the buildings are built close to each other to provide shade and

    cool the citys temperature, thus minimizing the use of air conditioners.3

    1 Ehrlich, Eugene. Oxford American Dictionary. New York: Oxford UP, 1980. Print.

    2 "WHAT IS A GREEN BUILDING? Fundamental Principles of Green Building and Sustainable Site Design." Governor's

    Green Government Council. Governor's Green Government Council, n.d. Web. 20 May 2013. .

    3Masdar: The City of the Future. YouTube. YouTube, 26 Sept. 2012. Web. 20 May 2013. .

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIaz61zpLfshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIaz61zpLfshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIaz61zpLfshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIaz61zpLfshttp://www.epa.gov/statelocalclimate/documents/pdf/12_8_what_is_green_GGGC.pdfhttp://www.epa.gov/statelocalclimate/documents/pdf/12_8_what_is_green_GGGC.pdfhttp://www.epa.gov/statelocalclimate/documents/pdf/12_8_what_is_green_GGGC.pdfhttp://www.epa.gov/statelocalclimate/documents/pdf/12_8_what_is_green_GGGC.pdf
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    Furthermore, a sustainable city should be adorned with sustainable buildings. An immaculate

    example of a green building is the Vivaldi tower located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. This 28 -

    stories building is made by the Foster & Partners architectural group located in the United

    Kingdom. It is characterized by its use of environmentally friendly resources, such as the steel

    diagrid with a mixture of opaque and transparent glazing that are used to create the faade. These

    materials prompt natural sunlight to enter the building during the day, thus minimizing the use of

    energy for electrical lighting. Moreover, the abundance of sunlight garner heat inside the building,

    consequently reducing the energy use for heaters during the winter. Moreover, this building is

    known to utilize environmentally friendly resources, such as wind and geothermal power, which are

    the two mostly used renewable energy resources in the Netherlands. This means that the Vivaldi

    tower is not only a green building, but also a living building, which is a term invented by William

    McDonough to refer the buildings that are able to sustain themselves from the infinite renewable

    energy resources.4

    4McDonough, William, Cradle to Cradle, P. 49.

    Masdar City

    Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Masdar_City.JPG/275px-Masdar_City.JPG

    Masdar City: Aerial View

    Source: http://www.esri.com/news/arcnews/fall09articles/fall09gifs/p26p1-lg.jpg

    http://www.esri.com/news/arcnews/fall09articles/fall09gifs/p26p1-lg.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Masdar_City.JPG/275px-Masdar_City.JPGhttp://www.esri.com/news/arcnews/fall09articles/fall09gifs/p26p1-lg.jpghttp://www.esri.com/news/arcnews/fall09articles/fall09gifs/p26p1-lg.jpghttp://www.esri.com/news/arcnews/fall09articles/fall09gifs/p26p1-lg.jpghttp://www.esri.com/news/arcnews/fall09articles/fall09gifs/p26p1-lg.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Masdar_City.JPG/275px-Masdar_City.JPGhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Masdar_City.JPG/275px-Masdar_City.JPGhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Masdar_City.JPG/275px-Masdar_City.JPGhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Masdar_City.JPG/275px-Masdar_City.JPGhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Masdar_City.JPG/275px-Masdar_City.JPGhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/Masdar_City.JPG/275px-Masdar_City.JPG
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    There are other ountless of conventional ways that a building and a city could be made sustainable.

    Nonetheless, the most crucial aspect of making a city green is the promotion of sustainable lifestyle

    to the citys residents, especially by the government. Changing the mindset of the people to be

    green will probably be the most difficult phase of making a city truly sustainable. However, the

    world will only be genuinely sustainable if the entire community care for their environments well

    being.

    Vivaldi Towers Faade

    Source : h t tp : / /s ta t ic .wor ldarch i tectu renews.com/news_images/12455_2_1218_FP370048_addit ional%20image%201.jpg

    Vivaldi Tower

    Source: https://reader009.{domain}/reader009/html5/0402/5ac25c2271956/5ac25c277c95b.s/amsterdam/vivaldi_tower_foster120608_1.jpg

    http://www.e-architect.co.uk/images/jpgs/amsterdam/vivaldi_tower_foster120608_1.jpghttp://www.e-architect.co.uk/images/jpgs/amsterdam/vivaldi_tower_foster120608_1.jpghttp://www.e-architect.co.uk/images/jpgs/amsterdam/vivaldi_tower_foster120608_1.jpghttp://www.e-architect.co.uk/images/jpgs/amsterdam/vivaldi_tower_foster120608_1.jpg